Selling a house during a divorce is probably the most challenging part of separation, next to the divorce process itself. Not only is equity tied to the property, but the memories created there make selling emotional rather than just a simple transaction.
If you’re trying to sell a house during a divorce in North Carolina, here’s a comprehensive guide from Swift Cash House Buyer to help you navigate the sale. We’ve listed your options for splitting the house, detailed steps for proceeding, and a couple of tips to help your emotions not get in the way.
Marital Property vs. Separate Property
Before listing the house during a divorce in North Carolina, it’s helpful to understand what counts as marital and separate property.
Marital property is any asset that a spouse acquired during the marriage, like houses, rental properties, and investments, regardless of whose name is on the title. Anything acquired during the marriage is usually considered jointly owned.
On the other hand, separate property includes anything that a spouse owned before marriage. This also covers assets labeled as separate in a prenuptial agreement, as well as gifts and inheritances received by one spouse during the marriage.
Only marital property is divided during divorce, and the actual division depends on the laws governing the state. North Carolina follows equitable distribution laws for divorce cases.
Community Property vs. Equitable Distribution: Which Applies to North Carolina?
Different states follow different rules, and knowing where North Carolina stands gives you an idea of how much you’ll receive after you sell your marital home during divorce.
As mentioned above, North Carolina is an equitable distribution state. This means all your marital assets are divided fairly, not necessarily equally. The court can split your home sale proceeds 70/30 or 50/50, and it all depends on:
- The number of years you were married
- Who purchased the house
- The earning capacity of each spouse
- Contribution to the marriage, including childcare
- Current financial status
- Whether a spouse caused dissipation or waste of joint marital assets because of gambling, affairs, or recklessness
Other states use community property law, which treats spouses as equal partners and splits assets evenly. In other words, if you sell a marital home in a community property state, the sale proceeds are split 50/50, unless there’s a valid prenup that allows unequal distribution.
Options When Dividing A House During Divorce in North Carolina
There are a few ways to divide the property during divorce in North Carolina, and most of them are pretty straightforward. Here are your four main options:
Option 1: Sell the House
The simplest way to proceed with property division during a divorce is usually to sell the house and divide the proceeds according to what the North Carolina court considers fair. This is the best route if you or your spouse cannot afford to maintain the home on your own, or you need the sale money to start fresh.
Option 2: Defer the Sale
Putting off the sale to a later date is a solid option if the North Carolina real estate market is not in your favor. For example, you’re in a buyer’s market, and there’s a high inventory of homes listed. Buyers during this time are more demanding and often make lowball offers.
Option 3: Buyout
A buyout makes sense when one spouse is interested in keeping the house and can afford the home independently. It can also be a good fit when that spouse plans to keep raising the kids there.
In most buyout cases in North Carolina, the home’s mortgage is refinanced to release its equity. The spouse initiating the buyout then pays the other what they would have received from a sale. It may also be that one spouse has enough cash to pay a lump sum, or they’ll pay by giving up their claim to other marital property of similar value. If the property is a mobile home that can be moved, one spouse could keep the land while the other relocates and keeps the mobile home.
Option 4: Co-own the Property
Co-owning a property is also possible, especially if you’re on good terms with your ex-spouse, or it makes more financial sense for both of you. However, if you’re choosing this path, the deed should be updated, as your marital ownership rights no longer apply. There should also be a legally binding agreement that details both your financial responsibilities to the property, legal protection clauses, and an exit strategy for both of you.
When Is The Best Time To Sell A House When Going Through Divorce in North Carolina?
The best time to sell during a divorce in North Carolina is often once you’ve reached a separation agreement. Emotions have usually cooled by then, so you can make level-headed choices that work for both of you.
Here are some other reasons why it may be best to sell the house after the divorce agreement:
- Your home equity may have increased.
- You’ll have time to plan the best living arrangement for your family.
- Your kids won’t feel uprooted or experience too much emotional distress.
Ultimately, when you sell after the divorce is final, both you and your ex are usually less overwhelmed, so the decisions come more easily. Working with a company that buys homes in Durham or nearby cities allows the sale to be handled like any other business transaction, making it faster and less stressful for all parties involved.
Steps To Sell A North Carolina House During Divorce
If you’ve already decided on selling your house during divorce, here are the steps you should follow to ensure you get to closing.
Step 1: Talk to Your Soon-to-Be Ex-Spouse
The first step is to sit down with your spouse and agree on how the sale will work. We know this may be the last thing you want to do right now, but if you don’t want a judge involved, you and your spouse will need to agree on a few things.
- Traditional or Cash Sale: A traditional sale involves listing on the open market and usually takes a couple of months, while a cash sale means selling to a local buyer who can close in as little as a week. Choose which one matches your timeline.
- Listing Price: This should reflect your home’s fair market value, not a wild guess or a number based on your emotional attachment to the property.
- Utility Payments: Talk with your spouse about who will pay the utility bills while the home is listed. If one spouse is still living in the property, their share of the expenses is generally higher.
- Living Arrangements: Decide whether one of you will live in the house during the sale or if both of you will move out.
- House Preparation and Its Costs: Discuss who will make repairs, stage the property, and how the costs will be split between the two of you.
- Choosing a Real Estate Agent: Find an agent who has knowledge and experience with divorce sales. Don’t choose someone connected to both of you, as this can cause conflicts.
- Showings and Open Houses: Choose who will be present during showings and open houses. It can be either of you or just your agent.
- Negotiating Offers: Decide on a baseline number, so when offers come in, you don’t argue with your spouse about which is fair and not.
Step 2: Hire a Real Estate Agent
Try to hire an agent with experience in divorce home sales in North Carolina, since these sales can be trickier than a standard sale. Divorce sales have many moving parts, and emotions always run high. They should be able to manage these things and provide you and your spouse with the best possible support during the sale.
