Selling a House During a Divorce in Minnesota

Published September 26, 2022. Updated August 7, 2023.

Dealing with a divorce can be a difficult and stressful time. Even if it's an amicable choice for you and your spouse, it can still be emotionally painful. You'll probably have a lot of different things on your mind as you make your way through the process, and selling a house during a divorce adds to the list of things you have to do. 

Often, real estate is a big focus of Minnesota divorce proceedings because a couple's home is such a significant asset. Fortunately, you have some options for selling that can make things easier. When you have options, you can increase your peace of mind during a stressful time in your life.

Here's what to consider as you plan for the sale of your house and work through your divorce proceedings at the same time.

Options for Selling Your House in a Divorce

While we hope you never have to go through it again down the road, there are several options for selling a house during a divorce. However, if you've never been in this situation before, you may not know what they are.

Buy Out Your Spouse

First, you or your spouse decide whether one of you should keep the marital property. Then, the other party could buy out their legal interest in it.

In that scenario, one of the spouses sells half of the house to the other spouse so that everyone receives what's fair and equitable from a financial standpoint. Unfortunately, that scenario often can be challenging if one of the spouses doesn't have the money to buy out their share of the house.

Co-Own the House

A second scenario takes place when one spouse keeps the use and occupancy of the house for a particular period. After this time, the home is sold, and the proceeds are divided between both parties.

This is often done when there are young children, and both spouses want to keep those children in the marital home. The home would be sold after the youngest of the children turned 18. Of course, there are other reasons for this scenario, and any reason is valid as long as both spouses agree.

Sell it Right Away

A last and more common way to handle selling a home during a divorce is that the house is sold right away, and both spouses split the equity.

In this third scenario, the split could be 50/50 or based on who paid more of the down payment or mortgage payments during the marriage. When pursuing this option, both spouses have to find a new place to live, and no one gets to keep the home they lived in together.

How To Get Your House Ready for Sale During a Divorce

There will be many different considerations about splitting money and assets during your Minnesota divorce. The last thing you probably want to do is spend a lot of time getting your house ready to sell if you and your spouse decide on the third option.

Depending on what else is going on in your life, you may not have enough time to get everything ready to list the home. Maybe you're moving to a new area for a fresh start or a job opportunity. You could also be working extra hours now that you don't have a dual-income household. Plenty of factors can add to your stress level.

As you think about getting ready for the sale, selling traditionally through a real estate agent means you'll first need to prepare the home to be sold. If there are problems with the house, repairs that need to be made, or deferred maintenance issues, those are generally the best places to start. 

Fixing those concerns might take a while. However, if the problems aren't corrected, you and your spouse could end up getting a lot less money for your house. It could also take much longer to sell.

Finding the Right Agent Can Take Some Time

Once the house is prepared for sale, you need an agent. However, it's important to choose the right agent to get the best price for the home. You might also want an agent who specializes in property sales during a divorce.  

Because you're in the process of a divorce, you need to find a reputable agent that you and your spouse both agree to use. If your spouse doesn't want to sell the house, or they're trying to make the process difficult for you, they could keep vetoing agents and delaying getting the house on the market. 

With an agent you both agree on, it's time to stage the house. Of course, that adds time and expense, as well.

Once the house is listed, the endless showing and offer negotiations begin. Just like with choosing an agent, it's unlikely you and your spouse will agree to the first offer and keep the process moving.

However, you and your spouse have to agree to an offer, and that's one more area that could delay the process and drag out the sale of the house amid the divorce proceedings. It's easy to experience mounting frustration when that happens, especially if you've received a fair offer and want to get the house sold and closed.

With an accepted offer, you'll be waiting to close, but at least you're getting somewhere. Once the closing finally happens, you can divide the proceeds according to the terms of the divorce. However, the final amount to split can be a lot less than you hoped after paying closing costs and real estate agent commissions.

However, before you start this process of selling a house during a divorce, you should know that there's a better way!

A Cash Buyer Can Simplify a Home Sale During the Divorce Process

Cash home buyers are companies that offer quick cash sales to homeowners. When choosing this option, you don't have to worry about making home repairs, finding an agent you both agree on, staging the home, or a lengthy process of listing the house or dealing with offers.

If you prefer a solution that can "buy my house fast," a reputable cash buyer could be the ideal solution to reduce stress, eliminate some joint decisions you and your spouse must make, and put your marital home behind you so you can move on.

We Buy Houses Minneapolis Residents Want to Sell

Simplify the process of selling your home during your divorce and choose local, trustworthy cash buyers for the sale of your home. When you work with Homefield Homebuyers, we can get you a cash offer within 24 hours of looking at your property, and we're often able to close in just one week. Additionally, you don't need to stage your house, hire a realtor, get a photographer, or spend time and money preparing the house for sale. 

Whether you have deferred maintenance, projects that aren't completed yet, extra clutter you want to get rid of, or other problems, we buy houses Minneapolis residents need to sell quickly. Our local team of experts can help you get through the process of selling your home so that you can start on the next stage of your life.

So, contact Homefield Homebuyers today to get started on selling your home the fast and easy way.