People who are divorcing will have to go through the property division process. This is when you will split up the assets and debts from the marriage. There are some items, such as certain inheritances, that aren’t handled during this process because the law outlines who will receive them.
The property division process also isn’t required if you have a prenuptial agreement governing the assets. In this case, the terms of the prenup will come into the picture, and you’ll only have to deal with items that aren’t covered in it.
When you do have to divide property, you’ll likely do this through mediation unless you can’t come to terms with your ex. In that case, you’ll go through a divorce trial and the court will decide who gets what. Most people prefer to work together since you’ll have some control over who gets what. The court will view things strictly from a legal standpoint if you have to turn to it to divide things.
The focus of property division isn’t necessarily to ensure each party has the exact same value of stuff as the other. Instead, the division should be equitable, which means it is fair based on the situation. Because this can be complex, it might be best to start off with the larger assets like the home and vehicles. You can then use the smaller assets and the debts to balance things out.
Working through the property division process can be challenging, particularly if you have an emotional attachment to any of the assets. It might be easier if you look at everything from a practical standpoint so that your emotions aren’t overruling logic.
