My ex-wife still lives in our house. She pays the mortgage and I’ve been paying the second. She can’t qualify for a new loan so my name is still on both! I want to force her to sell and pay off the loans. If I stopped paying the second could the bank garnish my wages?
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The bank would first foreclose on the home and have it auctioned off – if the sale price at auction can’t cover both mortgages, you both will be on the hook for the difference. If your state is a recourse state, whatever bank is still owed if the sale price does not cover the total owed can come after both of you in court, get a judgment, and if you don’t pay the judgment, return to court and ask for a garnishment order.
This really isn’t too smart….
Although the bank will not likely garnish your wage there are other consequences and it’s just plain irresponsible. Take her to court or talk to the bank. Don’t just not pay.
What I would do is talk to your divorce attorney about forcing her to payoff the loans via refinance or by selling the home since she was granted the home in the divorce the courts would probably do this for you. By stopping paying on the 2nd mortgage as long as she remains paying the first the home cannot be foreclosed on UNLESS their is a ton of equity and the second mortgage company can foreclose and sell the home with enough funds to payoff the first mortgage and take what is left but in this market it is very rare to have that kind of equity in a home so unless that is the case they cannot foreclose they can charge off the second which means it would go to collections eventually you can be taken to court and a judgment would be granted against whomever is on the second mortgage but if in the divorce it shows she was obligated to pay both mortgages as she won the property in the divorce the likelyhood that the judge would allow them to garnish your wages is not likely to happen but it could happen because per the bank and your signed mortgage note you are obligated to pay the second mortgage still so it could happen. also your credit is affected if the mortgages are not paid and your name is on them. I still think your best bet is talking to your attorney about having her either sell the home or refinance to get them out of your name. Good Luck