What can I do if my ex stopped paying the mortgage and the bank is coming after me for payment?

Since your divorce judgment states that your ex is to pay the mortgage, you can take him back to court on a Petition for Rule to Show Cause. It would also be a good idea for you to hire an attorney to do this.

Your mortgage company isn't bound by any divorce agreement between you and your former spouse. It will pursue both of you for payment, and possibly payment of a deficiency judgment, which could be tens of thousands of dollars or more, after a foreclosure. His "hold harmless" is only as good as his financial ability to honor it. Your former husband may have good options, e.g., loan modification, deed in lieu, consent foreclosure, foreclosure defense, or short sale to avoid any personal deficiency against him or you. You might encourage him to contact a lawyer to pursue those options, in which case you should cooperate to the extent necessary to achieve those results. I doubt that fighting it out in divorce court will result in anything more than additional attorney fees and aggravation for both of you. I don't recommend this course of action at all. As a practical matter, you could advise the bank of your divorce agreement, send them a copy, and then contact a foreclosure defense attorney only if and when a foreclosure action is filed. Depending on your exact financial condition, there may be other alternatives for you, but it might be best to wait and see how your former husband's mortgage and job situation play out. Best of Luck to you with this tenuous situation. Rick Rogers

I agree with the other answer and would add that if you make any payments keep good records. Use a check or other written instrument you can get a copy of to prove payment. There should be a way to get your name off the mortgage, including a refinance, depending on what other language is in your Judgment. If he is found not to have good cause for non-payment you should get some or all of your attorneys fees paid by him. You can start your search for a new attorney on the site. Click find a lawyer. This is more of a family law issue than real estate so I have changed the catagory.

I agree with Mr. Rogers, your "hold harmless" or indemnnity agreement with your ex-husband is only applicable for you to collect from him for failure to maintain the mortgage payments it doesnt get you off the hook with the mortgage company. If trying to negotiate with him directly to make payments again or to give you the power to make decisions on the property, one option may be to take your husband to court on a rule to show cause for failure to comply with the Marital Settlement Agreement to force him to start making payments again or at the very least give you the authority you need with the bank to resolve the matter or to sell the property. I recommend meeting with a divorce attorney to help you with this. Although you are seeking to resolve the issue in the Domestic Relations court the bank is not going to wait on the house and may move to foreclose so the next step is addressing the house specifically. The home foreclosure can be pulled into the domestic relations case until the isssue is finally resolved, which may be helpful in obtaining a loan modification or some other loss mitigation option. At the end of the day you will either have to negotiate a loan modification with the bank to make payments or explore some other loss mitigation avenue such as a short sale. You may also have some other claims or causes of action against the bank, and I would recommend speaking to a foreclosure defense attorney to help you identify all options and potential causes of action.