Does Keeping Your Finances Separate During Your Marriage Simplify Your Divorce?

Some couples insist that the secret to the longevity of their marriages is maintaining separate bank accounts.  This way they don’t have to fight about money or resent each other for making impulse purchases or vetoing each other’s splurge wishes.  It is also why some couples sign prenuptial agreements in which they agree to keep certain conflict-prone assets or debts separate.  Even if keeping your finances separate during your marriage can prevent conflict about money, other factors might destroy your marriage; these include extramarital affairs, addiction, or conflict with in-laws or stepchildren.  Your divorce might be less disruptive if you and your spouse maintained separate bank accounts and financial lives during your marriage than it would be for a couple that completely merged their finances, but you will still need a Birmingham divorce lawyer.

A Cash Diet Can Keep You Out of Debt, Even If It Can’t Save Your Marriage

An Alabama couple divorced after 35 years.  They managed to stay married for so long because they had shared values; they both cared about being good stepparents to each other’s children from previous marriages and about pursuing their separate career paths and hobbies.  The couple also agreed that debt was their enemy, so they both worked full time and lived modestly, and they made most transactions in cash.  After their respective children grew up, the empty nesters spent more and more time on separate activities, traveling away from home frequently; the husband went on hunting trips, while the wife visited old friends in Florida.  Eventually, her relationship with a male friend in Florida crossed over into romantic territory, and the husband filed for divorce.

Since the parties had separate bank accounts and retirement accounts, separating their marital property was simpler than it could have been.  The court ordered the husband to buy out the wife’s share of the family business, in which the wife was a partial owner but where she did not work, paying her the money either in a lump sum or in installments.  The court gave each spouse the right to buy out the other’s share of the marital home, and the spouse did not agree to this option, the court order stipulated that they must sell the house and divide the proceeds of the sale.  The dealings with the marital home turned out to be the most contentious issue.

It was not a painless divorce, but as divorces among people on the cusp of retirement age go, it could have been worse.  Neither spouse needed alimony or a share of the other’s retirement accounts.  Neither spouse had to refinance the mortgage in order to have a place to live after the divorce, and neither one had to work a low wage job for as long as his or her health permitted.

Contact Peeples Law About Gray Divorce

A Birmingham family law attorney can help you keep your divorce as simple as possible, even if you have been married for decades.  Contact Peeples Law today to schedule a consultation.

Source:

scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=14103306874944681993&q=divorce+island&hl=en&as_sdt=4,61,62,64&as_ylo=2014&as_yhi=2024