My husband took out a second mortgage on the house, the loan is his name only. If he does not pay the mortgage will lose the house? We are on the first mortgage together and are going to get a divorce, what can I do?

Technically, the answer is yes. Defaulting on any mortgage can lead to foreclosure. However, the norm is for the first mortgage lender to foreclose. Foreclosures are pretty expensive for banks to execute so subordinate lienholders are more reluctant to do it. Especially if there is little equity in the property.

Also, if your husband doesn't make the mortgage payments on your first mortgage, your credit will be affected.  If you are just about to go into the divorce, it would be a good idea to get a copy of your credit report (it's free without the scores at www.annualcreditreport.com) and review it.  If your credit is good now, and you have mostly joint credit, it would be a good idea to try to establish your own before the divorce.

Not exactly an answer to your question, but hopefully it helps.

This is something that occurs frequently when dealing with divorce and joint debts so you're not alone. I would recommend talking to your mortgage lenders now about what's going on and if you're in a positition that you would keep the home after the divorce there may be some hope to have the existing lenders modify your loans into either better terms or possible removing you from the loan if he's keeping the house.

I would question the 2nd mortgage though. If you were both on title to the property when he took out the 2nd mortgage and you didn't sign documents then the deed of trust for the 2nd mortgage shouldn't have been filed. State law does have authority over property rights so check with a local title insurance company or attorney for advice.

Good Luck and Merry Christmas.