Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

First of all, MD is not a community property state. The law says that any property acquired during the marriage, with certain exceptions, is considered marital, and thus subject to division in the event of a divorce, regardless of how it's titled. The exceptions are property acquired by one of the spouses through inheritance or gift, or property that was acquired with funds that can be traced to a premarital asset. In the case of your forthcoming home purchase, unless you can demonstrate that the initial down payment comes from nonmarital sources as described above, it will be considered joint property. In addition, equity added by paying down the mortgage will be considered marital even if the payments come from one spouse's paycheck. Homes are typically titled by spouses as "tenants by the entirety". This protects the property from the creditors of one of the spouses. It also means that if one dies, the other automatically assumes full ownership without having to go through probate.

If your husband is agreeable, you could put together an agreement that says that you get the house in the event of a divorce, or that you get the lion's share, etc. The agreement could also dictate which of your other property is to be considered yours and not marital. If you want to be able to leave any of your property to your children or others when you die, you would have to title it just in your name. But bear in mind that even if you write a Will that excludes him, he can claim 1/3 of your estate if you're married when you die. If he's agreeable to these kinds of things, you ought to have an attorney like myself who practices regularly in this area of law draw it up for you so there are no problems down the road.