The down housing market has had a major impact on people in divorce, and in death. As foreclosures have spiked and loans become more difficult to come by, divorce proceedings have been prolonged, and in some cases, couples have put off a pending split. And in the case of death, homes have become controversial as parts of wills. With failed marriages, the housing situation has led not only to a slowdown in divorce closings as unhappy couples wait for a house to sell, but also to those couples cohabitating because they don’t have enough assets for two homes. “It’s definitely affecting dissolution cases,” said Judge Joel Brown, administrative judge of the family division of the 11th Judicial Circuit of Florida. ”Often times the divorce settlement is contingent on dividing up the proceeds from the sale of the house,” he said. “Sometimes the families cannot afford to live separately. “In other words, there is not enough savings and not enough money for them to go out and get other housing.” Through the first eight months of 2007, 11,355 divorces occurred in Miami-Dade County. This year, there were 9,824 through August — about a 13.5% drop — according to numbers provided by the county. While divorces have slowed, foreclosures have climbed at a torrid pace. From 2006 to 2007, the number of foreclosures in Miami-Dade County shot up to 26,391, an increase of more than 250%, according to county records. Through August, the county reports 34,317 foreclosures filings — a 130% growth over all of last year. When it comes to divorce and inability to sell a home, the largest impact might be the social and emotional implications of people who don’t like each other but end up living together, Judge Brown said.
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