Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

Re: property after marriage

Property owned by one party before a marriage remains the property of that party after the marriage unless the title is changed (it makes no difference whether the owner is a man or woman). There is a catch, however, in case of a divorce. If the owner of the property at the time of the marriage has a mortgage of other lien on the propery, and payments are made on the debt during the marriage from current income of either party, then the one who does not own it gains an interest in the property which may result, at the time of a divorce, in a requirement that the owner pay a "monetary award" to the other party. The same thing happens if improvements are made to the property during the marriage, increasing the value. If the married couple spends money to add a room, improve a kitchen, install a swimming pool, etc., the increased value creates a financial interest in the property, but not ownership, to the second party. -If the owner's interest increases during the marriage solely because the value of real estate in general has escalated, without any marital funds having been invested to increase the equity, the non-owner has no financial interest.