Virginia

Who Gets the House in a Virginia Divorce?

This page covers Virginia law only.

In Virginia, you and your spouse settle who gets the house in writing, or the court decides under Virginia Code section 20-107.3. The court determines title, ownership, and value. It weighs eleven listed factors. The statute states no fixed percentage. The court is allowed to divide or transfer the property, order a sale, or grant a monetary award.

By Marc Cormier

Licenses: Maryland #620443 | Virginia #0225175181 | DC #SP98365998 | Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices

27+ years in real estate. 800+ closed transactions.

Certified as a Certified Divorce Real Estate Expert (CDRE) in 2014.

Last updated: October 2, 2026

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What does Virginia law decide about the house?

Virginia Code section 20-107.3(A) gives the court four jobs when it decrees a divorce. On request of either spouse, the court determines legal title as between the spouses. It determines the ownership and value of all property. It considers which property is separate, which is marital, and which is part separate and part marital. It also determines the nature of the debts.

Spouses are free to settle the house in a written agreement first. If you do not agree, the court decides. Treat the statute as the frame for every talk you have about the house.

Is a house titled in both names marital property?

Yes, under the statute. Virginia Code section 20-107.3(A)(2) says marital property includes all property titled in the names of both spouses, whether as joint tenants, tenants by the entirety, or otherwise. The text carries one exception for subdivision 3. Subdivision 3 covers income and increases in value of separate property, and commingling. Ask your attorney how it applies to your house.

The same subsection treats as marital all other property either spouse acquired during the marriage that is not separate property. Three categories matter:

Category	What section 20-107.3 says
Separate	Property acquired before the marriage. Property acquired during the marriage by bequest, devise, descent, survivorship, or gift from a source other than the other spouse. Subsection (A)(1).
Marital	Property titled in both names. All other property either spouse acquired during the marriage that is not separate. Subsection (A)(2).
Part separate and part marital	The court considers it as its own category. Subsection (A).

Part separate and part marital is where houses get complicated. Section 20-107.3(A)(3)(a) says an increase in the value of separate property during the marriage is marital property only to the extent marital property or the personal efforts of either spouse contributed to the increase. The personal efforts must be significant and must result in substantial appreciation.

Retitling matters too. Section 20-107.3(A)(3)(f) says separate property retitled in the joint names of the spouses is deemed marital. To the extent the property is retraceable by a preponderance of the evidence and was not a gift, it keeps its original classification. Do not retitle a home you owned before the marriage until your attorney explains this subsection.

Which factors does the court weigh?

Eleven. Section 20-107.3(E) says the court decides the amount of any division or transfer of jointly owned marital property, any monetary award, the apportionment of marital debts, and the method of payment after considering these factors:

1.Contributions, monetary and nonmonetary, of each spouse to the well-being of the family.
2.Contributions, monetary and nonmonetary, of each spouse in the acquisition and care and maintenance of the marital property.
3.The duration of the marriage.
4.The ages and physical and mental condition of the spouses.
5.The circumstances and factors that contributed to the dissolution of the marriage.
6.How and when specific items of marital property were acquired.
7.The debts and liabilities of each spouse and the basis for them.
8.The liquid or nonliquid character of all marital property.
9.The tax consequences to each spouse.
10.The use or expenditure of marital property for a nonmarital separate purpose, or dissipation, in anticipation of the dissolution.
11.Such other factors as the court deems necessary or appropriate.

The text of section 20-107.3 states no fixed percentage. Do not plan around a half. Plan around these eleven items and the records that prove them.

What is the court allowed to do with the house?

Section 20-107.3 gives the court three tools for a jointly owned marital home. The court is allowed to use them. The statute does not say which one a court picks for your house.

