When you pay to renovate your ex’s separate property, ensure those modifications increase value
In Gordon v. Anderson, 2020 Slip Op 00034, (179 AD3d 402), the First Department overturned the lower court’s opinion giving the husband half the appreciation of the wife’s separate property. Husband paid for renovations of the house. Further, an expert testified of the home’s appreciation during the marriage. Still, husband failed to evince a connection between the contributions and the value raise. Accordingly, the court found the Husband was entitled to nothing.