Q: Can I sign for my ex wife on current loan paperwork if she refuses? By decree she’s not responsible for this loan anymor

A: You need a TX attorney to sue for contempt to get that deed. You might get the clerk to issue the deed if the divorce order is decent. But it sounds like your divorce was messed up.

A: You can not sign for your ex-wife, without her permission, or authority.

If you are seeking a modification of your mortgage with the same lender as when you bought the house with your wife, you need to go back to the divorce court for a modified Divorce Decree. Otherwise, you should be looking for a new lender.

I hope this helps.

Good Luck!

A: Unless your Decree ordered your ex-wife to sign a deed conveying title to you (which would normally be a special warranty deed, not a quit claim deed), you can't have your ex-wife held in contempt for not doing something she was not ordered to do. If your decree contains a boilerplate provision that the parties will execute all documents necessary to effectuate the provisions of the decree (which would be normal), you can file a motion to clarify and ask the divorce court to order your ex-wife to sign a special warranty deed. Then, if she refuses, she could be held in contempt. Your best strategy is to bring a complete special warranty deed with you to the hearing and ask the judge to order her to sign it right then and there.

You're not going to be able to get a "Modified Divorce Decree" four years after your divorce. The trial court has lost plenary jurisdiction long ago.

The lender needs your ex-wife's signature because she is still liable for the mortgage. Your divorce decree cannot effect the contractual liability she agreed to undertake with the lender. All it does is impose a legal obligation on you to indemnify her if you fail to pay the mortgage. Normally, you would have signed a Deed of Trust to Secure Assumption to protect her. If she didn't sign a Special Warranty Deed, it is unlikely the attorney who prepared your divorce decree included the Deed of Trust to Secure Assumption either. (Which indicates a very inexperienced or incompetent attorney handled your divorce--even "baby" lawyers would know to include these ancillary real estate docs if a house was involved).

It would be better if the loan modification included removing your ex-wife as a borrower, which would give her a pretty big incentive to sign the loan paperwork. If that is not possible due to your credit, income, or payment history, you may not be able to get a loan modification at all. You maybe could shop around for a refinance, but that will likely bump your interest rate to current rates, but that should allow you to remove her from the loan without her signature.