Marriage of Landge and Ahir CA1/5

DISCUSSION

I. Division of the Marital Home

A. Additional Background At trial on remand, Wife submitted an updated appraisal valuing the marital home at $895,000, an increase from the $860,000 valuation found at the 2021 trial. Husband did not contest the amount of the current valuation but argued the date of valuation should be the time of the first trial. Wife also presented an expert in family law forensic accounting. The expert testified as to his understanding of this court’s decision in the first appeal: “I understand that the Court of Appeal[] allowed for an appreciation right to the separate interest, separate contribution toward the purchase of the property. So where the trial court originally offered only a reimbursement for the down payment, the appeals court said there can be an appreciation related to that contribution.” The expert testified that he calculated the separate property reimbursement amount by first determining the percentage of the purchase price funded by the separate property contribution. He then subtracted the purchase price from the current fair market value to determine the total amount of appreciation in the home. He then multiplied the…