The Financial Divorce Blog » Financial

Financial Impact of a Properly Structured Alimony Agreement

Dakane — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:44:13 +0000

Over the years, we have seen cases in which separation or divorce instruments violate the requirements for structuring alimony payments correctly. These situations often produce a negative financial impact for the individual that is paying the alimony and can lead to additional lawsuits and ill feelings. In order to avoid this potential mess, [...]

Bankruptcy and Divorce

Dakane — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 20:45:21 +0000

There are several issues to consider when contemplating a bankruptcy filing as part of a divorce. Certain debts are dischargeable and others are not. The following divorce related debts are not dischargeable in a bankruptcy filing:

Taxes (federal, state, real estate, etc) Child support Alimony (aka Spousal Support or Maintenance)

Debts arising from a marital settlement [...]

Community Property vs. Equitable Property Rules in Divorce

Dakane — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 21:33:41 +0000

Nine states are Community Property states:

Arizona California Idaho Louisiana Nevada New Mexico Texas Washington Wisconsin

In contrast, other states follow an Equitable property distribution. Both terms are described below.

Community Property

Community property states consider all property as being in two categories: separate property or community property. Separate property doesn’t need to be split at the time of divorce but community property does.

In a community property [...]

Divorce and Claiming Your Child as a Dependent

Dakane — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 21:24:09 +0000

The ability to claim the dependent child exemption can be a significant advantage for a divorced parent. It’s important that this exemption be consciously planned for as part of the divorce process. Clearly state in your divorce decree which parent has the right to take the exemption during the year(s) of separation, the year of [...]

Impact of Retirement Account Split in Divorce

Dkane — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 19:44:18 +0000

An area where many individuals get into tax trouble is when splitting their Qualified Retirement Accounts (QRPs) and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). Once you have come to the revelation that your assets must be split you may be tempted to start the process by making pre-divorce transfers prior to receiving an official judgment, decree or [...]

Preparing For the Divorce – Assessing Your Financial Condition

Dkane — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 03:46:11 +0000

One of the situations that we see in many family situations is where one spouse is the primary caretaker of the financial obligations for the family. That person may have been in charge of paying the bills, setting up the investment accounts, making investment decisions (stocks, bonds, real estate, mutual funds, etc.), buying and maintaining [...]