Planning Financially Before a Divorce
Divorce Lawyer in Bloomington IL
Planning Financially Before a Divorce
When someone gets a divorce, it often results in many financial changes to their lives. This is especially true if your partner made significant more money than you do or if you were a stay-at-home parent during the marriage.
The long-term financial effects of divorce in Bloomington IL can be expensive. If both spouses work, incomes decline from two to one. But that one income still has to fund household and other expenses, as well as savings funds and retirement funds. However, planning ahead can help. If you are considering a divorce, there are some steps you can take so you are on firmer financial ground if and when you decide to file.
At Pioletti Pioletti & Nichols, we have decades of experience helping clients work out the details of their divorce and helping them to develop a plan to get back on solid financial ground again.
How to Plan for Divorce
To begin, it is important to know your current financial standing. Your first step should be acquiring all copies of any bank accounts and investment statements from the past year. You should also make copies of any income tax returns filed for the past several years. Request your credit report so you can see exactly what debts you owe. Next, consider consulting with a divorce attorney in Bloomington IL to find out what the bigger picture would look like if you make the decision to end your marriage.
Illinois is an “equitable division” state, which means the court can consider marital fault when deciding how assets and property should be divided. If you’re getting divorced outside of Bloomington IL, you might have to deal with divorce in a “community property” state, which means that everything is divided in half. No matter where you live, though, disclosure of all financial assets is mandatory under the law.
If you do not currently have your own personal bank, a divorce attorney may recommend that you open up an account in your name only where you can start saving money. It is also important to have your own credit established. Therefore, consider opening up at least one credit card in your name.
Finally, once the process of divorce has begun, there are other key factors to consider. Make sure any settlement that concerns children is not just about child support. Other expenses can often get overlooked during negotiations, such as school expenses, summer camp, and college. If these are not specifically addressed in the final court order, the other parent might not be financially responsible for any part of these expenses.
It is also important to be financially realistic about the outcome of the final settlement. For example, is keeping the house financially beneficial in the long-term? Can you actually afford it on your post-divorce income? By getting the house, are you losing out on other, more lucrative marital assets?
Talk with a Bloomington IL Divorce Attorney Today
The process of divorce can be a very complicated one, and it is important to have a knowledgeable divorce attorney representing your best interest. If you are considering ending your marriage, contact an experienced divorce lawyer in Bloomington IL from Pioletti Pioletti & Nichols today to discuss how we may be able to help.
