When you get a divorce, you need to make sure that you are protecting your assets and your money. Even though the marriage is ending, your need to support yourself doesn’t stop. One way that you can keep on moving forward with your finances is to pay close attention to the property division process.
Here are some points that you can consider when you are working on your finances during the divorce:
First, pay attention to the assets in the divorce. Make sure that you report all of the assets that you know about because failing to do so can lead to some serious consequences that you don’t want to have to deal with.
Second, you need to take a close look at what assets your ex is saying he or she has. If you think anything is amiss with this, contact your attorney to find out what options you have to try and discover if there are any hidden assets.
Third, you need to work on building your own credit. Since you were married, your credit is likely tied to your ex. Instead of relying on this, you need to close out joint accounts and open some individual accounts. This gives you control over your credit history.
Fourth, check out your estate plan. This includes reviewing your will, as well as beneficiary designations that you have in place. You also need to check the powers of attorney designations. There is a good chance that your ex is named on some of these.
You also need to think about other matters, such as QDROs, retirement accounts, investment accounts and business valuation. These don’t apply to all divorces but they can make a huge difference in your divorce if they are a component.
Source: Our Family Wizard, “Checklist for Protecting Your Money in Divorce,” accessed Nov. 23, 2017