It has been well-established that divorce can have serious effects on an individual’s future. Relationships with family members and even friends can become strained or challenged, and many times, a person has to simply walk away from something that they used to care about.
One are that divorce has possibly the greatest effect on, however, is finances. Some people think it might be callous to worry about money when such emotional, life-changing events are taking place, but the truth is that not keeping an eye on finances while going through a divorce can severely damage an individual’s future.
It is also worth pointing out that finances are still the #1 reason for couples to get divorced in the first place, so in most cases, even if you do not find them important, your partner does.
It is crucial to go through all of this with your divorce attorney, of course, but the main arease you need to get a feel for are your income, expenses, liabilities, and assets. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself to help:
- What is the total value of all my property, and who actually owns that value?
- Is my name on all the properties, and will they be split evenly if so?
- What is my current and future tax liability?
- How will all future accounts (retirement, pension) be split?
- What will the financial situation of the lower-earning spouse be?
- What is going to happen with the children, and who is going to pay for their needs (including medical)?
- Is there a strong income imbalance, and should spousal support or child support be paid?
- What will happen to the surviving spouse is a paying ex-spouse dies?
Some of these questions might not have easy answers, but if you go through them with your divorce attorney, you should be able to come up with a good idea of what your divorce finance situation is like, and there shouldn’t be any surprises in your soon-to-be-free future.