A quitclaim deed transfers ownership interest in a property, but it does not remove a borrower from the mortgage loan. That can create problems after divorce if the person later tries to qualify for a new mortgage.
Question: My ex and I divorced last year, and she kept the house. I signed a quitclaim deed transferring my interest in the property to her. I thought I was done with it. Now I am trying to buy a small place of my own, and my lender says I still appear to be responsible for the mortgage on the old house. How can that be? I do not even own it anymore. — Daniel
Answer: This is one of the more painful surprises when dealing with real estate in a divorce, and you are far from the first person to run into it.
The short version is that the deed and the loan are separate, and signing one does not affect the other.
When you and your former spouse bought the house, you signed two very different documents. The deed is the document that says who owns the property. The promissory note, along with the mortgage that goes with it, is the document that says who owes the money to the bank. Both were created at the same closing, but after that day, they lived separate lives.
When you signed the quitclaim deed, you transferred your ownership interest in the house. That part worked exactly as you expected. Your name is no longer on the title.
What the deed did not do, and what no deed can do, is reach over to the bank and remove you from the loan. The bank was not a party to your divorce. The bank made the loan to two people and is entitled to look to both of them for payment until the loan is paid in full, regardless of what your divorce paperwork may say.
This causes two real problems.
The first is what you are seeing right now. As far as your new lender is concerned, that old mortgage is still your debt. It will appear on your credit report, count against you when the new lender calculates how much you can afford, and it could be the difference between qualifying and not qualifying for your new home.
The second problem is even worse. If your former spouse misses payments, your credit takes the hit too. If she defaults and the house ends up in foreclosure, the bank can pursue both of you and, in some situations, come after you for any shortfall left after the property is sold.
Before you call a lawyer, start by reviewing your divorce paperwork and reading what it says about the mortgage.
Many settlement agreements require the spouse who keeps the house to refinance within a set period. If your agreement contains this provision and your former spouse has not followed through, you may have the right to return to family court and ask the judge to enforce it. A polite letter or email reminding her of the obligation is a sensible first step before taking any of that.
If the divorce paperwork does not address the loan, or if your former spouse cannot qualify to refinance, talk with your family law attorney about your options.
The lesson from your situation is worth sharing with anyone going through a divorce. A quitclaim deed is the right tool for transferring ownership, but it is only half the job. The other half, the loan, must be handled through the lender, and that step is the one people most often skip and later regret the most.
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