Man Seeks Advice As His Ex-Wife Refused Selling Her Portion Of Their Property Because Of Bad Math

A 28-year-old woman refused to sell her portion of a shared property to her ex-husband, and it all came down to what he calls “bad math.”

OP says he couldn’t even get a mortgage in his own name because the amount owing was too high, so his plan was simple: buy her out, keep the place, and make the numbers work. She countered that the deal was unfair because she’d only get about $40k, while he’d end up with the whole property.

What makes it messy is that OP claims he’s the one paying to build and improve it, and now he has to decide if he’s the bad guy for wanting to profit from a sale he can actually pull off. Here’s the full story.

The OP kicks off his story

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The OP couldn't get a mortgage in his own name because of the amount owing was higher

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She says that's not fair to her since all she gets its 40k and the OP gets a whole property

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OP doesn't understand why she would care about what he would do with this property after she gets the buy-out

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That’s when OP explained he set a selling stipulation, the property had to reach at least $350,000 for him to make it worth it.

OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the AH:

Am I the AH for wanting to buy her out and being able to make money off of it despite being able to do the same if someone else would buy.

We've gathered some of the most upvoted comments from other Redditors for you to read through below

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The court can address any legal issues

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A whole property saddled with a big mortgage

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She can give the OP a counter offer

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But his ex-wife kept pushing back, saying she shouldn’t be stuck with just the $40k buy-out while he benefits from the finished property.

Similar to siblings who demanded inheritance help while the OP refused, this turns into a numbers versus fairness argument.

OP then pointed out he’s the one spending the money to build a house, while she allegedly offered no capital to improve the land’s value.

The OP answered the above comment saying...

Yes, that was the stipulation I set when we put it up for sale, it needs to be at least 350,000 for me to be worth it to sell.I've seen multiple 7 acre properties sell, with much more flat land on it than we have, for 270-320k.

She still won't get the value of the land

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The OP is spending the money to build a house

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This Redditor is addressing what they might be missing

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The OP might need to get a lawyer

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Meanwhile, commenters zeroed in on the mortgage problem and told him the court can handle legal issues, plus suggested she could make a counter offer instead of refusing outright.

Some Redditors were not sure how someone can defend the ex-wife's "logic" on feeling entitled to the property's improved worth after OP built on it. She shouldn't be banking on that if she is offering no assistance or capital.

Some Redditors say doing otherwise makes her the AH but you can drop your own verdict in the comments below and share as well.

He might be right about the math, but he’s still stuck wondering if wanting a clean buy-out makes him the villain.

Want another brutal family finance fight, read about a maid of honor being pressured to pay for a destination wedding.