Your spouse comes to you with the divorce papers and tells you that they want to end the marriage. They also tell you that they want you to leave the house and live somewhere else. They believe that living together while going through a divorce will simply be too stressful, so they’re telling you that you must leave since they’ve decided to file for divorce.
But to you, this seems excessively unfair. Maybe you don’t have anywhere else to go. Maybe you don’t even want to get divorced to begin with. Is it possible for your spouse to kick you out of your own house?
Who owns the home?
The big question is whether or not it’s really your house. If you are the owner of the home – or a joint owner with your spouse – then you do not have to leave. Your spouse can ask you to go, and it’s understandable that they would feel awkward living in the same home during a divorce. But they can’t force you to leave a property that you own.
When things get really complicated, though, is when only one spouse owns the home. Maybe you only got married a few years ago, but your spouse bought the house 10 years ago when the two of you were just dating. You’ve never actually owned the house, but have simply been living with your partner. In a case like that, they may be able to tell you that you have to leave because it is their personal property. The house, in this case, wouldn’t be a marital asset that is jointly owned.
This can certainly make a divorce complex. Be sure you understand your legal options as you go through the process of splitting up assets and much more.