Harper v. Harper

• Citation: 448 A.2d 916,294 Md. 54
• Decision Date: 23 July 1982
• Docket Number: No. 92,92
• Parties: Sylvester E. HARPER v. Amaryllis M. HARPER.
• Court: Maryland Court of Appeals

Page 54

294 Md. 54

448 A.2d 916

Sylvester E. HARPER v. Amaryllis M. HARPER.

No. 92.

Court of Appeals of Maryland.

July 23, 1982.

Jeffrey Lee Greenspan, Washington, D. C., for appellant.

Steven R. Migdal, Annapolis (Manis, Wilkinson, Snider & Goldsborough, Chartered, Annapolis, on brief), for appellee.

Argued before SMITH, ELDRIDGE, COLE, DAVIDSON and RODOWSKY, JJ., and J. DUDLEY DIGGES, Ret'd, Specially Assigned Judge.

DAVIDSON, Judge.

This case presents two questions concerning the characterization and equitable distribution of certain property as marital property under Maryland Code (1974, 1980 Repl.Vol.) § 3-6A-01(e) of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article. More particularly, it initially presents the question whether real property, purchased under an installment contract and paid for in part before marriage and in part during marriage, is marital property. Additionally, it presents the question whether a marital residence constructed on that real property during marriage is marital property.

The relevant statutory provisions are § 3-6A-01(e) and § 3-6A-05(a), (b), and (c).

Section 3-6A-01(e) provides:

" 'Marital property' is all property, however titled, acquired by either or both spouses during their marriage. It does not include property acquired prior to the marriage, property acquired by inheritance or gift from a third party, or property excluded by valid agreement or property directly traceable to any of these sources." (Emphasis added.)

Section 3-6A-05(a) provides in pertinent part:

"(a) In granting an absolute divorce or annulment ... the court shall determine which property is marital property if the division of property is an issue." (Emphasis added.)

Section 3-6A-05(b) and (c) provide:

"(b) The court shall determine the value of all marital property. After making the determination, the court may grant a monetary award as an adjustment of the equities and rights of the parties concerning marital property, whether or not alimony is awarded. The amount of the award and the method of its payment shall be determined after considering each of the following factors:

"(1) The contributions, monetary and nonmonetary, of each party to the well-being of the family "(2) The value of all property interests of each spouse ;

"(3) The economic circumstances of each spouse at the time the award is to be made;

"(4) The circumstances and facts which contributed to the estrangement of the parties;

"(5) The duration of the marriage;

"(6) The age and the physical and mental condition of the parties;

"(7) How and when specific marital property was acquired, including the effort expended by each party in accumulating the marital property ;

"(8) Any award or other provision which the court has made under this Subtitle 6A with respect to family use personal property or the family home, and any award of alimony; and

"(9) Such other factors as the court deems necessary or appropriate to consider in order to arrive at a fair and equitable monetary award.

"(c) A monetary award made under this section may be reduced to a judgment to the extent that any part of the award is due and owing." (Emphasis added.)

In 1950 the petitioner, Sylvester E. Harper (husband), then unmarried, purchased an unimproved parcel of real property for a purchase price of approximately $355.00. The purchase was made under a land installment contract requiring a monthly payment of approximately $6.90. Before his marriage, the husband made all of the payments that came due.

On 3 November 1951, the husband married the respondent, Amaryllis M. Harper (wife). During the marriage, the husband continued to make all of the payments that came due until all of the requisite payments had been made.

In 1967 the husband personally built a house, costing approximately $21,600.00, upon the real property. That house was used by the parties as their marital residence. Although the wife's name appeared on the mortgage and she was legally obligated under it, the husband made all of the mortgage payments that came due on the marital residence. Additionally, the husband paid for all of the expenses associated with the upkeep and repair of the marital residence.

According to the wife, a substantial part of the payment on a previous house jointly owned by the parties was provided by her mother, and the proceeds of the sale of that house were used to finance the construction of the marital residence built in 1967. According to the husband's pleadings, he made all of the payments for the land, construction of the marital residence, and its upkeep. At all times, the property was titled solely in the husband's name.

