Q: In my divorce decree I was given the house and all of its debt. House is now paid off, how do I get Ex off the Deed?

A: Responding from a New York perspective, once the Divorce Decree was finalized, a Deed should have been prepared, executed by both of you, acknowledged and recorded, conveying title to the real estate to you alone.

A: Mr. Gallo is correct.

If you were awarded the house at the time of your divorce, your ex-husband should have signed a special warranty deed prepared by your divorce attorney conveying his interest in the house to you. Recording that special warranty deed in the county clerk's office is what transfers title to the house into your sole name.

If that was not done at the time of your divorce, your ex-husband can still sign a special warranty deed conveying his interest in the house to you and you can still record it in the county clerk's office.

Now that your mortgage has been paid off, your mortgage lender should send you a Release of its deed of trust which should also be recorded in the county clerk's office. Sometimes, the lender records the Release itself; other times the lender sends the Release to the homeowner unrecorded. If it has been recorded, it will have the county clerk's stamp on it indicating the date the Release was recorded.

A: What both lawyers told you is true. However if you cannot get ex to execute a Deed to you now, then you have to go to Court. Hire a competent TX attorney to draft a Deed of his interest over to you and a "request" letter. After 30 days and no Deed, you will have to file a Declaratory Judgement Action of some kind. Leaving him with Title to your home can be a catastrophe, as many clients have found out who hired me to mitigate the damage.