Who do you use to change a house ownership when married?

Need to put property into joint so it does not become a huge hassle should something happen. Is this a real estate lawyer, or estate planning, or some other option/resource? Yes, there is a minor amount of mortgage left on the property as well. Need someone to advise us.

I didn't bother changing mine when I got married, but the house is left to my spouse in my will

Probably either an estate planning or a real estate attorney could help you. Good luck.

Thanks, maybe will is enough - told better to have in both names - thanks for input

I believe you have to change the deed. Call a real estate attorney.

calliope said:
I believe you have to change the deed. Call a real estate attorney.

Thanks as well

My attorney recommended against it, even though I did it anyway. If it remains in your name, should you get divorced, it's a pre-marital asset, not subject to equitable distribution. I know that is a cynical point of view, but she is also a divorce attorney.

I would change the deed if your only concern is what happens to the house if one of you passes on unexpectedly. If the spouse is already a half-owner of the property, the estate tax will not take that giant hit should something awful happen. Although, as Marylago points out, it would complicate matters in case of a divorce.

marylago said:
My attorney recommended against it, even though I did it anyway. If it remains in your name, should you get divorced, it's a pre-marital asset, not subject to equitable distribution. I know that is a cynical point of view, but she is also a divorce attorney.

Ditto with my attorney, even with children that is what a will is for. It will take care of what happens to the house. If you are the one being put on the deed ignore the above.

If you own the house already, then I don't see a benefit to you in adding your partner to the deed. But I can see plenty of disadvantages in the event that the relationship goes south.

If there is still a mortgage and joint assets are used to make the payments, how can it remain a premarital asset?

ParticleMan said:
If there is still a mortgage and joint assets are used to make the payments, how can it remain a premarital asset?

Very valid point. And frankly, if I were the new spouse, I would be mightily pissed off if you asked me to contribute to paying the mortgage without letting me acquire any ownership in the house. That's not right.

If the new partner will be helping to pay for it, and there is still a significant mortgage, then that is a different issue than what prompted my comment. (And you would also want to make the mortgage liability joint in that case.)

But, in general, there is little or no advantage in making separately owned assets joint, UNLESS/UNTIL the relationship fails. And, if that happens, then it is definitely to the disadvantage of the partner who brought the asset into the relationship.

I'm not a lawyer, but (I think) the spouse would be entitled to half of what was paid into the mortgage since marriage but only that.

ParticleMan said:
If there is still a mortgage and joint assets are used to make the payments, how can it remain a premarital asset?

sac said:
If the new partner will be helping to pay for it, and there is still a significant mortgage, then that is a different issue than what prompted my comment. (And you would also want to make the mortgage liability joint in that case.)
But, in general, there is little or no advantage in making separately owned assets joint, UNLESS/UNTIL the relationship fails. And, if that happens, then it is definitely to the disadvantage of the partner who brought the asset into the relationship.

Agreed, the op said there is a MINOR mortgage. I am sure someone here can advise the op on a good lawyer. Sorry I cannot and at the end of the day it is her decision but unless the op is the one being put on the deed, than I would agree and it would be to her advantage, otherwise I would see if the concern could be covered in the will.

Thanks everyone, Your comments have been very helpful to thinking through the situation. I understand that there are issues if suddenly you die, its not joint or possibly will is all we need..will get some legal advice on this. Another task, finding someone for will, estate etc...For the record, in this situation I have been primary payer, however its not my intent should I suddenly go for spouse to not get the house. Thanks again!

truegrid said:
Thanks everyone, Your comments have been very helpful to thinking through the situation. I understand that there are issues if suddenly you die, its not joint or possibly will is all we need..will get some legal advice on this. Another task, finding someone for will, estate etc...For the record, in this situation I have been primary payer, however its not my intent should I suddenly go for spouse to not get the house. Thanks again!

You can put that in your will and I would do that rather than change title. I was thinking more along the lines of divorce. While that may be the farthest thing from your mind, the reality is that your spouse will be fine as long as you cover them in your will AND the relationship continues amicably, so why the need to also confer protection for the situation of the relationship going bad?

