Equitable Division of Property

• If you and your spouse cannot come to an agreement on how to divide your property if you divorce, the court will divide the property for you. Maryland is an equitable distribution state, which means that Maryland courts decide what is a fair, reasonable and equitable division of property. The courts consider a variety of factors when determining how to divide your property. These factors include: each spouse's contribution to the well-being of the family; the value of all property interests of each spouse; the economic circumstances of each spouse at the time property is divided; the circumstances that contributed to the estrangement of the parties; the duration of the marriage; the ages of the spouses; the physical and mental health of each spouse; how and when an interest in the property was acquired; alimony awards; and any other factors the court deems appropriate and just.
  
  

Marital Property

• Marital property consists of all property acquired by either you, your spouse or both you and your spouse during the course of the marriage. The only exception to this rule is a gift or inheritance obtained by one spouse during the marriage. Examples of marital property include houses, cars, furniture, appliances, stocks, bonds, jewelry, bank accounts, pensions, retirement plans and IRAs. The courts divide all marital property in an equitable manner.
  
  

Non-Marital Property

• Non-marital property consists of property acquired before the marriage took place, property acquired by gift or inheritance from a third party or property excluded by a valid agreement. Non-marital property also includes all property directly traceable to the aforementioned sources. Non-marital property is not subject to division.
  
  

Combination of Marital and Non-Marital Property

• In some cases, a Maryland court may consider property both marital and non-marital property. Consider this example. A man purchases a house with a 30-year mortgage. He lives in the house alone for five years before he marries his wife. After the marriage, the wife moves in and contributes her income toward the payment of the mortgage. The equity the husband had in the house prior to the marriage remains his non-marital property, while the equity paid into the house by both spouses during the marriage makes the house marital property. The court would divide this property accordingly.