Last updated October 27, 2026
Selling a House During a Divorce in Florida
Short answer: You can sell a house during a divorce in Florida. Most sales need both owners to sign, and a judge can order the sale when they do not agree. What goes smoothly is the same in every county: one price drawn from closed sales, and written rules on who signs, who pays and how offers are handled.
Confidential
Tell Gia where the house stands
Share what you know about the house and where the divorce stands. Gia reviews it personally, replies within one business day, and keeps it confidential. She will not contact your spouse or co-owner unless you agree.
We work across Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie. Your family-law attorney handles the case and the settlement; we handle the house.
Key takeaways
- Florida homestead can be sold only with the owner's spouse joining in, and a married couple's tenancy by the entirety becomes a tenancy in common when the divorce is final (Art. X, s. 4(c), Fla. Const.; s. 689.15).
- The spouse who paid the mortgage alone gets no credit at closing unless the settlement agreement or a judgment specifically provides for it (s. 61.077).
- Up to $250,000 of gain per person can be excluded from federal tax, and $500,000 only on a joint return for the year of the sale (26 U.S.C. 121). Your CPA applies the rule.
- Only a licensed appraiser prepares an appraisal. A broker's written opinion of value shows what the house is likely to sell for (s. 475.612(3)).
- We work with both owners as a transaction broker and do not take sides. We never pay attorneys for referrals.
Real-estate side only. This is general information, not legal or tax advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created by reading it. PBP Real Estate, LLC is a licensed Florida real estate brokerage (License CQ1064615), not a law firm. Your family-law attorney decides the legal questions in your case, a CPA decides the tax questions, and a lender decides any refinance.
What questions come up when selling a house during a divorce?
Six come up in almost every divorce sale. Each one has its own page that answers it from Florida law and ends with the person who decides it for your case.
| Your question | The short answer |
|---|---|
| Do both spouses have to sign? | Usually yes; homestead needs the spouse's joinder |
| Should we sell before or after the divorce? | It turns on the tax year, the mortgage and your agreement |
| How does one spouse buy out the other? | A price you both accept, usually paid by a refinance |
| Who stays in the house, and who pays? | The court can award exclusive use; credits need the agreement or a judgment |
| How is the house value decided? | An appraiser's appraisal for the court; closed sales for the market |
| Can one agent work with both of us? | Yes, as a transaction broker who represents neither of you against the other |
Can you sell a house before the divorce is final in Florida?
Yes, when both owners agree or the court allows it. While the case is open, the family court has the power to distribute the marital home, and it can order an interim partial distribution when there is good cause (section 61.075(5)). Owners who agree on the sale can usually list, sign and close before the final judgment, with the money held or divided as their attorneys arrange.
Whether you should, and what the agreement should say about the money, are questions for your family-law attorney. The timing also changes the tax result; see selling before or after the divorce.
How does a divorce home sale work with PBP Real Estate?
In three steps, and the order matters.
- One number first. Gia Freer prepares a written opinion of value by hand from recent closed sales, houses compared with houses and condos with condos. Both owners, and both attorneys if you want, can read the same document and the sales behind it.
- Written rules second. Before the house is listed, the owners agree in writing who signs, who pays the mortgage and other carrying costs until closing, how showings work, and how offers are answered.
- List once, priced to the closed sales. A house priced to the market draws its offers in the first weeks. One priced to a compromise between owners usually sits, then sells later for less.
We take a divorce listing when both owners agree to sell, or when a judge has ordered the sale. When a judge has ordered it, the judge makes the final decisions and we follow the order.
How has Gia Freer handled divorce sales?
As a business decision, without taking sides. Gia has sold homes for divorcing owners in Palm Beach and Broward counties. In those sales, the ground rules were set in writing before the listing started, and updates went to both owners together, in group texts and joint calls. Usually one owner had already moved out by agreement. That describes how Gia has worked; the duties we owe each owner are the ones Florida law sets for a transaction broker, explained on the neutral agent page.
