Sometimes, divorcing isn’t about getting the family home. You might not want the bad memories from living there or be uncomfortable with the idea of staying there after your marriage ends.
In this kind of situation, you are in a good position to look into selling the home or having your spouse buy out your share of the property. Doing this can give you more liquid assets, which can be a financial boon in a time of financial fluctuations.
Washington’s community property rules
Washington is a community property state, which means that your assets acquired during marriage are to be shared equally between both parties upon divorce. The court can agree to divide assets in a way that isn’t equal in some cases, too, though.
You and your spouse have an opportunity to work out a property division agreement that works for you. If your spouse is keen on keeping the family home but you’re entitled to half the value of the property, you could insist on selling it. Alternatively, you could use this as leverage to get other assets that you want out of the marriage, like stocks, retirement benefits or others.
Will not wanting the house affect custody?
No, custody and property division are handled separately. Your spouse might argue that they want to keep the family home for the stability while your children transition into a single-parent household, but realistically, keeping the family home isn’t a necessity and won’t have an impact on your right to custody. You may want to use the idea of keeping the home as leverage, again, to get other assets that could benefit you and help you create a safe, happy home elsewhere for your children.
Divorce can be complex and cause frustration and upset as you work through it, but it’s necessary if you want to move forward without being legally bound to your spouse in the future. There are all kinds of questions you might have, and those would be best answered by your attorney after they take a look at your specific situation and how your financial situation looks with different property division arrangements.