Tool	Section	What the text says
Divide or transfer	20-107.3(C)	The court is allowed to divide or transfer, or order the division or transfer, or both, of jointly owned marital property, jointly owed marital debt, or any part of either.
Order a sale	20-107.3(C)	The court is allowed to order sale of real property by private sale by the parties, through an agent the court directs, or by public sale as the court directs, without the necessity for partition.
Monetary award	20-107.3(D)	The court is allowed to grant a monetary award to either spouse, payable in a lump sum or over a period of time in fixed amounts.

Section 20-107.3(C) adds that orders dividing or transferring real property between the spouses are recorded and indexed in the names of the spouses.

A monetary award is money, not a transfer of the house. Ask your attorney which tool fits your case.

What value does the court use?

The value on the day of the evidentiary hearing. Section 20-107.3(A) says the court determines value as of the date of the evidentiary hearing. A listing price or an online estimate from today is not that number.

Example numbers. Same $250,000 mortgage. Half is used only to show the arithmetic. It is not a rule.

Home value on hearing day	Equity	Half of the equity
$570,000	$320,000	$160,000
$600,000	$350,000	$175,000
$630,000	$380,000	$190,000

Check the math: $570,000 minus $250,000 is $320,000. $630,000 minus $250,000 is $380,000. A $30,000 change in value is 5% of $600,000. It moves each half by $15,000.

Markets move between today and the hearing. Agree in writing on one neutral valuation and a tiebreak rule if two values differ. Ask your attorney how value gets presented to the court.

What does a sale do to the number?

Equity is not what you take home. If the house sells, costs come out before anyone is paid. Example numbers. Half is used only to show the arithmetic.

Line	Amount
Sale price	$750,000
Mortgage payoff	minus $300,000
Equity	$450,000
Agent commission (6% of $750,000)	minus $45,000
Closing costs	minus $8,000
Repairs and staging	minus $14,000
Net before tax	$383,000

Check the math: $750,000 minus $300,000 is $450,000. The costs are $45,000 plus $8,000 plus $14,000, which is $67,000. $450,000 minus $67,000 is $383,000. Half of the equity is $225,000. Half of the net is $191,500. The gap is $33,500 for each spouse. The 6% commission is an example rate. Commission is negotiable.

Argue about the net. The net is the money that reaches your bank account. Section 20-107.3(E)(9) lists tax consequences to each spouse as a factor, so ask your tax professional before you sign anything.

What do you settle before you decide who gets the house?

Settle these items in writing before you split, buy out, or list.

1.Who holds title, and the date each name went on the deed. Pull the deed.
2.Whether any part of the house is separate property, and the records that trace it.
3.One neutral value, and a tiebreak rule if two values differ.
4.A payoff letter from every lender, including any second mortgage or home equity line.
5.Whether one spouse keeps the house or it sells, and a written backup if the first plan fails.

Bring the deed, the closing statement from the purchase, recent mortgage statements, and the bank records behind any down payment to your first meeting with your attorney. Each spouse needs their own attorney. I am a real estate agent. I do not give legal or tax advice, and I do not recommend one attorney over another.

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOUR HOUSE

Title, ownership, and value come first. Section 20-107.3(A) puts all three in front of the court.
A house titled in both names is marital property under section 20-107.3(A)(2), with an exception in subdivision 3.
Eleven factors set the split. The text states no fixed percentage.
The court is allowed to divide or transfer the property, order a sale, or grant a monetary award.
The court values the house as of the evidentiary hearing date.
Ask your tax professional before you sign anything.

Where this goes wrong

I have seen this mistake before. One spouse decides the house is theirs because they paid the mortgage or grew up in the neighborhood. The other spouse decides the law splits everything in half. Neither reads the statute. Months pass, and the carrying costs keep running.

Assuming half is the law. Section 20-107.3 lists factors and states no fixed percentage.
Assuming the mortgage payments make the house yours. Property titled in both names is marital under subsection (A)(2).
Retitling a home you owned before the marriage into joint names. Subsection (A)(3)(f) deems retitled property marital, subject to tracing.
Using today's value when the court values the house as of the evidentiary hearing date.
Using a statement balance instead of a payoff letter. Interest and fees add to it.
Throwing away the records that trace separate money. You cannot prove it later if you do not keep it now.