Your reason for selling stays out of the marketing. Buyers see a house, a price and a closing date.
How long does a divorce sale take in each county?
As long as the local market takes, plus the time it takes the owners to decide. Our county pages show the current median days to contract, houses and condos kept separate, from our Beaches MLS feed:
- Selling a house during divorce in Palm Beach County
- Selling a house during divorce in Broward County
- Miami-Dade, Martin and St. Lucie: Miami-Dade statistics, Martin statistics and St. Lucie statistics
Who handles a divorce sale at PBP Real Estate?
Gia Freer, Broker of Record (Florida license BK689801), handles every divorce file personally. Gia and Grant Freer have closed 767 transactions and $203,762,527 since 2000, 671 of them since 2013 (Beaches MLS, agent production report, as of October 19, 2026). Gia and Grant earned the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation in 2012. Our office works in English and Spanish.
Family-law attorneys can send a client's property details through the same form below. We never pay attorneys for referrals.
Related
- Do both spouses have to sign to sell a house in Florida?
- Should you sell the house before or after the divorce?
- How a spouse buyout of the house works in Florida
- Who stays in the house during a Florida divorce
- How the house value is decided in a Florida divorce
- A neutral real estate agent for a divorce in Florida
- Selling in other special situations
One number you can both look at
Tell us about the house and where the divorce stands. Gia Freer, our Broker of Record, reviews it personally and replies within one business day. No automated estimate is produced, and what you share stays confidential.
Have Gia review my options or call (561) 395-8418. Prefer to read first? See how we price a home.
General information from a licensed Florida real estate brokerage; it is not legal or tax advice. Your family-law attorney decides the legal questions. We never pay attorneys for referrals.
Selling a house during a divorce: questions and answers
Do both spouses have to agree to sell the house in a Florida divorce?
Usually the sale needs both owners' signatures, and Florida homestead needs the spouse's joinder. If the owners cannot agree, the family court decides what happens to the marital home. Whether your house needs both signatures is a question for your family-law attorney or the title company.
Can a judge order the house sold in a divorce?
Yes. A family court can order the marital home sold as part of distributing the marital assets, and a recorded judgment distributing assets works like a deed under section 61.075(4). When a judge has ordered the sale, the judge makes the final decisions and we follow the order.
Does PBP charge divorcing owners a different commission?
No. Every seller gets the same service on the same terms. There is no divorce package and no divorce pricing.
Will the listing say the owners are divorcing?
No. Our marketing never mentions a divorce. Under section 475.278(2)(f), Florida law treats a seller's motivation as confidential unless the seller waives that in writing.
Does PBP pay attorneys for referrals?
No. We never pay attorneys for referrals, and nothing of value changes hands with a family-law attorney for sending us a client.
Sources and legal references
This page summarizes Florida family law, real-estate law and federal tax rules for homeowners. The primary sources are below; for your own case, rely on your family-law attorney, and on a CPA for tax.
- Florida Constitution, Article X, Section 4: Homestead; exemptions — The Florida Senate
- Section 61.075, Florida Statutes: Equitable distribution of marital assets and liabilities — Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine)
- Section 61.077, Florida Statutes: Setoffs or credits upon sale of marital home — Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine)
- Section 689.15, Florida Statutes: Estates by survivorship — Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine)
- Section 475.278, Florida Statutes: Authorized brokerage relationships — Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine)
- Section 475.612, Florida Statutes: Certification of appraisers (opinion of value is not an appraisal) — Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine)
- 26 U.S.C. 121: Exclusion of gain from sale of principal residence — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- 26 U.S.C. 1041: Transfers of property between spouses or incident to divorce — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- IRS Publication 523, Selling Your Home — Internal Revenue Service
- Florida DBPR license record: PBP Real Estate, LLC, real estate corporation CQ1064615 — Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation
- Florida DBPR license record: Gia Freer, real estate broker BK689801 — Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation
- Florida DBPR license record: Grant Freer, real estate broker BK3077984 — Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation