Purchase Of Home

[jmm0254]

Currently live in a rented home with a lease option. I have been offered a few ways to go with the option of purchase. I have been though a nasty divorce with children. I am re-married. I have a good amount of past due child support due, although I am current. One of my children is over 18 years of age from the divorce, the other will be 18 in July 2008.

My credit is garbage from the divorce (no surprise here..), my current wife's credit is not so good either. My father who has excellent credit has helped and would help in the purchase of the home we are in.

My question is, would it be best to have the home and the loan in my fathers name, the loan in his name as a co-signer and the house in mine, my current wife's name or both. I am concerned about the courts being able to go for anything I own.

To complicate things more, because of the divorce and very bad information from one of my many attorneys throughout the divorce (I had 8 different attorneys), I did not file state or federal income taxes for several years. I have files all the back years in taxes, but also owe money here, to which I have not made any arrangements for payback as of this time. I did file the back taxes with my current wife in order to get the best deductions, but this also attaches her to the money owed to the government.

I would like to arrange a payback plan with the government, and they have worked with me a bit in the situation at hand.

I just would like to know what is my best route to take.

If my father would co-sign a loan (he already co-signed on the lease, we've been in the rented home for 2 years now), should it go in his name (he is in his early 80's, owns our business that my wife and I work for), or should he co-sign on the loan to get the loan, I work out a payment plan with the taxes, have the home in my wifes and my name, and have no worries about the courts taking anything for child support that is due? I (we) owe about $9,000.00 on taxes, I owe in past support about $40,000.00. And before anyone freaks out because the past support is so much, it is because when I filed for divorce, my wife was in the home and let it go into foreclosure. I was a nice guy at the time and gave her the money to bring the mortgage payments back up to date, she took the money, trashed the home, it went into foreclosure, was sold at auction, I owed the difference, but the home was also in her name, i filed a BK and the courts attached the amount owed to my money owed to her - albeit not support, but a spousal payback. SO I was never in default paying support, just the amount from the home was loaded into it. I am in Illinois, DuPage County.. not a place you want to get married or divorced. My attorney fees for the divorce were in excess of $125,000.00 and it took me over 5 years for the divorce, plus I had to pay all her attorney fees and she has never let me see the children, although the courts mandated I must have visitation. She just refused, lawyers would not help to get anything done.

I was told by my attorneys, you should write a book, you should be on 60 minutes or something, Each one said that - then failed me in every way psooible.

Sorry for getting off on a tangent, I really am just looking for guidance on the purchase of the home - as first mentioned.

Thanks.

[Mr. Knowitall]

I'm not about to tell you to try to hide your assets in sombody else's name. That can create legal trouble for both of you, and can actually reduce the protections you might otherwise receive under law (e.g., a homestead exemption).

[jmm0254]

Thanks, that was a helpful response. I was not asking how to "hide" things, just the best way to protect my wife and family from a very - VERY nasty ex-wife - who has gotten a lot from me since 1997, as I paid for everything and could not even see my children for most of those years.

Spoken like a true lawyer. That is what is wrong with our legal system. It is broken because there is no compassion for the man/father/husband in a divorce. Period.