Selling a House Before a Divorce Settlement
Should I Be Selling My House After Or Before Divorce?
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Content Written By: Raphael Kaye - Last Updated: 15/05/2025
Divorces aren’t the easiest thing to go through at any point in your life. House ownership, financial circumstances and the involvement of children can certainly complicate the process, which is why seeking legal advice from a qualified family law solicitor should be top of your list (always go for a firm registered with the Law Society and Solicitors Regulation Authority).
At The Property Buying Company, we can help guide you in the right direction to sell your house during a divorce, especially if you’re looking for a quick sale. We know you’ll have a million questions and it can feel overwhelming, but we’ve been there for many couples going through similar things over the years.
This guide is here to answer your burning questions so you can get your lives back on track before you know it, so let’s dive in.
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Should I sell my house before or after divorce?
One of the most common concerns couples have in the midst of divorce is whether to sell a property before or after the legal separation. Every case is different, of course, but there are pros and cons that apply to many scenarios. Let’s take a look:
Selling your house before divorce
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Negotiating who gets what: A pre-divorce house sale means you can usually split assets in a fairer way if you are still on good terms | Housing market delays: The market can be unpredictable, so you can never guarantee a quick sale—putting it on the open market might mean delaying your divorce |
| Time: Deciding to sell earlier gives you more time to find onward purchases or rentals and sort through the necessary paperwork in advance | Valuation changes: Your house might be worth more a little further down the line, so be sure to do your research and understand whether selling immediately is the best idea |
| Get big tasks done: Choosing to sell before a divorce will help you get one of the biggest aspects of the whole process out of the way quickly | Less ‘you’ time: Knowing you’re going to need a divorce means you’ll want to find as much time for yourself as possible, which will be difficult if you need to work with your partner to sell the property, unless you do it quickly via a cash buyer like TPBC |
| Capital Gains Tax (CGT): You typically won’t have to pay CGT if you transfer ownership of a property to your partner before you get divorced (check the government’s website for more information) |
Read more: Avoiding Capital Gains Tax on Your Property
Selling your house after divorce
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| More emotionally straightforward: Selling after a divorce is often easier and less fraught when there’s only one owner involved | Not a clean slate: Some couples like to get the house sale sorted as soon as possible, since doing it after a divorce can make the whole ordeal drag on and hold you back from moving on with your lives |
| Time to assess your options: Hanging on until other aspects of your life are calmer might lead to a more favourable housing market, but, as always, beware of its unpredictability | CGT (again): If your partner doesn’t want to sell before the divorce, you’ll need to factor CGT into your expenses, which can drastically affect onward purchases |
| An improved valuation: You might wind up getting more for your house if you sell later rather than sooner, so don’t fall for the estate agent’s “NOW is the best time to sell” spiel—biding your time might be wise in some circumstances |
Your own personal circumstances will naturally dictate your best course of action, so the main thing is not to be hasty in your decision-making. Be sure to weigh up the pros and cons alongside each of your post-divorce plans to see what’s best for everyone.
Whether there are shared assets or income disparities, for example, it’s always recommended to check resources like Citizens Advice’s divorce guidance and the government’s website for divorce proceedings as early as possible.
As we said, seeking proper legal advice will stand you both in good stead for the future.
Do you have to sell your house if you get divorced?
A common misconception of divorce is that it’s absolutely necessary to sell the house as part of the process, but that’s not actually the case.
Offsetting with assets
You can try to reach an agreement to offset shares in the house with other assets like pensions and shares so each partner walks away with something in a fair deal. For instance, the total value of a pension might be equivalent to a certain percentage of the family home, so one partner could keep the pension and the other could retain the equivalent portion of the property. Of course, it goes without saying that professional financial assistance is needed to reach a deal here.
Buying your partner out
You might, for example, amicably decide to buy your partner out of their share of the house, so you become the sole owner after the divorce. This obviously comes with a whole set of new responsibilities, not least the mortgage payments sitting with you and your income, so, again—we’ll keep saying it—financial advice is seriously recommended if this is a possible route for you.
Getting a Mesher Order
A Mesher Order is a type of court order that aims to provide stability for any children involved in a divorce—it essentially defers a house sale until a trigger event occurs. Common trigger events are children reaching a certain age or completing their education.
Mesher Orders are only given in certain circumstances, so it’s important to seek expert legal and financial advice to see if it’s the right route for you and your partner to take if you want a divorce.
If one partner wants to sell, but the other doesn’t, however, that’s another ball game altogether. A sale relies upon the signatures of both parties and won’t go through without them—we have a guide dedicated to buying your partner out of the house right here:
Read more: Can you sell a house if one partner refuses?
Some couples resort to court orders for a judge to force a house sale when they can’t reach an agreement between them. This can lead to the fairest division of assets, but is obviously based on circumstances and personal factors, including the financial contributions of each spouse, the best interests of any children, and the overall equitable distribution of property.
