The word equity gets thrown around a lot when people are considering selling their home in Nova Scotia - but what does it really mean?

EQUITY DEFINED

The equity in your home is the market value of your home, less funds you’d need to pay out to sell it, generally the amount of outstanding on the mortgage, estimated real estate commission, legal costs for disposing of the home and any judgements registered against the property itself.

This is the value in your home that is “yours”.

UNDERSTANDING EQUITY DETERMINES HOW MUCH MORTGAGE YOU NEED TO BUY YOUR NEXT HOME

If you are planning to sell your home and want to know how much money you’ll walk away with in your pocket, this is the figure you are looking for. If you plan to buy a new house, it will help you understand how much of a mortgage, if any at all, that you’ll require.

UNDERSTANDING EQUITY DETERMINES SPOUSAL BUY-OUT DURING MARRIAGE BREAKDOWN

This number is important when selling, but it is also important in the family law context when one spouse is buying out the other from the matrimonial home in Nova Scotia. This is vital to establish the amount of the “buyout” payment.  The best way to get the market value to figure out that number is to seek a third party option from a professional, either a Realtor or have a formal appraisal done.

By: Briana C. O’Grady, J.D

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If you have any questions about an issue with a property in Nova Scotia process, you can call us at (902) 826-3070 or email us at info@highlanderlaw.ca to set up a meeting with one of our lawyers at our Tantallon law firm. You can also schedule a no commitment Issue Review Consult for $250+HST where you have the opportunity to explain your situation to a lawyer and get basic advice before deciding whether or not you'd like to retain us.

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