If so, would you use one to get a divorced spouse to relinquish her ownership in the property to the remaining spouse, so that you are only dealing with one party?
- Adam.
Quit claims deeds are legal. However, title company’s prefer that you use a special warranty deed instead. Typically, both husband and wife are on the mortgage. Therefore, if one spouse conveys their interest in the property to the other spouse it is done by special warranty deed and the spouse receiving title executes a Deed of Trust to Secure Assumptions (DTSA). The DTSA will allow the spouse conveying his interest to the other spouse to take the property back if the spouse owning the property fails to make the payments.
agkatz,
What I’ve seen numerous times is a divorce decree that states that one spouse is entitled to the property (no pun intended), yet either a deed was never executed or the divorce attorney never filed it. Obviously, a simple recording is not typically a big deal, but trying to get an ex-spouse to sign a deed so the remaining spouse can sell the property can be fun, to include bribery, threats, blackmail, etc.
I was only vaguely aware of the DTSA and have never seen that in a divorce situation, although I’ve met with many folks who wish they had one when the remaining spouse gets behind and just ignores the situation.
Thanks for the tip, CB.