The good news for you, is that you live in California.
California is a community property state.
Your crooked husband's goose is not cooked, its burnt to a crisp.
Special rules apply to spousal property and income in the community property states:
* Arizona
* California
* Idaho
* Louisiana
* Nevada
* New Mexico
* Texas
* Washington
* Wisconsin
In community property states, everything you acquire is jointly owned.
Your name doesn't have to be on anything to exert ownership and control over it.
Your marriage license does that for you.
Things you owned before the marriage are treated separately.
Things acquired in the marriage are jointly owned.
You need to know exactly when he deded the home to his brother.
I hope it was after the marriage.
But, even if it wasn't, you are entitled to the appreciation of the home due to the seed money for the repairs.
Living in California, if you sue him FIRST for divorce (or cross claim), you can sue him for your lawyer's bills.
You'll get it back big from this bum.
You can also bring fraud charges on him for inducing you to put money into a home he surreptitiously deeded to his brother, but lied to you about.
Beg or borrow some seed money to use as a retainer to hire a good divorce lawyer.
You want a shark, someone like Gloria Allred.
California has many of them.
They'll take you on from a few hundred to a couple thousand.
This creep should be made to pay big.
He gives men bad names.
Ignore his rants, you've got this one in the bag.
You could even have this sham of a marriage annulled, but a divorce will reap greater pain and punishment to him.
Ask your friends or relatives who is a good divorce attorney in your area.
Talk to 2 or 3.
Pick one that you like.
Start today and plan to have someone working this by Wednesday.
Don't let him get ahead of you.
Whatever you do, don't move out of the house.
But, sleep in separate rooms and play nice.
Let me know what happens.