Getting Divorced While the Housing Market Is Hot

Family lawyers in the Greater Toronto area are feeling the heat as the housing market gets hotter and the divorce rate gets larger. Back in the day when couples got divorced, one person would typically buy the other person’s interest in the marital home. However, things have become quite different.

Understanding Why Things Have Changed

Due to the increased cost of the average home, most separated spouses cannot afford to purchase the interest in the matrimonial property. As a result, couples are often forced to sell their homes instead. Even if the home is sold at an inflated price, couples are still legally required to share the net proceeds.

The Consequences

Unfortunately, that only scratches the surface of the difficulties couples stand to face when they file for divorce while the housing market is hot. In most cases, split-up spouses end up downsizing into smaller residences or moving to less expensive neighborhoods (many of which are much further away from where the family originally lived). If there are children involved, things can get even more complicated, stressful and traumatic.

Many times, divorcing homeowners can’t afford to buy a new home, move out of their neighborhood or downsize into a small residence. Regardless of their marital home’s selling price or the balance in their savings account, the current housing market is so hot that a lot of homes are exorbitantly priced. In fact, the Toronto Real Estate Board reports that the average cost of a new home in the area has surpassed $1 million.

What’s Next?

Because of marriage annulment rate spikes and the significant increase in the cost of the average Toronto area home, numerous realtors have begun to focus primarily on divorcing clients. Acting as experienced specialists, realtors who cater to divorcees possess a unique fluency in the legal and financial factors which pertain to the situation.
With divorce being a very large industry that has steadily growing numbers, it’s no surprise to see countless “specialties” being created as a result. From a strictly marketing perspective, attaching one’s self to such an enormous demographic is a wise idea. From a consumer’s perspective, however, this simply means that more diligence is required to find a good real estate agent.

# Tips to Make It Easier

While finding the right realtor may be half the battle, using these guidelines can make selling your home in a hot market while in the midst of a divorce much smoother:

1.Work with your real estate agent to maximize the value of your asset. This is especially important if you plan to liquify.
2.Although you’re probably eager to get this over with, try your hardest not to rush the process.
3.Be sure to go over all elements of the sell, including financial disclosures that could potentially impact the amount of money your spouse receives in the sell.
4.Hire a divorce attorney to resolve any initial issues that could affect how the money is distributed.
5.Avoid having the proceeds from the sale of your property kept in a lawyer’s trust because it will prevent you and your spouse from enjoying the perks of housing market increases.

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