Does filing for divorce stop your spouse selling the house?
In 22 states the answer is yes, automatically, as soon as the case starts (in North Dakota and South Dakota, once the summons is served). In 20 it is no, and nothing at all happens. We read the statute, the court rule or the official form in every one.
In some states, filing a divorce petition puts an order in place by itself — nobody asks for it, no judge signs anything, and from that moment neither spouse may sell, transfer or borrow against the marital property. These are called automatic orders, automatic temporary restraining orders, standing orders or preliminary injunctions, depending on where you are. In other states nothing of the kind exists and you have to ask a judge.
Nobody publishes this state by state, so we did it. Every entry below was read on the state legislature’s own site, the state judiciary’s own site, or the official court form. No law firm page, no legal-forms company, no aggregator is cited as authority anywhere on this page. Where we could not open a primary source, we say so rather than fill it in.
Put the other way round: in 28 of 50 states, filing for divorce does not on its own stop either spouse selling the house.
The part that catches people out, even in the 22
In almost every state that has one, the person who files is bound straight away — but the other spouse is not bound until they are served. Between filing and service there is a window in which nothing restrains the person who does not yet know the case exists. That is true in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin.
Anybody who tells you that filing protects the house is wrong about the period that matters most.
And restrained is not the same as undoable. Montana’s order expressly does not affect the title of a purchaser for value who did not know about it. Rhode Island protects a good-faith buyer of real estate the same way. If a sale completes to somebody innocent, the order does not hand the house back.
Every state
Tap a filter, or read the lot. The authority column links to the source we actually opened.
| State | On filing | Authority | What would mislead you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Some counties | 32nd Jud. Cir. (Cullman Cty.) Order 2023-02 | Cullman County only. No Alabama statute or statewide rule creates one. |
| Alaska | Some counties | 2d Jud. Dist. Admin. Order 18-01 | Second Judicial District only. Statewide, relief is by motion under AS 25.24.140. |
| Arizona | Statewide | A.R.S. § 25-315(A), (C) | Binds the petitioner on filing, the respondent on service or actual notice. |
| Arkansas | Nothing on filing | — | No statute, rule or standing order found. The state’s own Domestic Relations Benchbook treats restraints as relief you apply for under Ark. R. Civ. P. 65. |
| California | Statewide | Cal. Fam. Code § 2040(a)(2)(A); Form FL-110 | Printed on the summons. Expressly reaches real property, and separate as well as community property. |
| Colorado | Statewide | § 14-10-107, C.R.S.; Form JDF 1102 | Respondent bound on personal service or waiver/acceptance. |
| Connecticut | Statewide | Conn. Practice Book § 25-5(b); Form JD-FM-158 | Binds the plaintiff on signing the complaint, which is before filing. Bars borrowing against a credit line secured by the family residence. |
| Delaware | Statewide | 13 Del. C. § 1509(a)(1) | Excluding a spouse from the family home is separate relief you must move for. |
| Florida | Some counties | 12th Jud. Cir. Admin. Order 2013-15-12 | Twelfth Circuit only. No Florida statute or statewide rule found. Note its asset paragraph says “should”, not “shall”. |
| Georgia | Some counties | Mountain Jud. Cir. Standing Order (2022) | One circuit. Georgia standing orders are circuit by circuit and their terms differ. |
| Hawaii | Statewide | HRS § 580-10.5; Form 2FP559 | Expressly reaches real property. An act of domestic abuse is a defense to enforcement. |
| Idaho | Nothing on filing | I.R.F.L.P. 509(a) | A joint preliminary order exists but the rule is permissive — “the court may issue”. |
| Illinois | Nothing on filing | 750 ILCS 5/501.1 | The trap. Illinois has an automatic stay, but since 2016 its property subsections read “(Blank)”. It now covers abuse, harassment and concealing a child — not property. |
