Mortgage after Marriage?

Changing your last name shouldn't be an issue -- it's still YOU that's responsible for the mortgage. Not sure about adding him to it... Perhaps you could add him to the deed instead of the mortgage? H and I split "my" mortgage, but I have no plans to add hi, not worth the hassle.

But I am curious as well if anyone else has done this...

To put him on the mortgage it is a PITA, to put him on the title is another thing, I am sure it will cost something but each area is different.

Sorry I dont know about closing cost with adding a person, I think they need apply and be accepted to be on it after the fact. But I do know your name change costs 15$ in Maryland (maybe a bit more) and you do not need to pay anything else except the name change fees, no extra fees should be incurred from banks, loans etc. becase you are only changing your name, you are still the same person with the same debts. :-)

^ Well, that makes me glad I only added a second last name rather than changing my last name -- I'm still technically named what's on my deed, mortgage, credit cards, etc.

I changed my last name for no fee in VA but I did not add H to the mortage no real reason at this point. We hope to refinance soon and then he will be on the mortage.

What state do you live in? New jersey it will automatically become his also, But every state is different with real estate laws.

We were advised that in most cases you cannot add a name to a house deed with a mortgage as most likely the bank will object. Most banks will not allow it because if the person on the mortgage should default, the bank would not have legal right to go after the new co-owner who has no responsibility for the debt

Good question. I hadn't even thought of this. Only my name is on "our" house as well...

DO NOT add his name to the mortgage. ALL that does is make someone else liable for the debt. And its only going to cost you extra money for him to gain more debt. In order to give him all rights to the house ALL you have to do is add his name to the title and the deed. Depends on where you live and how easy to do that. A mortgage doesn't say who owns the house - it says who is liable for the payments. thats it.

@MinD -I don't think thats accurate. Not by all banks anyway . We were advised to just put my name on the title and the deed by the bank and our realtor, and the lawyer before we bought our house - but we decided to just put both our names on the mortgage as well anyway.

A Mortgage is a Loan against your house made to you and any co borrowers. This is secured by a document called the deed of trust. I do not know of a bank that will allow you to add another person to the mortgage without doing a complete refinance and adding the other person as a borrower. You most likely will incur fees with this.

Title is the document that says you own the property - This is where you could add your FH IF your bank will allow it. And most likely they will not as they are not on the mortgage - it is all about security.

A Quitclaim deed is the document that is used to add another person to a title or transfer title between parties. This form must be signed in front of a notary and recorded with the county. Filing this can trigger the clause in your mortgage to come due.

As you secured the property prior to the marriage - it is your sole and separate property and not community property.

What I have done is left all my real property in my will to left to my FH.

To add your hubby to be to the mortgage you'd need to refinance the loan which will be about $1,500-$2,500 in closing costs. If you've got the equity in your house you can finance these costs into the loan and pay nothing out of pocket.

If you've got a higher rate, now is the time to take advantage of the low rates and refi. You'd be killing two birds with one stone: lowering you interest payback and adding your man to the loan. Call your bank and talk to your mortgage officer.

You said you don't plan on this being your forever home so I'd save the money and wait until you all purchase a new one. Also, your name change won't make a difference on the deed or mortgage of the home. When selling you may need to prove your maiden name which can be done by birth certificate.

Totally up to you!!

I believe you will just have to hire an attorney to change the deed to put his name on the house only. If you want to add him to the mortgage you will have to refinance and, thus, pay fees. If I were you I would just leave it the way it is and get a will or something along those lines that will give the house to him in the unlikely event that something happens to you. In some states that will happen automatically since you're married, so you can check into that and potentially have to do nothing.

Depends on what is used to secure the mortgage. In most cases, that is the deed to the home. D1 is absolutely correct. Anyone can be added to the deed however, if the bank finds out a deed with a lean on it has been altered by adding another title holder, they will most likely call your loan in to protect their interests.

Maybe it's not worth the hassle? Just make sure to draw up a good will.

I don't know if I'll be of any help (FH and I both rent apartments), but in my parents' situation, our house is paid off (it's been in the family for many years) and only my mom's name is on the title to the property. The theory is that if anyone sues my dad, they won't be able to take our house because it's in my mom's name. I guess that might be something to consider in all the legal hoopla: Who's more likely to get sued?

Nola - sorry that is not true about community property states. I have a 25+ year career in real estate, mortgages and the law.

In community property states, the following is separate property:

-gifts given to one spouse

-property either spouse owned before the marriage and kept separate during the marriage, and

-inheritances.

in general:

- spouses own equally almost all property either one acquires during the marriage, regardless of whose name the property is in

- half of each spouse's income is owned by the other spouse during the marriage, and

- debts incurred during marriage are generally debts of the couple.

The community property states are: Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.

If you choose to join, your property with your spouse then it become community - but it does not happen that way automatically. You can keep it separate, if that is your desire.