We are geting divorced. Do I have any rights to my wife’s house?

More Information:

When I got married, I moved into my wife’s house. We are now getting divorced and I want to keep the house. Do I have any rights to it?

ATTORNEY ANSWER:

In general, if your wife bought the house before you got married and the deed and mortgage are in her name, then it is unlikely that you can keep the house, if this was a short term marriage.  If you contributed to the monthly upkeep of the house by contributing to the mortgage, interest, taxes and insurance, you might have a claim to a partial credit against the property settlement but the probate court might also conclude that you would have had to pay rent and some of the other aforementioned costs if you had not married your wife.  Therefore, getting a credit is unlikely.

In a longer term marriage, the question of who has rights to the house becomes less clear where both husband and wife made a greater contribution.  It is also important to consider whether children are involved.  The probate court is unlikely to approve the disposition of the house to either party if the children are still in school.  Children need continuity in their lives and a forced move might not be in their best interests.

If you made structural repairs or capital improvements to the house, over and above your monthly contribution to the mortgage, interest, taxes and insurance, you might be able to recoup some of that in negotiating for a larger piece of some other asset of the marital property.  This could include getting a greater share of retirement funds, stocks, cash or other asset.

Attorney David Rubin is a Greater Boston Divorce attorney and provides  representation to clients in communities such as Boston, Boston MetroWest, Framingham, Dedham, Marlborough, Natick, Needham, Newton, Waltham and Worcester.

David L. Rubin, Attorney at Law
Greater Boston Divorce Attorney
929 Worcester Road
Framingham, MA 01701
Telephone: (508) 875-9797
Fax: (508) 820-1560