Going through a divorce means you and your ex have to divide everything that you acquired during the marriage. Many people focus on the marital home, but there are some divorces that have a vacation home involved. Determining what’s going to happen to that home might be a big area of contention.
For some people, one person will get the primary home and the other person will get the vacation. In other cases, the vacation home is sold and the profit is split. If you’re in a position where you’re going to have to determine how to handle this, consider these points:
Can you afford the home?
Remember that you’re going to rely only on your own income. You have to be sure that you can afford the expenses related to this home. This includes the mortgage, taxes, upkeep and any other bills that come with it. Take a realistic look at your budget to be sure that it’s worth trying to hang on to the home.
What are you willing to negotiate?
In some cases, keeping the vacation home means that you lose out on other assets. You have to determine what you’re willing to walk away from in order to keep the vacation home. The answer to this might not take much thought if you’re planning on using the vacation home as your primary residence where you can have a fresh start after your marriage ends.
Property division should be tailored to the specific case. If you and your ex can go through mediation or negotiate the outcome of the divorce, you might walk away with a settlement that’s in your best interests. Because this is a challenging situation, you should ensure you have someone on your side who can help you to determine what options you have and how they might impact you. This could take some of the stress off you as you go through the divorce process.
