Buy Before You Sell

18 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Selling a House in a Divorce

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    Adrian E. Hirsch,  Contributing Author
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    Adrian E. Hirsch Contributing Author

    Adrian E. Hirsch is a South Louisiana interviewer, writer, editor, blogger and scriptwriter. She’s covered the region’s unique lifestyle, landmarks, architecture, art, antiques, food, music, pets and healthcare issues for the Los Angeles Times Syndicate, New Orleans, Memphis and Gambit magazines among others. Having bought, sold and built homes, she’s survived the whims of the market, contractors, kids, rescued cats and dogs—not to mention hurricanes, erosion and termite invasion. Her real estate reporting aims to help families find the right home and maximize the potential of that major investment.

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    Richard Haddad,  Executive Editor
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    Richard Haddad Executive Editor

    Richard Haddad is the executive editor of HomeLight.com. He works with an experienced content team that oversees the company’s blog featuring in-depth articles about the home buying and selling process, homeownership news, home care and design tips, and related real estate trends. Previously, he served as an editor and content producer for World Company, Gannett, and Western News & Info, where he also served as news director and director of internet operations.

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DISCLAIMER: As a friendly reminder, this blog post is meant to be used for educational purposes only, not legal advice. If you need assistance navigating what steps to take before selling a house during a divorce, HomeLight always encourages you to reach out to your own advisor.

Deciding whether to sell a house before or after a divorce is one of the more pressing financial questions couples face when a marriage doesn’t work out.

Ultimately, your individual circumstances will determine whether it’s best to sell your home before or after the divorce is final. But no matter the timing, experts agree that it’s important to identify some essential cooperative actions that can lead to a successful sale.

Dawn Bremer, a top agent in McHenry, Illinois, specializes in helping divorcing or divorced clients. She is passionate about giving her clients the benefit of both her inexperience — when she was a homeowner whose divorce led to the short sale of her home — and her current experience as a knowledgeable real estate professional.

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To help you figure out the best path forward, Bremer shares 18 questions to ask yourself before selling a house in a divorce.

Identifying your family’s priorities

  1. How can both spouses best work together to meet the common goal of selling/getting the most for the home?
  1. Are there children who need to stay in their current school or change schools for the next semester?
  1. What requirements for other cohabiting individuals in the home (elderly parents, adult children, grandchildren, pets, etc.,) need to be met (i.e., ADA-compliant housing, proximity to public transportation, school district, backyard)?
  1. How long will it take to find those accommodations?

Dividing up responsibilities for a successful sale

  1. Who is responsible for updating the other party on the status of the sale?
  1. Who’s responsible for choosing the real estate/closing attorney?
  1. Who’s responsible for choosing the real estate agent?
  1. Who will pay the mortgage, property tax, and insurance?
  1. Who will pay for and transfer utility bills (water, gas, electric, trash, sewer)?
  1. Who will be responsible for maintaining the property?
  1. When will the house be available for showings?
  1. Who will coordinate showing requests?
  1. Who will pay for any buyer-requested or inspection-required repairs?

Note: Top-notch Realtors® such as Bremer often offer concierge service and will take care of many of these responsibilities for a fee that can be collected at closing.

Planning for your move

  1. Where will you live after the home is sold?
  1. Who’s going to pay for moving expenses, a downpayment on a new home, or a rental?

Understanding the application of your equity 

  1. Who’s getting the proceeds from the sale?
  1. Who has access to those assets?
  1. Will the proceeds go to paying attorney’s fees?

Agree on common ground, ground rules, and communicate

Bremer says the best way to sell the house in a divorce is when the couple agrees to:

  • Work toward a common goal — getting the highest proceeds from the home sale.
  • Don’t let emotional baggage about custody and contentious issues interfere with making good business decisions.
  • Follow some ground rules (regarding showings, buyer credits/funds for repairs, and costs of sale issues), so the sale isn’t sabotaged by either party in the future.
  • Provide honest communication and transparency to each other, the real estate agent, as well as divorce and real estate attorneys.

The willingness to abide by these principles might occur before or after the divorce is final.

Besides trying to time the sale to a period of detente, it’s important to acknowledge other forces such as the local real estate market, kid-related considerations, and your divorce timeline, trajectory, and decree also influence the timing of a sale.

For example, Bremer often finds the ideal time to sell the family home is after the parenting agreement is in place. Once the projected alimony or child support has been decided, the house and other assets can be sold and divided accordingly.

Real estate experts such as Bremer specialize in finding solutions for divorcing or divorced clients. They have experience working with divorce and real estate attorneys, mortgage lenders, and making accommodations for conditions dictated in divorce decrees and custody arrangements.

HomeLight can connect you with a top-performing real estate agent who understands these and other nuances of a home sale during a divorce. We analyze over 27 million transactions and thousands of reviews to determine which agent is best for you based on your needs. Simply answer a few questions and we’ll recommend top expert agents in your area within minutes.

Learn more about selling a house during a divorce

Header Image Source: (iriana88w / Depositphotos)

At HomeLight, our vision is a world where every real estate transaction is simple, certain, and satisfying. Therefore, we promote strict editorial integrity in each of our posts.

Image of post author

Adrian E. Hirsch

Contributing Author

Adrian E. Hirsch is a South Louisiana interviewer, writer, editor, blogger and scriptwriter. She’s covered the region’s unique lifestyle, landmarks, architecture, art, antiques, food, music, pets and healthcare issues for the Los Angeles Times Syndicate, New Orleans, Memphis and Gambit magazines among others. Having bought, sold and built homes, she’s survived the whims of the market, contractors, kids, rescued cats and dogs—not to mention hurricanes, erosion and termite invasion. Her real estate reporting aims to help families find the right home and maximize the potential of that major investment.

Image of post author

Richard Haddad

Executive Editor

Richard Haddad is the executive editor of HomeLight.com. He works with an experienced content team that oversees the company’s blog featuring in-depth articles about the home buying and selling process, homeownership news, home care and design tips, and related real estate trends. Previously, he served as an editor and content producer for World Company, Gannett, and Western News & Info, where he also served as news director and director of internet operations.