Keeping a 2.25% mortgage after divorce: when a great rate isn't enough
As seen on the 24/7 Wall St. homepage on October 23, 2026.
Sell it Clean break You cant afford to buy him out. Losing the mortgage rate sucks but just find something that had a total payment you can handle and pay it down or refinance if the opportunity arises
A 2.25% mortgage is worth a lot, but not worth a $2,500 monthly housing payment on $5,000 of income, which is where this thread lands almost unanimously. The lesson for anyone chasing an assumable pandemic-era loan: the rate is only cheap if the total payment fits your budget.
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A recently divorced mother of two in Michigan asked r/personalfinance whether to assume her ex-husband's 2.25% mortgage and buy out his equity instead of selling the family home as the divorce judgment requires.
She has about $20,000 in savings plus access to roughly $20,000 more, and estimated she would need between $54,000 and $74,000 in additional financing to complete the buyout.
Her full-time income is a little over $5,000 per month, and the top comment said plainly that she cannot afford the buyout and should sell, buy a home with a payment she can handle, and refinance if rates fall.
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She is debt-free, holds a credit score above 800, and the lender confirmed she qualifies for the assumption, yet her seven-year-old son's epilepsy and ongoing evaluation for a knee tumor weigh on both the budget and the value of staying put.
Anyone eyeing an assumable pandemic-era mortgage has to measure the buyout cost, any secondary financing, and the resulting all-in monthly payment against actual take-home income before the rate advantage means anything.