Separation and divorce are hard enough without a confusing mortgage process. A spousal buyout lets one partner keep the family home by buying out the other’s share — and there’s a special program that makes it easier than a standard refinance.

Normally, when you refinance to pull equity out of your home, you’re capped at 80% of its value. Under the spousal buyout program, you can borrow up to 95% of the home’s value (treated as a purchase, not a refinance) — specifically to pay out your former partner and settle matrimonial debts laid out in your separation agreement.