Many people would risk going to court in order to keep the house without truly understanding what keeping it would mean. Meeting the mortgage loan and tax payments may not have been much of an issue during the marriage, but after a divorce, when the same income must now support two households, it could be an issue. The same could be said for a busted water heater or a broken air conditioner. Making those repairs during the marriage may have been somewhat of a challenge, but after the divorce, it may be nearly impossible.

To make matters even worse, some Kentucky residents might consider giving up a portion of other assets in order to have the marital home. An asset that has the same worth on paper may actually be worth more after all of the expenses of owning a home are taken into consideration. People may contribute to retirement accounts voluntarily, but the account is not foreclosed if contributions are not made regularly.

Of course, all of this assumes that the party keeping the home will be able to obtain financing without the benefit of the other party’s income. It may not always be the best idea to keep the marital home in a divorce. Before making any decisions that could lead to regret in the (near) future, it may be beneficial to sit down and calculate what the true cost of keeping the home would be.

Source: CNBC, “When it comes to divorce, not all assets are equal“, Sarah O’Brien, Sept. 22, 2017