If you owned your home prior to your marriage, there are legal consequences to placing your spouse’s name on the deed to your home after your marriage.
Under Georgia law, if you owned your home prior to your marriage and placed your spouse’s name on the deed after your marriage, that is considered a gift from you to the marriage and the entire value of the home becomes marital property. It does not matter what the reason was for the transfer.
I have seen several cases in which a home is refinanced after a marriage, and the person who owned the home prior to the marriage placed their spouse’s name on the deed as a result of the refinance. If the parties divorce after the refinance, the entire value of the home is considered marital property.
Before you put your spouse’s name on the deed to the home you owned prior to your marriage, contact an attorney who is knowledgable about family law. Talk to an attorney about the consequences of putting your spouse’s name on the deed to the home you owned before the marriage, and whether you need a prenuptial or even a postnuptial agreement to make your intentions clear.