Who was responsible for the mortgage being paid, in the decree? If you are, then you are screwed. If he is, then you have things you can do-but all of them mean you lose the house if your disability and alimony aren't enough to qualify for a loan on the house. Go to a mortgage broker and explain your situation---and find a reputable one because a shifty one will see opportunity to fleece you.
First, you have to understand that the mortgage must be paid, period. Second, the banks don't care who pays it. Third, if your name is on the mortgage and the other party doesn't pay, regardless of the decree, the banks can and will foreclose. You will be able to sue for damages, but you will have to be damaged first. Not much of a prize when you have to pay an attorney to get blood from a rock.
Foreclosure is your likely scenario if you can't get a mortgage on your own and you can't sell it quickly.
However, there's another solution if you have equity inthe place and don't mind losing some of it. Sell it for less, but still enough to walk away with down payment on another place. You'll be surprised what kind of credit can still get financing; especially if you have a good-sized down payment.
Another option is to find a slimeball "swoop and steal" buyer. These are the guys who advertise inthe paper to "help" save your credit by signing the house over to them. They buy out your contract if there's equity in the house-but only if they can make a pretty penny on your misfortune ($10-15K minimum). Basically what happens is someone offers you an amount of money for your house that's way low, because you're going to foreclose with in days. This way, it's sold to them before you're foreclosed on-and you don't have a foreclosure. It's a slimey business, but it prevents final foreclosure. If your ex has racked up the loan/value ratios so that there's little equity left, nobody will buy the place and it goes into foreclosure. The key thing is that with credit, once it's reported as going INTO foreclosure, that's basically the same as if it happened as far as your credit report is concerned. There is NOT a further penalty for actually foreclosing; the damage was already done.
There is a bright side here, and it's that you have a court doc that shows that you're not responsible for the mortgage, right? When you apply for your next mortgage, you'll use that doc to show that the foreclosure happened because he let it go, and he was responsible. Don't think that your bad credit will preclude you from owning-call a mortgage broker and find out for sure. Just remember that lenders make money from making loans, and they make more money from loans to people with bad credit. It's all about risk, and if you can show and justify (truly and legitemately) your ratings, you'll get a loan, you just will not get the best rates out there....
The best thing to do is refi. The next best is to sell it before it goes to foreclosure. Everything after that is just "how bad are you screwed" scenarios.....
What is the name of your state? Florida