One person keeps the home
Compare the buyout and complete ongoing budget. Ask the lender about assumption, refinance and written release of the departing borrower. Confirm title changes with counsel; a quitclaim deed is not a lender’s release.
The Offer Genies homeowner library
A home during divorce or separation
Treat ownership, the mortgage debt and the court case as three connected questions. A private agreement between spouses may not resolve all three.
One useful thing to do first
List whose names are on the deed, whose names are on the mortgage, and which court orders apply.
Keep your documents in a secure folder. Use the steps below at your own pace; a scheduled sale, court date or safety order needs prompt attention.
Your first steps
- 1
Put the deed, loan and court papers side by side
Make three lists: names on title, names responsible on the loan, and people covered by court orders. Ask your attorney what each document means before signing a sale, deed, refinance or buyout.
- 2
Check restrictions before changing the property or insurance
Davidson's statutory-injunction notice addresses transfers, borrowing against marital property and insurance changes after the applicable filing and service steps. Have counsel check the actual order, whether it applies, and the consent or court approval needed.
- 3
Ask the lender how a borrower is actually released
Removing a name from the deed or assigning payments in a divorce decree does not itself remove that person from the mortgage. Ask about available assumption, release or refinance arrangements and obtain the lender's written requirements.
- 4
Compare complete budgets
For keeping the home, include any buyout, payment, taxes, insurance, maintenance and necessary repairs. For selling, ask for a written net-proceeds estimate and an agreed move-out plan. Have counsel document who pays what while a final decision is pending.
- 5
Use legal help that fits a homeowner's case
The simplified agreed-divorce forms linked by Justice for All TN exclude couples who own real property, as well as other categories. Do not choose them simply because the separation is amicable. Ask legal aid or a family-law attorney about the right process.
Understand the tradeoffs
Compare the paths before changing title
Ask about eligibility, total cost, required approvals and what happens if the plan does not work.
Sell and divide proceeds under the agreement or order
Obtain a written estimate after payoffs and sale costs. Have counsel address consent, listing or buyer terms, repairs, access, move-out and handling of disputed proceeds before signing. The worksheet on our comparison page estimates money left; it does not decide anyone’s legal share.
Remain co-owners temporarily
Discuss a written interim plan for payments, insurance, maintenance, occupancy and a review date. Ask counsel how missed payments or a failed future buyout would be handled. Informal promises leave important questions unanswered.
A closer look
When agreement is difficult
Start with a neutral record
Create a neutral record of the deed, all claimed ownership interests, any will or court order, occupancy, loans and documented expenses. Write down the decisions people agree on and the ones they do not. Ask a Tennessee real-estate or probate attorney about a voluntary agreement, a documented buyout and whether heirs-property partition rules apply. Do not present a forced sale as the automatic outcome or promise that a single co-owner can sell the entire home.
A voluntary agreement and a court order are different
Write down what is agreed and unresolved. Ask a Tennessee attorney which decisions need consent or court approval and whether a negotiated buyout, mediation or another legal process fits. Do not change locks, occupancy, insurance or title based only on a website checklist.
Choose help appropriate to the deadline
Legal Aid Society and HELP4TN can screen for free civil help. Tennessee Free Legal Answers can help eligible users with a specific non-criminal question, but does not provide court representation or promise an answer before a hearing. Use phone intake when a deadline is close.
Get organized
Documents to gather
Keep these in your own secure folder. You do not need to upload them here.
Check marks clear when you reload. Print this page to keep a copy.
Words you can use
Ask the lender about keeping the existing loan
We are considering having one spouse keep the home. Please explain any transfer, assumption and release-of-liability options for this loan. What requires approval, what documents do you need, and what happens to each borrower's responsibility? Please provide the requirements in writing before we finalize a deed or refinancing decision.
Keep the representative’s name, date, reference number and next promised action.
You can contact them yourself
Direct help for this situation
Full directory: service areas, eligibility & application links →Keep the original sources handy.
The links throughout this guide support the steps above. These core resources are useful to bookmark.
CFPB: debt responsibility after divorce ↗
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Davidson County: divorce and separation injunction notice ↗
Metropolitan Nashville Circuit Court Clerk
Justice for All Tennessee: official form eligibility ↗
Tennessee Access to Justice resources
HELP4TN Nashville Legal Aid Society office ↗
HELP4TN / Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services
HELP4TN finding the right lawyer ↗
HELP4TN / Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services
Tennessee Free Legal Answers ↗
Tennessee Free Legal Answers
Your own plan
One next step. Then the next.
Write a short plan and keep a record of your calls. Nothing here is saved or sent to Offer Genies. Reloading clears it. Keep account numbers, Social Security numbers and other sensitive details in your own secure records.
My deadline________________________________
Who I will contact________________________________
My next action________________________________
Follow-up date & result needed________________________________
My call & document log
Record what was promised, what you sent, how you sent it, and when you will check back. Keep proof of receipt with your own documents.
Private worksheet · Offer Genies homeowner library · offergenies.com/comprehensive-guide/
How we put this guide together
Offer Genies is a property acquisition business, not a law firm or government housing agency. This is general educational information, not advice about your particular case. Rules, eligibility and deadlines vary. Contact a qualified Tennessee attorney or HUD-approved housing counselor when your rights or a sale deadline are at stake.
We prioritize the agencies that run the programs: CFPB, HUD, THDA, Tennessee courts and local providers. Where older pages conflict with current notices, the guide identifies the current limitation rather than promising help.
Resources checked October 29, 2026. This guide has not been reviewed by an attorney. Programs and links can change; confirm details with the provider. Published eligibility is a starting point, not an approval.
Found something that needs correcting? Let us know.
Only if you decide selling is right
Understand the numbers before the next chapter.
Compare selling options and use our private proceeds worksheet. Offer Genies buys property, but this library is here whether you keep your home, sell with an agent, sell to someone else or never contact us.
Compare options & estimated proceeds →