On 14 March 1980, in the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County, the wife filed a bill of complaint for an absolute divorce. She requested, among other things, "that the Court determine the ownership of all the real property regardless of how titled, and order the sale of said real property, and divide the proceeds equitably."

At trial, there was evidence to show that there was an outstanding mortgage indebtedness of approximately $8,300.00 on the marital residence which was then appraised at a fair market value of approximately $65,500.00. There was no evidence to show the precise source and extent of the funds utilized during the marriage for payments for the land, construction of the marital residence, and its upkeep.

On 10 November 1980, a decree was entered granting the wife, among other things, an absolute divorce and a division of real property. More particularly, the trial court declared that the real property consisting of the lot with the marital residence upon it was marital property and ordered a sale in lieu of partition with each party receiving one-half of the proceeds of the sale. In reaching this result, the trial court said:

"In making a determination of ownership of real property under the applicable statutes upon granting a decree of divorce, the Court is guided by several factors including the contributions, both monetary and nonmonetary, made by each party to the well-being of the family; the value of the property interests of each spouse; the circumstances contributing to the estrangement of the parties; the duration of the marriage; the age and physical condition of the parties; and how and when the specific marital property was acquired. In this case, it is true that the Respondent provided the bulk of financial contributions toward acquiring the real property in question, however, the Complainant, as a wife and mother of some twenty-nine (29) years, made substantial nonmonetary contributions toward the marriage and the family during the time the said real property was acquired. Furthermore, this Court notes that the estrangement of the parties stemmed from the Respondent's cruel and abusive conduct toward the Complainant resulting in a divorce a mensa for contructive desertion. The length of the marriage in this case is considerable, spanning twenty-nine years of the parties' lives. The Court has also weighed the other factors mentioned above and concludes that the real property in question is marital property in which each spouse is entitled to a one-half share. For this reason the Court shall order a sale in lieu of partition of the said real property with an equitable distribution of the proceeds as prayed for by the Complainant."

The husband appealed to the Court of Special Appeals. Harper v. Harper, 49 Md.App. 339, 431 A.2d 761 (1981). In determining that the real property and marital residence were marital property, the Court of Special Appeals said:

"The thrust of appellant's argument on this issue is that since he acquired the lot, upon which the house was built, before the marriage, and since the house constituted a permanent improvement thereto, both the house and lot do not meet the statutory definition of marital property and thus the chancellor erred in concluding that this property was marital property. We disagree.

"With respect to the lot, while Mr. Harper had equitable title thereto prior to the marriage, see Kinsey v. Drury, 146 Md. 227, 126 A. 125 (1924), Kingsley v. Makay, 253 Md. 24, 251 A.2d 585 (1969), it is clear that he acquired legal title after the marriage. It would appear, in fact, that since the marriage took place within a year of his execution of the land installment contract, the bulk of payment thereon took place after the marriage. In our view the lot was acquired during the marriage within the meaning of Cts.Art. Sec. 3-6A-01. ³

"With respect to the house built on the lot, after the parties had been married some sixteen years, it constituted a permanent improvement upon the lot; in fact, title in Mr. Harper's name was never changed although the parties talked about making that change. Having concluded the chancellor was correct in finding the lot to be marital property, it necessarily follows that the house erected thereon after the marriage of the parties would likewise, under the facts present here, be marital property. Indeed, not to conclude thusly would frustrate the very purpose of the marital property distribution act...." Harper, 49 Md.App. at 345-46, 431 A.2d at 764.

In footnote 3, the Court of Special Appeals said:

" ³ See State Roads Commission v. Orleans, 239 Md. 368, 376-377, 211 A.2d 715 (1965), in which the Court of Appeals, in a condemnation case, held that the word 'acquire' means to become an owner of real property by obtaining legal title, rather than mere possession.

"See also, Levi, The Tax Consequences of the Maryland Marital Property Act, 9 U.Balt.L.Rev. 12, 15-16 n.17 (1979), discussing the argument that real property owned by a spouse prior to marriage but subject to a mortgage, may be deemed marital property if the mortgage is paid off with marital property funds." Harper, 49 Md.App. at 345, 431 A.2d at 764.

Thus, the Court of Special Appeals found, for reasons different from those expressed by the trial court, that the...