Estimate a spousal buyout for a house purchased and paid for during the marriage. Free, no signup required. This tool covers the straightforward community property split; it does not calculate a Moore/Marsden reimbursement for a house owned by one spouse before the marriage.
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Only include this if one spouse can document funds owned before the marriage, or received as a gift or inheritance, that went directly into the down payment or purchase. Leave at 0 if the house was purchased entirely with income earned during the marriage.
Estimated buyout amount
$135,000
Spouse A would pay Spouse B this amount to buy out their share of the house.
Total equity
$270,000
Community equity (after any separate credit)
$270,000
Separate property credit applied
$0
This is a planning estimate only, not legal advice or an official calculation. It assumes the house is entirely community property purchased and paid for with income earned during the marriage, aside from any separate property contribution you enter. It does not perform a Moore/Marsden calculation for a house owned by one spouse before the marriage, does not account for selling costs (since a buyout is not a sale), and does not account for capital gains tax exposure or refinance costs. For a mixed separate and community property house, or any dispute about value or classification, consult a licensed California family law attorney, appraiser, or forensic accountant. Virdix is a document preparation service, not a law firm.
When a house purchased during the marriage is community property, its equity, the value minus what's owed against it, is generally split equally between spouses. In a buyout, the spouse keeping the house pays the other spouse their share of that equity, often by refinancing the mortgage into their name alone. If either spouse can document a separate property contribution to the purchase, such as a down payment traced to funds owned before the marriage, that amount is generally returned to that spouse first, before splitting the remaining community equity.
This calculator does not handle the more complex situation where one spouse owned the house before the marriage and community income paid down the mortgage during it. California courts use a method often called the Moore/Marsden approach for that scenario, and it depends on the purchase price, loan balances at marriage and separation, and appraised values at specific points in time, numbers precise enough that this tool deliberately does not attempt them. For the full picture, including when Moore/Marsden applies, see What Happens to the House in a California Divorce.
Whatever you decide, both spouses must disclose the house and any debt against it on the required financial disclosure forms. See our guides to Form FL-142, Schedule of Assets and Debts and Form FL-160, Property Declaration.
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Start my filing freeIf a house was purchased during the marriage using income earned during the marriage, it is generally community property, and its equity (the home's value minus what's owed on it) is generally divided equally between spouses, regardless of whose name is on the title or loan. If either spouse can document a separate-property contribution, such as a down payment traced to funds owned before the marriage, that amount is generally returned to that spouse first, before splitting the remaining equity. This calculator models that straightforward version of the split.
It does not calculate a Moore/Marsden style reimbursement, the method California courts use when one spouse owned the house BEFORE the marriage and the mortgage was paid down using income earned during the marriage. That calculation depends on the purchase price, loan balance at marriage, loan balance at separation, and appraised values at specific points in time, and a small difference in any of those numbers can change the result meaningfully. If that describes your situation, see our full guide on what happens to the house in a California divorce, and talk to an attorney, forensic accountant, or your document preparer about the actual numbers.
Generally, funds you owned before the marriage, or received individually as a gift or inheritance, that you can trace directly to the down payment or purchase of the house, with records such as bank statements or escrow documents showing the source. Money earned during the marriage, even if it came from one spouse's paycheck, does not count as separate property; it is community property because it was earned during the marriage.
No. This tool estimates a buyout, where one spouse keeps the house and pays the other their share of equity, not a sale. It does not subtract real estate commissions or closing costs, since those only apply if the house is actually sold. If the spouse keeping the house needs to refinance to pay the buyout, refinance closing costs are a separate expense to budget for, on top of the buyout amount shown here.
No. This is a planning estimate based on a simplified model and the numbers you enter. Courts rely on a credible appraisal or agreed value, complete and accurate disclosure of the mortgage balance and any other debt secured by the house, and, in mixed separate and community cases, the more detailed Moore/Marsden analysis this tool does not perform. Use this for general planning only, not as a substitute for an appraisal or legal advice.