If you’re comfortable working with the realtor who helped you buy your house, and they also have experience with divorce sales, try contacting them. You’ll just want to ensure they’re neutral and won’t favor one spouse over the other.
Step 3: Prepare the House For Sale
Once you’ve chosen an agent, it’s time to prepare the house for sale. This involves getting a pre-listing inspection, making repairs, and staging your home. You and your spouse should decide which repairs to make and which to skip.
The spouse still living in the property in North Carolina may need to do more work, which creates an unequal distribution of tasks during the sale. If so, that extra effort can be reflected in how you divide the proceeds, so things stay fair. If both spouses are no longer living in the home, you can ask the agent to handle the preparation.
Step 4: Price and List the Home
If you’re selling the traditional way, your agent can help you identify a fair listing price for the marital home. They’ll conduct a comparative market analysis to ensure you price based on how similar homes in your North Carolina neighborhood are selling.
Since memories were built in the home, it’s understandable if you want to price the property based on your emotional attachment to it. However, letting your emotions drive the price is one of the most common reasons a sale falls apart.
It’s also best to set the price together with your spouse, so it stays a shared decision and avoids conflict down the road.
Step 5: Accept an Offer
Once offers come in, you can lean on your agent’s feedback to tell you which ones are fair or which are not. If you and your spouse can’t agree on which offer to accept, your agent’s opinion can be invaluable. It’s helpful to stay open-minded and be ready to compromise.
Step 6: Divide the Sale Proceeds
At closing, you and your ex sign the closing paperwork, and the marital property is transferred to the new owner. Before you get paid, your divorce lawyer and real estate agent will require you to pay all closing costs and fees. These include agent commissions, transfer taxes, recording fees, mortgage payoff, and title insurance.
The remaining amount is then divided according to how the court splits your marital property.
Tips When Selling a House During a Divorce in North Carolina
To help the sale of your home in North Carolina go as smoothly as possible, here are some tips to consider.
Try Your Best to Be Objective
Think of it this way: the faster you are able to sell, the sooner you can both move on. Instead of letting your emotions run the show, try your best to be objective and more business-minded. If discussions between you and your spouse about the sale heat up, your real estate agent can give you unbiased advice. We know this sounds easy on paper, but the alternative is a sale that drags on, keeping you tied to the process and costing you more money.
Use an Escrow to Secure Funds
You can use an escrow to secure your home sale proceeds until there’s a final divorce settlement. This way, both you and your spouse can avoid spending the proceeds before the marital estate is legally divided. If there are joint debts, unpaid taxes, and other fees related to the divorce that need to be settled, the sale proceeds are used to cover them. Payments are usually processed faster when the funds come from a secure third party, such as an escrow account.
Get a Knowledgeable Divorce Lawyer
A divorce lawyer is often worth having when selling a house during a divorce. They’ll have you sign a property settlement agreement that details the house sale and how the proceeds are divided, protecting your interests.
The lawyer may also include clauses regarding how mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance premiums, and utilities will be managed during the sale.
Don’t List the House as a Divorce Sale
One of the most common mistakes couples make when selling during divorce is listing the property as a divorce sale, thinking they’ll find buyers faster that way. It’s actually counterproductive because when buyers see a divorce listing, they assume you’re in a rush to sell and are willing to accept lowball offers. List your house like any other home on the market, and you’re likely to get stronger offers and sell sooner.
Working With a Cash Buyer During Divorce in North Carolina
If you’d rather keep things simple and quick, we offer another option: selling your house for cash.
Traditional sales involve many moving parts that a divorcing couple often doesn’t have time for. When you sell for cash to us, there are no appraisals, no required repairs, and no lengthy mortgage underwriting.
If you’re tired of the emotional and financial strain this home sale is causing, selling to cash home buyers in North Carolina or surrounding cities is a quick solution.
Frequently Asked Questions
What money can’t be touched in a divorce?
During divorce proceedings, the court distinguishes between separate and marital property. Separate property includes money or investments you had before marriage, cash gifts or inheritances specifically given to you, and money protected by a valid prenuptial agreement. Those assets are generally off-limits. Meanwhile, marital property is any money you earned or saved during marriage, like business income and money in a joint bank account, to name a few. These are subject to equitable distribution under North Carolina laws.
Who has to leave the house in a divorce in North Carolina?
Both you and your spouse have an equal right to your marital home in North Carolina. That means the law doesn’t force anyone to leave, unless there’s domestic violence involved. In that case, the court will issue a Domestic Violence Protective Order, which prohibits one party from entering the property. Keep in mind that North Carolina requires you to live apart for a full year before a divorce can be finalized, so one of you will eventually need to move out.
What happens if one spouse refuses to sell the house?
This comes up more than you’d think. If one of you won’t budge, you can’t force a sale on your own. The usual paths are a buyout, where the spouse who wants to keep the home pays the other for their share, or asking the court to order the sale during the divorce. A North Carolina judge can require the home to be sold and the proceeds divided, especially when neither spouse can afford to keep it alone.
Final Thoughts on Selling a House During Divorce in North Carolina
Selling a house during a divorce is rarely simple, but the right real estate agent and divorce attorney can get you to the closing table. Just keep in mind that the longer the sale drags on, the more money and time it costs. What matters most is keeping things moving, since a quicker sale protects your finances.
If you’d rather skip the hassle and avoid waiting months to find a buyer, you can always work with a cash buyer. Swift Cash House Buyer can close on your house in as little as 7 days, so you get your cash and can divide the proceeds sooner. Contact us at (610) 590-9845 to get your no-obligation cash offer today!
