Divorce In A Tough Lender's Market:
Ten Simple Steps
Toward Financing A Home.
By: Alexander Poulos
When the love is gone and divorce proceedings are on, your future begins in the present economy.Financing a home purchase is a major concern.
Cautious lenders require detailed financial statements, proof of steady incomes, and sizeable down payments.You must plan your marital property division to pass lender scrutiny and convince your spouse or a judge to accept your plan.
Arizona law states that community, joint, or commonly held property must be dividedAequitably, though not necessarily in kind.This language requires a Asubstantially equal split.Above all, it mandates fairness.A property division is unfair if your spouse walks away with all of the cash and you cannot finance a home.
Ten easy steps will help you plan your home financing:
Step One.Identify your marital liquid assets, like cash in bank accounts and tax refunds.
Step Two.Identify and give a value estimate of your marital cash-convertible assets, like net home equity, mutual funds, term-life insurance polices, and, possibly, major corporate stock and real estate investments.
Step Three.Identify and give a value estimate of your marital assets that you cannot or do not want to cash out.These may include cars (valued through Kelley Blue Book website at www.kbb.com), personal property, (furniture, furnishings, jewelry, paintings, tools), retirement funds, (pensions, 401ks, IRAs, and deferred compensation); self-employment businesses, time shares, closely-held corporate stock, and limited liability company and partnership interests.
Step Four.Identify your marital debts, like credit card balances, tax liabilities, and home mortgage balances.Remember that the mortgage goes away if your home sells.If you keep the marital home, expect to refinance to remove your spouse from the mortgage and pay his or her share of the equity.
Step Five.List the marital assets and debts between you and your spouse.Allocate one-half of each of the liquid assets, the cash-convertible assets, and the debts.Allocate the marital assets that you cannot or do not want to cash out in an equal or substantially equal split.You can split retirement funds in any amount without taxes or penalties if you withdraw no money.Make sure you give yourself at least one-half of the liquid assets.If your spouse has greater earning power, you might take more cash.
Step Six.List your current income or income capacity and any separate property, income, and debts.This includes real estate, disability benefits, and student loans.Spousal and child support should be factored as well.Lender financial statements demand support information.
Step Seven.Calculate mortgage amortization schedules on the Internet to see what monthly payment you can afford.
Step Eight.Contact lenders to see if you pre-qualify for a loan.There are numerous available lenders with Internet access.
Step Nine.Search for where you want and can afford to live.Your planmore likely will succeed if you can identify the home you want to buy.The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) website at www.hud.gov is a helpful resource for home buyers.
Step Ten. Consult with a divorce attorney for advice on your proposed property allocation.Asset waste or other issues, like tax rates and regulations, may suggest an adjustment.Your lawyer can give you projected child support and spousal maintenance amounts.He or she can refer you to a home or business appraiser, forensic accountant, or certified divorce planner to address property division, business, income, and tax issues.You cannot finance a home if no one agrees you should receive your share of the cash.Your lawyer will advocate your point.
These ten simple steps will help you finance your home purchase, reduce your anxiety over the lender's market, and show your spouse and a judge why your property division plan is fair. 
