50/50 Split of Property Proceeds - What should contract say?

[MMMarie]

My husband and I are planning to put our house on the market this spring and go our separate ways. I want the proceeds of the house to be split 50/50. He, however, put in a substantial downpayment when we bought the house and has said that he won't fight it (in the courts) and will forego getting his downpayment back provided he receives a minimum of $200,000 from the proceeds of the sale.

I will agree to this, but only if it is put in writing (so he can't change his mind when the time comes and decides he wants his downpayment returned to him, and will only split the remaining amount with me.......I can't bear to imagine the stress of fighting it out in court).

House prices in our town have risen an insane amount, and even though the house is basically a square box, I am hoping it will sell for $400,000.

How should it be worded? I'm thinking something like:

Re: address goes here

X and X, listed as Joint Tenants on property title, agree that when the above property is sold, after paying out the mortgage, and paying any pertinent fees (i.e. realtor, legal fees), proceeds of the sale will be disbursed as follows:

split equally (50/50) between X and X, with the provision that X receives an amount no less than $200,000.

(X)_______________ (X)________________



Also, once I have typed it up, to make it binding, can each of us just sign it? or would I have to take it up to the notary public and each of us sign it in front of him?

Thanks for any help.

[hubby]

Um ... you're married. Marital assets are split 50/50 ... why would your spouse need assurances he gets minimum amount of 200000?

What is cesars is cesars, what is God's is Gods ... what your entitlement to marital assets is, is - 50/50.

Seems he be wanting more ... choice is yours. As long as you both perceive it as being FAIR. Before signing ANYTHING, get legal advice. A couple of hundred $$$ can save you a couple of thousand $$$.

Hubby

[god knows the truth]

From The way I see it you're getting the raw end of the deal. IF the house sells for 400,000 and your hubby gets 200,00 automatically, then the remaining 200,000 has to be used to pay bank(I don't know how much equity you have), real estate fees, land transfer taxes(if applicable) and you get remaining. THAT'S IF YOU GET 400,00! You're signing a binding document when you have no idea of selling price--kinda' like putting cart b/f the horse. How about if he , down the road after document has been signed, pushes for the sale of the house @ 250,000 or 300,00? He still gets his 200,000 and your left with sloppy seconds after all other expenses have been paid. Doesn't sound right to me.
Caution: once you sign the document, he could push for an easy sale of the house at a lower price and if you dispute it , it could end up in court, costing thousands, while he still gets his 200,000. Sounds fishy. How do you see it?l

[Lindsay]

Hubby and GKTT know their stuff! Under Ontario property divorce laws, the matrimonial home gets special treatment. If one of the parties owned the house at the date of separation, that party gets no special credit on separation. The same goes for downpayments and whether a party made a significantly larger downpayment than the other. It makes no difference.

You can get a lot of info from the forums, but please consider sitting down with a lawyer to discuss this. Like hubby said, it's really a matter of paying for an hour of a lawyer's time versus risking your entitlement to hundreds of thousands of dollars.. I would go with the former!

Lindsay

[Decent Dad]

My husband and I are planning to put our house on the market this spring and go our separate ways. I want the proceeds of the house to be split 50/50. He, however, put in a substantial downpayment when we bought the house and has said that he won't fight it (in the courts) and will forego getting his downpayment back provided he receives a minimum of $200,000 from the proceeds of the sale.

I will agree to this, but only if it is put in writing (so he can't change his mind when the time comes and decides he wants his downpayment returned to him, and will only split the remaining amount with me.......I can't bear to imagine the stress of fighting it out in court).
Thanks for any help.

Legally you are entitled to half. Half of the value and half the mortgage goes on your NFP spreadsheet.

But, one must always ask "Is it morally correct". Without knowing how long you have been married or how much he put down, or the size of the current mortgage, your incomes, etc, that is a tough call about the minimum $200,000.

I would do the equalization first, to see how this all comes out. And then make an adjustment based on his downpayment and your conscience.

[MMMarie]

Wow....You guys are terrific. Thanks for all the replies.

Actually, when all is said and done, he won't end up with a whole lot more than me, as there is only about 20,000 still owing on the mortgage. And I'm really now sure how much legal fees usually are when a house is sold... I'm guessing around $1,000?

BTW, we've been married since '95 (so not that terribly long, even though it often feels like eons...) And I really don't want to end up fighting it out in court. I can't imagine how stressful that would be, as well as costly. So I'm hoping to just get this (the proceeds from the house) all figured out on paper before the house is even sold.

Thanks again. Much appreciated.

[god knows the truth]

we aim to please. ha