ex wifes debt placed lein on my property

by Darryl
(west virgina)

I Went through a grulling divorce, paid off everything but my house that is up for deed &leiu but held up because ex wife never payed her court appointed debts and now one of her unsecured credit cards has placed a lein on my property but will not let me pay the balance owed or give me any information because my name is not on the debt. What legal right do they have to do this and how can I clear this lein off my property title

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May 17, 2013
 ex wifes debt placed lein on my property
by: Debtcollectionanswers.com

Unfortunately, one of the risks of agreeing to let a former spouse pay off debts from a marriage is that the ex won't live up to the terms of the agreement. This sounds like what has happened to you.

When that happens, the agreement with the creditor (credit card issuer or lender) who has not been paid trumps the divorce agreement. In other words, the creditor is entitled to get paid one way or another and so it can look to the other ex for payment on debt that the two of you may have acquired together during your marriage or that you co-signed for her when you were still together. It does matter what your divorce agreement may say.

Given your situation, you have a couple options for getting the lien removed:

1. Talk to your ex and find out if she will pay what is owed.

2. Take your ex to court to try to get your divorce agreement enforced. However, if your ex does not have the money to pay the debt, then this effort won't resolve your problem right away.
Talk with your divorce attorney before you pursue this option.

3. Pay what is owed yourself so you can get the lien removed. Note: I do not understand why the creditor will not allow you to pay the balance owed. Most creditors do not care who pays them as long as a debt gets paid. Of course, you need to know exactly how much is owed to pay off the debt.
If this is the option you would like to pursue, you may need to speak with a consumer law attorney for helping finding out the payoff amount.

I want to warn you however, that even if you pay the amount owed, the lien will have badly damaged your credit history and you can't change that.

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