| Indiana | Nothing on filing | Ind. Trial Rule 65(E) | Requires a verified petition and a judge’s order. The word “automatically” in the rule refers only to when a signed order binds a party. |
| Iowa | Nothing on filing | Iowa Code § 598.10 | Temporary relief needs notice and a hearing. No chapter 598 section restrains property on filing. |
| Kansas | Nothing on filing | K.S.A. 23-2707(a)(1), (b) | Routinely requested with the petition — but a judge signs it. Not automatic. |
| Kentucky | Nothing on filing | KRS 403.160(3) | Motion plus affidavit. |
| Louisiana | Nothing on filing | La. R.S. 9:371(A) | A spouse may obtain an injunction. Do not confuse this with Louisiana’s substantive community-property rules. |
| Maine | Statewide | 19-A M.R.S. § 903(1)(B)(1); M.R. Civ. P. 104(a) | The clerk issues it, not a judge. Reaches property “regardless of whose name the property is in”. |
| Maryland | Nothing on filing | Md. Code, Fam. Law § 8-208(a)(2) | Relief requires a filed motion. Ex parte relief is denied absent imminent, substantial, irreparable harm. |
| Massachusetts | Statewide | Supp. Prob. & Fam. Ct. Rule 411 | Expressly reaches real property. Applies to divorce and separate support, not every Probate and Family Court case. |
| Michigan | Nothing on filing | MCL 552.14; MCR 3.207 | MCL 552.14 opens “On the motion of a party”. Mutual restraining orders are common in practice but a judge signs them. |
| Minnesota | Statewide | Minn. Stat. § 518.091, subd. 1 | Binds on service, not filing — and lapses if more than a year passes with nothing filed. |
| Mississippi | Nothing on filing | Uniform Chancery Court Rules, Part Eight | The word “encumber” appears nowhere in the divorce rules. Mississippi’s code is published only through a commercial publisher. |
| Missouri | Some counties | 21st Jud. Cir. (St. Louis Cty.) Rule 68.3 | One circuit. Statewide, RSMo § 452.315 requires a motion, an affidavit, notice and a hearing. |
| Montana | Statewide | Mont. Code Ann. § 40-4-126 | A sale to a buyer without actual knowledge is not undone. Extraordinary spending is allowed on 14 days’ notice unless the other side objects. |
| Nebraska | Nothing on filing | Neb. Rev. Stat. § 42-357 | The statute has exactly the language you would expect — gated behind an application and an affidavit. |
| Nevada | Nothing on filing | EDCR 5.518; NRS 125.040 | The second trap. Clark County’s Joint Preliminary Injunction is so routine it is called automatic. Its own words are “Upon the request of any party”. |
| New Hampshire | Statewide | RSA 458:16-b, I | Expressly reaches real property, and property of either party, not only marital property. |
| New Jersey | Nothing on filing | N.J. Ct. R. 5:4-4 | A weaker negative than the rest. None found in the sources we could open — njcourts.gov serves its rules behind a bot wall. |
| New Mexico | Statewide | Form 4A-201 NMRA (Temporary Domestic Order) | Expressly reaches real property, community or separate. Contents are fixed by Supreme Court order; districts differ only on mechanics. |
| New York | Statewide | 22 NYCRR § 202.16-a | Names real estate expressly, in a list that also covers cash accounts, stocks, cars and boats. |
| North Carolina | Nothing on filing | N.C. Gen. Stat. § 50-20(i) | A party “may seek injunctive relief” under Rule 65. That is the opposite of automatic. |
| North Dakota | Statewide | N.D.R.Ct. 8.4(a), (c) | Printed in the summons, issued by the clerk or by an attorney. Both parties bound on service. |
| Ohio | Some counties | Cuyahoga Cty. Dom. Rel. Loc.R. 24(A) | One county of 88. Statewide, Ohio Civ.R. 75(I)(2) requires a sworn affidavit. Cuyahoga’s order says in capitals that it does not restrain wages. |
| Oklahoma | Statewide | Okla. Stat. tit. 43, § 110(A)(1)(a) | Waivable — the notice must let the parties waive it, and it ends if they both sign. |
| Oregon | Statewide | ORS 107.093(1), (2)(c) | The petition itself must state that the petitioner accepts being bound. Violation carries remedial sanctions but expressly not criminal ones. |
| Pennsylvania | Nothing on filing | Pa.R.C.P. 1920.43(a)(1) | Special relief on petition. Chapter 1920 contains no automatic or standing order. |
| Rhode Island | Statewide | R.I. Gen. Laws § 15-5-14.1 | Binds the plaintiff on signing. A good-faith purchaser of real estate for value is protected. |
