When a spouse purchases a property using the proceeds from the sale of a property they owned before the marriage, they are required to include it in the purchase agreement.
Are the assets owned by one of the spouses before marriage always excluded from the family patrimony?
For example, a woman who owned a residence worth $53,000, free of any mortgage, before marriage sells it after a few years following work done by her husband. With the proceeds from the sale, the couple fully purchases a second residence registered in both spouses' names. Building on the profit and the husband's skill, the couple sells it and buys a third residence in cash, which will be sold for $205,000 upon their separation.
The wife goes to court* to claim the proceeds from the sale of the residence. She argues that she is entitled to the proceeds from the residence she owned before marriage and the capital gain acquired through its reinvestment.
The court rules that the wife has waived her rights since the last two residences were acquired in both spouses' names without any reservation on her part.
When a spouse purchases an asset with the proceeds from the sale of an asset they owned before marriage or inherited, it must be stated in the purchase agreement to prevent it from being included in the family patrimony.
*CA 500-09-013210-034; 2003-09-19