It’s important to remember that your finances, including the sale of your house and the distribution of your savings, are all dealt with separately to the divorce itself. In certain circumstances, you can be legally separated from someone, but still be stuck with financial ties, so don’t put off seeking that advice to know your rights.
What are my property rights?
The house sale can be one of the most critical aspects of a divorce, whether you go through with it before or after, so knowing where you stand is vital.
Here are a few of the most important matters that an experienced family law solicitor can help you with, especially if they specialise in property:
| 1. Knowledge of legal entitlements | Make sense of what you’re entitled to from the marital property and understand the principles of equitable distribution |
| 2. Identification and valuation of assets | Get a comprehensive assessment of the assets to which you’re entitled, including property, businesses and other financial assets |
| 3. Property division strategies | Ensure a fair share of the property via negotiations handled on your behalf, covering factors like financial contributions, future needs, and the welfare of any dependants |
| 4. Legal documentation and contracts | Formalise the division of assets and reduce the risk of future disputes with legally prepared property settlement agreements and consent orders |
| 5. Protection of property interests | Get advice on protective measures like restraining orders or occupancy arrangements so your property interests are protected |
Don’t walk blindly into a divorce hoping that everything will work out for the best—qualified solicitors exist for a reason, so be sure to enlist their help as early as possible if separation is on the horizon.
What happens to mortgages after a divorce?
Selling your house before a divorce can make things a little easier on the mortgage front, since you’ll be able to leave the house and, indeed, the mortgage behind. It’s not always as easy as that, though, especially when there’s an emotional attachment to the home.
If you wait until after your divorce to sell the house, whether you’ve bought your partner out, you’ve reached an agreement, or you’re simply waiting for the market to improve, you’ll no doubt have a few questions. The long and short of it is that anyone on the mortgage deed by name is responsible for making the mortgage payments, so it’s crucial to work through such arrangements with a specialist family law solicitor so you don’t end up unnecessarily out of pocket.
Read more: Selling a House with a Mortgage
Can I get a new mortgage?
In many divorce cases, at least one of the partners will have to take out a new mortgage with a new lender if they want to buy again. This is, of course, possible and will need to be discussed with a professional mortgage advisor to get a full view of the available options.
Can I sell a house after a divorce?
If you have bought your partner out of the house as part of the settlement agreement, for instance, you will be the sole owner of the property and the one person who can decide whether or not to sell it.
You have many options in this scenario—which one you choose will come down to your current needs. If you are in no rush, you might look to sell on the open market via an online estate agent like Purplebricks. It might take a while, but you might be more likely to get 100% market value for your house.
If you want a quick sale and are happy to pay fees to do so, you could explore selling your house at an auction. You’ll potentially be looking at getting 50-100% of your home’s value and paying 5% in fees for the privilege, which is a great option if you’re hoping for a quick sale.
If you’d rather not live in hope that your property will be snapped up, you can opt for a cash buyer like The Property Buying Company to guarantee a sale instead. You’ll get up to 93% of your home’s value and you’ll have no fees to pay at any point. Simply enter your postcode below to get a free cash offer and explore your options.
Harrogate-based Gary got £174,000 in cash for his property after a divorce and was able to complete with The Property Buying Company in just 10 days.
Selling our house with to this company…
Selling our house [...] to this company whilst going through a divorce was a real lifesaver. They handled everything smoothly and were super understanding of our situation and acted as an in between.
The process was quick and hassle-free, which was a huge relief given the stress we were already dealing with.
Date of experience: July 18, 2024
You can read more of our real customer experiences on Trustpilot or in our Customer Stories here.
FAQs
How is equity split in a divorce?
If you and your partner are willing to negotiate a split or have already come to an agreement, splitting the equity, including your property, could actually be relatively straightforward. You’ll essentially need to instruct your solicitors to create a legally binding agreement called a ‘consent order’ to document the terms, which will be used alongside a ‘Statement of Information’ if necessary to detail your finances.
If you can’t come to an agreement between you, you’ll likely need to apply for a court hearing or mediation to work through the equity split with a third-party representative.
Who gets the house in a divorce when children are involved?
A specialist family law solicitor can advise on what happens to a house in the event of a divorce that involves children.
Courts will typically prioritise a stable life in a suitable environment for all children involved over anything else, so the outcome will depend entirely on personal circumstances, e.g. the attachment the children feel to the home, the proximity to schools and support networks, any custodial arrangements and the financial capabilities of all parties to maintain the post-divorce residence.
What is a Financial Order in a divorce?
A Financial Order is a legally binding, court-issued document that dictates the division of assets between parties in the event of a divorce. It is typically guided and created by a trained solicitor who specialises in family law and provides clarity and enforceability for all parties involved.
Edit Log
15/05/2025 - Content written by Raphael Kaye & reviewed by Kirsty Rowett
15/05/2025 - Content updated in line with Editorial Guidelines (Reviewed by Mathew McCorry)
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