| South Carolina | Nothing on filing | Rule 21(a), SCRFC | A written, filed and served motion. The word “automatic” does not appear in the Family Court rules. |
| South Dakota | Statewide | SDCL 25-4-33.1 | Printed on the summons; becomes an order of the court only on personal service. |
| Tennessee | Statewide | Tenn. Code Ann. § 36-4-106(d) | Does not apply where irreconcilable differences is the sole ground. Our text is the 2001 enrolled act — see the limits below. |
| Texas | Some counties | Travis Cty. Standing Order, File No. 121,012 | County by county. Expressly reaches real estate, separate or community. Runs 14 days, then continues only if uncontested. |
| Utah | Statewide | Utah R. Civ. P. 109 | The property paragraph applies only if the action concerns division of property. Respondent bound on receiving a copy, which the petitioner must provide. |
| Vermont | Statewide | Interim domestic order under V.R.F.P. 4.0(c)(2) | The court issues the interim order when the case starts, and its property restraint is one of several provisions the court may include. We read the rule through a third-party copy, so confirm it on the Vermont Judiciary site. |
| Virginia | Nothing on filing | Va. Code § 20-103 | Preserving the estate is clause (vii) of what the court “may” order. |
| Washington | Some counties | King Cty. LFLR 4(h) | One county. Statewide, RCW 26.09.060(2) requires a motion. King County’s property scope is unverified — see the limits below. |
| West Virginia | Nothing on filing | W. Va. Code §§ 48-5-501, 48-5-508 | Motion, notice of hearing, and hearing. |
| Wisconsin | Statewide | Wis. Stat. § 767.117(1)(b) | No court order is issued at all — the prohibition is statutory, enforced by contempt. Respondent bound on service. |
| Wyoming | Nothing on filing | Wyo. Stat. § 20-2-109 | Requires that it “appear probable to the court”. The state’s own divorce packet mentions no restraint at all. |
Two states almost everyone gets wrong
Illinois. Illinois does have an automatic stay when a dissolution action is filed — 750 ILCS 5/501.1 — and that is why so many articles say Illinois freezes your assets. Since Public Acts 99-90 and 99-763, its property subsections read “(Blank)”. What remains restrains physical abuse, harassment and concealing a child. To restrain property in Illinois you move under 750 ILCS 5/501(a)(2), with an affidavit. Anything written before 2016 will tell you the opposite of the truth. The full Illinois page.
Nevada. Clark County’s Joint Preliminary Injunction, EDCR 5.518, is asked for so routinely that it is widely described as automatic. Its own first words are “Upon the request of any party”. Somebody has to ask for it, and if nobody does, nothing is in place. Washoe County’s Rule 11 works the same way. That is why Nevada is in the third column here rather than the second. The full Nevada page.
Four more things worth knowing
- Minnesota’s lapses. The restraint ends if more than a year passes with nothing filed in the case. A dormant file loses its protection without anybody being told.
- Oklahoma’s is waivable. The notice must carry a provision letting the parties waive it, and it ends if both of them sign.
- Tennessee’s has a hole in it. It does not apply where irreconcilable differences is the sole ground — which is the ground in a great many uncontested Tennessee divorces.
- Connecticut and Rhode Island start earlier than you would think. Both bind the person filing from the moment they sign the complaint, which is before it reaches the courthouse.
Four things we could not establish, said plainly
- Vermont. Vermont issues an Interim Domestic Order with the summons, and it does restrain property. We could not find a statute or numbered rule creating it, because Vermont’s Rules for Family Proceedings are published only through a commercial publisher. The wording we relied on is the Judiciary’s own description of its order on its own website, not the order’s text. We are not printing a rule number for Vermont, because we do not have one.
- Tennessee. Our text is the 2001 enrolled public act from the Secretary of State, because Tennessee’s current code is available only through a commercial publisher. Whether § 36-4-106(d) has been amended since 2001 is not verified.
