Home Refinance Then Oust?
My girlfriend and I have lived together in Oregon for about 15 years. I
recently learned she is refinancing our house in only her name; the previous
mortgage is in both our names. Can she do this and take ownership? What can
I do if she is trying to oust me yet keep our home equity?
It's one thing to take out a mortgage in only her name and another
thing to remove your name from the title.
Refinancing the mortgage in her name alone makes her alone responsible
for the payments, but does not change the ownership of the property.
For her to take ownership away from you, you would have to deed your
share (as joint tenant or tenants in common) away; a quitclaim deed
would be the usual way of doing this.
There are two immediately obvious pitfalls:
If you make any mortgage payments, you can't deduct the interest --
because you're no longer obligated to make them.
If you're asked to sign a quitclaim in the course of the refinance,
you're signing away your ownership -- this should be a red flag.