Q:
I am recently divorced. In the divorce settlement, my ex husband is responsible for paying the 1st mortgage and 2nd mortgage on the home we own together. The house has been on the market for almost a year and has not sold. He is currently living in the home, and is not making full payments, and/or regularly pays late. This, of course, has affected my credit score drastically. Other than those two items and prior to 2009, my credit score was in the high 700’s.
Is there any way I can dispute this based on the fact that legally these payments are not my responsibility?
Cindy
A:
Hi Cindy,
This divorce decree issue is a huge problem after divorce takes place. This is one issue attorneys don’t explain properly. The proper way of drawing up a divorce decree when a house or debt is involved is to get that debt out of the individuals name that is no longer responsible for that debt per the decree. Unforetunatley most attornies don’t do this. So in your situation the creditor will still say you are liable for the debt regardless of what the decree says. Disputing will not do any good for your situation. The ideal situation is to have him sell it or refinance the obligation out of your name. I would consult with your attorney why he did not explain the repercussions of this. In my opinion attornies should be responsible for a mess like this, because they are suppose to represent you.
Mike Clover
CreditScoreQuick.com
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