- New Jersey. We found no automatic order — but njcourts.gov serves its rules behind a bot wall, and we could not open R. 5:4-2 or R. 5:5-4. The honest statement is “none found in the official sources we could open”, which is weaker than “New Jersey has none”.
- King County, Washington. Confirmed automatic, but the rule points at an approved form we could not open, so we do not know whether it reaches real property and we are not going to guess.
The twenty “nothing on filing” findings are about statewide law. Except where a county rule is named above, they do not rule out a standing order in an individual circuit. If you know of one we have missed, tell us and we will read it and add it.
What to do with this
If you are in one of the 22: the restraint is real but it is not a force field. It binds your spouse from service, not from filing, and it does not unwind a completed sale to somebody who did not know. If you are worried about a specific asset, that is a conversation to have with a lawyer in the first week, not the first month.
If you are in one of the 28: nothing is stopping anybody. Every state on this page has a route to a court order restraining property — it just has to be asked for. The statutes and rules linked above are where that route starts.
If you are selling the house: ask the agent what an automatic order does to a listing in your state. It is a fair question, the answer is on this page, and an agent who has handled these will know it without looking. The four questions to ask an agent covers the rest.
Method. Fifty states, researched 28 September 2026 against the issuing authority’s own publication. Several state sites refuse automated requests or answer with a “page not found” body under a healthy status code; where that happened we say so above rather than treat silence as a finding. Corrections at thecusp.app/corrections.
You may reuse this table. You do not need to ask.
Each state publishes its own rule. Nobody publishes the comparison, which is why an agent, a paralegal or a reporter who needs to know whether filing freezes the house in a given state has had nowhere to look. Every row here was read on the issuing authority’s own site, and the page carries the date.
Libraries, law libraries, legal aid programs, courts, shelters, newsrooms, bar associations and non-profits
may reproduce this table, in whole or in part, on a website or in print, free of charge and without asking permission. Permission is granted only on all three conditions below. Reuse that does not meet them is not permitted.
- Name The Cusp as the source.
- Include the address of this page — thecusp.app/automatic-orders-by-state/ — with the table. Online it must be a working link a reader can follow; in print it must appear in full as text. This one is not optional: somebody acting on this needs to be able to reach the statute, and they cannot without the address.
- Show the date it was last checked. Court rules move. A restraint without a date is a restraint nobody can rely on.
If you reproduce the table, reproduce the limits with it. Four entries on this page are qualified — Vermont has no citable rule number, Tennessee’s text is the 2001 enrolled act, New Jersey is “none found in what we could open”, and King County’s property scope is unverified. Those qualifications are not decoration. A copy of this table that drops them is more confident than the research behind it, and that is the failure this page exists to avoid.
Commercial republication — a brokerage, a law firm, a legal-forms company or a lead-generation site — is not covered by the above. Write to hello@thecusp.app and we will almost certainly say yes, on the same three conditions, in writing.
Update, 29 October 2026: when the order binds each spouse
We re-read the timing in each state’s statute, rule, or court form. In most automatic-order states the filer is bound at filing (at signing the complaint in Connecticut and Rhode Island) and the other spouse only once served: Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Montana, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Utah, and Wisconsin. In six states neither spouse is bound until the respondent is served or waives service: Colorado, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Tennessee. Oregon’s statute starts the order at service, though the petition has the filer acknowledge being bound by filing. For California the court form tells the filer the order applies when the petition is filed. For New Hampshire and Vermont we could not confirm separate timing from the sources we could read.
Citations to check against the entries above: Montana is MCA 40-4-126, North Dakota is Rule 8.4, New Hampshire is RSA 458:16-b, and Minnesota is Minn. Stat. 518.091. Hawaii’s Family Court form 3FP266 calls the order automatic and applies it to the plaintiff on filing, though HRS 580-10 reads as an order issued on application. We could not find the Tennessee exception for irreconcilable-differences divorces in the court’s current notice text, so treat it as unconfirmed.
Because these orders usually bind your spouse only on service, see who can serve divorce papers in each state. Corrections are logged at thecusp.app/corrections.
The order only helps once your spouse has the papers. In many states the automatic order does not bind your spouse until they are served. See who can serve the papers in each state, and whether you can serve them yourself. How we label each row: how we source and label our legal research.