This is where people usually get hurt. They fight about who deserves the house before they check title, classification, and value.

Local note for Northern Virginia: The Fairfax Courthouse Self-Help Resource Center is a walk-in resource open to the public at 4110 Chain Bridge Road, Suite 115 (1st Floor), Fairfax, VA 22030, Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, closed holidays. It gives information about court procedures, forms, legal resources, and referrals to legal aid. It does not give legal advice. Source: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/topics/courthouse-self-help-center

If keeping the home does not work, here is how a divorce sale runs.

Questions about who gets the house in a Virginia divorce

Q1. Who gets the house in a Virginia divorce?

A. You and your spouse decide in a written agreement, or the court decides. Under Virginia Code section 20-107.3, the court determines title, ownership, and value. It weighs eleven factors and is allowed to divide or transfer the property, order a sale, or grant a monetary award. Ask your attorney which outcome fits your facts.

Q2. Is a house titled in both names marital property in Virginia?

A. Under Virginia Code section 20-107.3(A)(2), property titled in both spouses' names is marital property, whether held as joint tenants, tenants by the entirety, or otherwise. The subsection makes one exception for subdivision 3, which covers income, increases in value, and commingling. Ask your attorney whether that exception touches your house.

Q3. Is there a fixed percentage for the house in a Virginia divorce?

A. No fixed percentage appears in the text of Virginia Code section 20-107.3. The statute lists eleven factors instead, including contributions to the family, the length of the marriage, ages, debts, and tax consequences. Do not plan around half. Plan around your own facts, and ask your attorney how the factors apply to them.

Q4. What is the court allowed to do with the marital home?

A. Section 20-107.3(C) allows the court to divide or transfer jointly owned marital property. It also allows an order for sale by private sale by the parties, through an agent the court directs, or by public sale, without partition. Section 20-107.3(D) allows a monetary award. The statute does not say which tool a court picks for your home.

Q5. What date does the court use to value the house?

A. Virginia Code section 20-107.3(A) says the court determines value as of the date of the evidentiary hearing. A listing price or an online estimate from today is not that number. Markets move before the hearing. In an example, a $30,000 swing in value moves an even half of the equity by $15,000. Plan for a range.

Q6. What if part of the house is separate property?

A. The statute recognizes property that is part separate and part marital. Section 20-107.3(A)(3)(a) says an increase in the value of separate property is marital only to the extent marital property or personal efforts contributed to it. The efforts must be significant and result in substantial appreciation. Keep the purchase records and bank records. Ask your attorney how tracing applies.

Q7. Do the reasons for the divorce matter to who gets the house?

A. They are one item on the list. Section 20-107.3(E)(5) names the circumstances and factors that contributed to the dissolution of the marriage. It sits beside ten other factors, including contributions, the length of the marriage, and tax consequences. Ask your attorney how the court weighs it in your case.

Do you need a divorce attorney?

You should have your own. I am a real estate agent. I do not give legal advice, and I do not work for one spouse against the other.

I am not affiliated with any law firm. I do not recommend one attorney over another. Your spouse needs their own attorney, not yours.

If you need to find one, start here:

Virginia Judicial System Self-Help, Find a Lawyer (lists the Virginia State Bar Lawyer Referral Service, 1-800-552-7977)

Links open in a new tab.

What an attorney handles	What I handle
Who gets the house and the money	The value of the house
The marital settlement agreement	The net sheet
Court orders that affect the sale	Listing, showings, offers, and closing
Custody, support, and everything outside real estate	A written record of every showing and decision

General information only. Not legal, tax, or financial advice. The referral service is independent of me. I do not guarantee any attorney's work or results.

Marc Cormier