Divorcing when you have decades of marriage under your belt is a challenge. Not only do you have to go through the division of all the assets you’ve amassed during the marriage but you also have to deal with the emotional facts of walking away after all that time.
A person who’s over 50 years old doesn’t have as much time to recover money and financial security as someone who’s much younger. This makes the property division process even more important in these grey divorces because you need to have the best financial situation as you can.
You have to look closely at how different assets can help or hurt you at this point. One that you have to consider carefully is the retirement accounts. If you and your ex have accounts that are fairly similar in value, you may each walk away with your own. The alternative is that you’ll have to get a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO) that splits these accounts.
You also need to think about the marital home. Sometimes, people in a grey divorce would rather bid adieu to the home and sell it in favor of downsizing since they only have themselves to worry about now. This can sometimes place you in a better position financially than trying to keep it.
As you work through all the matters necessary to end the marriage, you may find that you’re dealing with a roller coaster of emotions. Address these as they come up so that you can move forward with a sound mind once the property division and other aspects of the divorce are finalized.
