Q: My ex husband got a second mortgage on the house I was granted living rights and put his new wife on the deed. He is now
deceased. Was that legal for him to do as that was our marital property/
A: Ex-husband means there was a judgment of absolute divorce. The judgment either addressed the issue of ownership and division of the house or it did not. Your post suggests you do not understand what your judgment says about this issue. If there is no property settlement agreement dealing with it and no mention of it in your divorce judgment, then upon divorce any property you once owned as tenants by the entireties when married changed to tenants in common. Tenants in common means you own 50% of the house, and your ex owned 50%. He was free to transfer his 50%; however, he could not likely encumber just his half of the property through a normal mortgage lender; for that, he’d need your and his signatures. But if his name was the sole name on the deed, then you’ve got problems. You need to take your divorce judgment and any marital property settlement agreement to a lawyer to review. Not enough information in your post to determine what rights you have.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
