Selling Your House During a Divorce in Texas

Splitting up is hard enough without a house in the middle of it. Maybe you both moved out and the place is sitting empty. Maybe one of you is still living there, covering a mortgage that was built for two incomes. Either way, many divorcing couples in Texas land on the same conclusion: sell the house, pay off what's owed, and divide what's left so both people can start over.

The problem is that a traditional listing asks a lot of two people who may not want to be in the same room. There are repairs to agree on, showings to coordinate, and a buyer's financing that can fall apart six weeks in. Every extra month on the market means more mortgage payments, more insurance, and more decisions you have to make together.

A Straightforward Way to Sell

Cash Home Advisors buys houses for cash. There is no listing period. For a divorcing couple, that means one clean transaction instead of months of joint decision-making.

• As-is: nobody has to pay for repairs or staging.
• We pay all closing costs: on top of that, you pay no agent commissions.
• Close in 7–14 days: once title is clear, you have both signed and nothing in your case bars the sale. If your attorneys need time to finish an agreement first, tell us on the first call.
• Standard TREC contract: the same Texas-promulgated contract used in everyday home sales, closed at a Texas title company — not a custom document written to favor us.
• Se habla español: either spouse can talk with us in Spanish or English, whichever they're more comfortable in.

Selling a House During Divorce in Texas: The Basics

Texas is a community property state. In general terms, that means most property acquired during the marriage belongs to both spouses, no matter whose paycheck covered it — and the house is usually the biggest piece of that. This is general information, not legal advice; your divorce attorney can tell you exactly how the rules apply to your case.

A few practical points:

• Both spouses usually sign. For a homestead, that holds even when only one name is on the deed (see the signing section below). The title company verifies exactly who must sign.
• The title company handles the split. Sale proceeds are disbursed at closing as the court order or your written agreement directs. We never decide who gets what — that stays between you and your attorneys.
• When you can sell. Couples sell before filing, while the case is pending, and after the decree. Once a divorce is filed, standing orders in counties such as Dallas, Collin, Denton, Travis and Bexar bar either spouse from selling property except as specifically authorized, so a sale while the case is pending needs the court's authorization, such as an agreed order. In Tarrant County, a spouse can ask the court for a temporary restraining order that bars a sale (Tarrant County Family Law Local Rule 4.01(11)(c)). If an order like this applies, a sale during the case can close only after the court has authorized it, which your attorneys can confirm.
• Cash removes the variables. The sale does not depend on a bank loan: no appraisal contingency.

Do both spouses have to sign to sell a house in Texas?

If the house is your homestead, generally yes, even when only one name is on the deed. Family Code Sec. 5.001 says neither spouse may sell the homestead, whether it is community or separate property, without the joinder of the other spouse, except as the law provides.

• Both names on the deed. Each owner signs, and the title company will need both signatures at closing.
• The exceptions in Family Code Chapter 5 go through a court. A spouse can sell the homestead without the other's signature if the other spouse has been judicially declared incapacitated (Sec. 5.002 and 5.003), or with a court order on a sworn petition showing, for example, that the other spouse has disappeared or permanently abandoned the homestead (Sec. 5.101 to 5.106).
• After a divorce is filed. The court may issue a temporary restraining order that bars either spouse from selling property, community or separate, unless the court authorizes it (Family Code Sec. 6.501). While the case is pending, it can also grant a temporary injunction or give one spouse exclusive occupancy of the house (Sec. 6.502).

The title company confirms who must sign before closing, and your divorce attorney can tell you whether any order in your case limits a sale.

Who gets the house in a Texas divorce? Community and separate property

It depends on whether the house is community or separate property, and on what you agree or the judge orders. In the decree, the court divides the estate in a manner it deems just and right, with due regard for the rights of each spouse and any children (Family Code Sec. 7.001). That section sets no percentage.

• Community property. Property either spouse acquires during the marriage, other than separate property, is community property (Sec. 3.002). Property either spouse has during the marriage or when it ends is presumed to be community, so the name on the deed does not decide it alone (Sec. 3.003).
• Separate property. A house one spouse owned before the marriage, or received during it by gift or inheritance, can be that spouse's separate property (Sec. 3.001). The spouse who claims it must prove it by clear and convincing evidence (Sec. 3.003).
• Reimbursement. If community money paid the mortgage on a separate-property house, or paid for improvements that raised its value, there may be a claim for reimbursement (Sec. 3.402). On divorce, the court may secure that claim with an equitable lien on the house (Sec. 3.406).
• Your agreement. If you sign a written agreement on the division and the court finds its terms just and right, those terms bind the court (Sec. 7.006).

A house cannot be cut in half, so couples usually choose between two paths: one spouse buys out the other, which often means refinancing the mortgage alone, or you sell and divide the money under your agreement or decree.

After the decree: can a former spouse force a sale?

The decree controls what happens to the house, and the court can issue further orders to enforce that division without changing it (Family Code Sec. 9.006). If the decree did not divide the house, either former spouse may file suit to divide it (Sec. 9.201). If the decree left you both as co-owners, either one can ask a district court to partition it under Property Code chapter 23, and under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 770 the court orders a sale when it finds the house cannot be divided equitably. Our guide on whether a co-owner can force a sale walks through a partition case, using inherited property as the example.

If selling the house is the next step in moving forward, call Cash Home Advisors at (817) 520-8319 or email adrian@cashhomeadvisors.com. The offer is free, with no obligation, and you decide together whether it works.

If the house also needs work, the repairs page separates repair bids from an as-is sale. The state index is the Texas hub.

En español: vender la casa por divorcio en Texas.