He's the situation. I'm in the middle of a long, drawn out divorce from my ex-wife. She cheated on me and I found out about it a little over a year ago. She has subsequently moved out of our house and is living in an apartment, but because I can't afford to pay the mortgage (I was a full time stay-at-home mom so I've only returned to working full-time) she has been making the mortgage payments alone. We both are on the deed and the loan. She has threatened to take legal action against me to have me removed from the house if I don't agree to the rest of the divorce settlement (we have two small children together).

What exactly can she do if I don't sign a quit-claim-deed like she's asking? As I was not working when we built the damn thing, I've never financially contributed to the payments but we did sell a house I owned in full and took the proceeds to buy a previous house which we then sold to build this one.

Any suggestions on how I can protect myself?

If you are on the deed then you are an owner and she can't have you removed from the house. Don't sign anything, especially a deed, until you speak to an attorney.

You options are severely limited as you are living in a house being paid for by a 'hostile" spouse. I am surprised she is still making the payments. Obviously she must be trying to protect her/your equity interest in the house, and doesn't want to lose the house to foreclosure. Technically, you own half interest in the house, so as long as she continues to pay the mortgage and your name is on the deed you are okay. She may threaten to stop paying as a bluff to get you to agree to her divorce terms. And if you quit-claim the house over to her, then technically she can evict you from the house. The smart thing to do will be to: 1. Do NOT quit claim - yet. This protects you from being evicted, as well as your marital interest in your joint property 2. Try to work out some sort of financial revenue sharing agreement through the sale of the house separate from the divorce agreement. The reason for this is that since kids are involved, the divorce agreement can be very messy and prolonged, and you may not have the luxury of time with your current housing situation. She's obviously not making payments out of love for you, but out of a financial interest. How long she will be willing (or able) to keep doing this is questionable. Not many people can maintain a rent AND a house payment indefinitely. For your sake, you need to begin to shore up your financial situation by getting an independent income source (ex. A Job) so if she stops making the payments you can continue, or you can at least afford to move out. Definitely do not wait for the divorce courts to settle your living arrangement as it might take a while before that happens, and also, definitely do not put yourself at the mercy of your wife by quit claiming the property prior to a sale (Another option: as a requirement of your quit claiming the house, make your wife an offer to buy your interest of the property. She can then move back to the house, and you will have the money to move, as well as other options.)

Who gets the house is decided by the court if you two can not agree

If you can't afford it and are going to lose it anyway, why not sign it over to them to reach a settlement on other issues