Mortgage contracts are not changed by divorce settlements

Q. I got divorced from my husband about three years ago. Part of our agreement was that he would continue to make the mortgage payments until our youngest child graduated high school, which happens a year from June. At that point, I would have to either sell or refinance the house to get his name off the mortgage.

Well, he hasn't paid the mortgage since last December. I am getting continuous calls and letters threatening foreclosure. I send the letters to my ex but he just ignores them. When I talk to him, he says he has no money. I do know he lost his job and he now works off and on but he isn't making what he used to.

Is there a way I can get the mortgage company to go after him? I am thinking I could send them my divorce decree that shows he is supposed to be making the payments. The constant calls and letters are driving me crazy.

A. Unfortunately, your mortgage company doesn't really care about the terms of your settlement agreement. They only know and care about two things: 1.) that the mortgage payments aren't being made, and 2.) both you and your ex signed the mortgage documents and are responsible.

The good news is you do have an ally with the judge who entered your judgment for dissolution of marriage. Contact a family law attorney and ask that he file a petition to have your ex held in contempt of court for his failure to comply with the settlement agreement. That may get his attention. You can also request that your ex be responsible for any attorneys fees and costs you incur in enforcing the terms of the settlement agreement.

Q. My husband and I fell behind on our mortgage and our mortgage company filed for foreclosure. A few months after we were served by the sheriff, a relative came through with a loan that covered the missed payments. We are now back in a position that if we can get this cleared up, we will be able to continue to make our payments.

We asked our mortgage company to tell us what was owed so we could get this all straightened out. They said it was out of their hands and we needed to contact the attorneys handling the foreclosure. After about two weeks of leaving messages, we finally got someone who agreed to send us a statement of what we needed to pay to get back on track.

We got the statement in the mail yesterday and my husband almost had a heart attack. We were behind six months and our payments were about $1,700 a month, so we figured we needed about $10,000 plus we knew there would be some attorneys fees. Well, they want almost $15,000 to clear this up. We cannot figure out how our mortgage company incurred $5,000 in expenses this fast. Is there anything we can do to contest this?

A. Find a real estate attorney familiar with foreclosure law and show the statement to him. From what you describe, $1,500 to $2,500 would appear reasonable, presuming judgment has not yet been entered. However, your math may not be correct as to what was outstanding. In the event your attorney deems the fees and or costs unreasonable, you could petition the court for relief.

• Send your questions to attorney Tom Resnick, 345 N. Quentin Road, Palatine, IL 60067, by email to tdr100@hotmail.com or call (847) 359-8983.