I agree that this is not a one size fits all situation. I have relatives who recently got married and the house is still in her name (mortgage was paid off before they married) and he won't pay for major repairs since he is not the owner. I understand their take on this situation and agree that financially it is what works for them. In my case the house was purchased only one year before my husband and I wed and he was paying half the mortgage from the beginning and has been paying all the mortgage since 2009 when I became a stay at home mother. For our situation adding him onto the deed is only fair. I don't plan on getting a divorce but should it happen him getting half the value is only fair.

If your worry is about what happens to the house should you pass away then a will should take care of that. Even if you put the spouse's name on the deed it is still prudent to have a will so the courts don't decide what happens to your estate (including your half of the house) for you.

If your name is on the house with rites of survivorship , the house gets transferred before the will. If there is a chance there might be a contested will it makes sense to retitle.

ace11 said:
If your name is on the house with rites of survivorship , the house gets transferred before the will. If there is a chance there might be a contested will it makes sense to retitle.

I don't think you can contest a spouse. You can't cut a spouse out of your will unless the spouse has agreed to it in advance (who would do that?). At least that's the way it is in New York state.

I think Anna Nicole Smith would not agree that a spouse cannot be contested in a will

Im not contesting anything, in NJ title passes before the will. So if you have joint ownership with rights of survivorship , the house will pass to the co owner before the will is even read. If you have a surviving spouse, I guess they could try and sue. Not sure about NY.

You certainly hope nothing weird might happen...however, this came up because my insurance agent faced problems when the house was only in spouse's name. This is how the issue first came up. Thanks for the retitling/joint survivorship approach, v will only. Frankly, the will thing is a bigger to do for us, too many complicated family connections/family prior to us hitching up, so a lot to sort through to get it done easily. Will definitely take the advice provided in consideration.

Only reason I mentioned it is someone in my family was sued for the home after a passing by his children from another marriage. Needless to say this issue was though out ahead of time and I switched the tile over imeadeatly after the passing so when the court hearing was held, the title was only in the surviving person name, thus preventing needless litigation and lawyer fees.

Aside from the issue of the title to the house marriage is an event which should trigger a change in your Will and that of your spouse. If you don't have Wills you ought to make Wills. Unless you are very wealthy you may need only simple Wills rather than complicated Estate Plans and there are many lawyers who can assist you. The same lawyer will be able to discuss the Deed.

You can PM me for a referral or use Google.

marylago said:
I'm not a lawyer, but (I think) the spouse would be entitled to half of what was paid into the mortgage since marriage but only that.

ParticleMan said:
If there is still a mortgage and joint assets are used to make the payments, how can it remain a premarital asset?

I am not a lawyer and I don't play one on TV.

I am pretty sure what you lawyer meant ML was that the pre-marital portion would remain pre-marital. Once you get married, your spouse usually has some right to the marital premises. I don't know the specifics.

But, even if you don't put your spouse on the deed, she/he will still have some rights to the marital premises though not half.

shoshannah said:

ace11 said:
If your name is on the house with rites of survivorship , the house gets transferred before the will. If there is a chance there might be a contested will it makes sense to retitle.

I don't think you can contest a spouse. You can't cut a spouse out of your will unless the spouse has agreed to it in advance (who would do that?). At least that's the way it is in New York state.

If it is not joint property, I'm pretty sure that you are not obligated to leave it to your spouse. If I'm wrong about that, can someone please post a citation here? (for NJ at least)

sac said:

If it is not joint property, I'm pretty sure that you are not obligated to leave it to your spouse. If I'm wrong about that, can someone please post a citation here? (for NJ at least)

15 years ago under my own name I purchased some property in Pennsylvania. I was using a lender based in NJ. Their lending contract was based on NJ law and they wanted my husband's signature signing off on the mortgage, too. I said "no, I want this just in my name". We went back and forth for about a month and finally they conceded that it it didn't apply to PA and changed their language for properties in PA.

Their original language was based on a NJ requirement because in NJ the law made it joint property if he ever stepped on the property. I don't have a citation to the law.

Logic, but laws/rules are not always logical, would come to the conclusion that once their is a marriage the new partner to the marriage would have property rights. Definitely get a legal opinion on this.

Given what KRNL says, I think the only thing to do in this case is consult a lawyer about the specific laws of the state the spouses live in and how they apply in this very specific case.