The dissolution of your marriage will involve economic adjustments for you and your husband. If he was the primary breadwinner, and especially if you will be the custodial parent, you may feel burdened by the looming challenge of getting a divided and reduced financial house in order. Developing a strategy to handle your divorce will help you through this emotionally difficult time. You could emerge with a new found sense of independence and confidence in your ability to take control of your household budget.
Time Frame
You’ll need to simultaneously negotiate the emotional stages of divorce and come to a financial settlement, writes financial planner Kathleen Miller in “Fair Share Divorce for Women.” The emotional stages are pre-divorce, decision, final acceptance, mourning and re-equilibrium. During the pre-divorce stages, as soon as you become aware that there is a problem in your marriage, see an attorney to discuss your legal position and begin to delineate shared and separate assets.
Considerations
It may not be easy, but you will need to stabilize yourself emotionally so you can focus on the financial facts of your marriage, Miller notes. Crucial to your planning will be acquiring information on how your state divides assets; how to protect yourself financially during the process of separation or divorce; specifics of where you will live; amount of temporary maintenance and health insurance coverage; how long your divorce will take; and how much it will cost.
Identification
If you don’t know much about your family’s monetary situation, you’ll need to gather financial information. Pull together your tax returns for the past five years, recommends Wachovia Securities’ guide for women planning to separate or divorce. Gather copies of insurance policies and retirement account records, and current statements for bank and brokerage accounts. You’ll need a copy of the deed or lease agreement on your home, mortgage loan information, copies of wills and trusts, receipts for major purchases, and copies of birth certificates and marriage licenses. Your attorney and a financial advisor can help you create strategies for litigation and ultimately financial independence.
Features
Work to increase your income and reduce expenses to deal with the transition from marriage to divorce, recommends North Carolina State University’s publication “Financial Management Strategies for Women in Divorce Transition.” You’ll typically be facing fixed household expenses with less money coming in. You’ll also need to manage your debt and design an individual retirement plan, and establish or revise your estate planning.
Expert Insight
Educate yourself about your state’s laws, published online and in libraries as part of a family law code, advises Miller. Find out the terminology, the time frame, the process and what to expect, so that you attain a framework for the road ahead. By learning your state’s laws, you essentially become your attorney’s paralegal and save hundreds of dollars in legal fees.
