Divorce Day Marks New Beginning

The holidays, including New Year’s Day, is often viewed as a period to enjoy time with family. For some people, the new year signifies the beginning of a new chapter in life — getting a divorce. The day after New Year’s Day is one of the most likely days for people in Michigan and other parts of the United States to begin the process of dissolving their marriages, which involves determining how assets and property will be divided.

When planning for a divorce, it is essential to fully analyze one’s financial situation. If an individual cannot afford to keep the marital home after a divorce, it may make sense to allow the other spouse to keep it. Alternatively, the two parties may choose to sell the home and split the proceeds according to an agreed-upon percentage. Both individuals will need to agree on the selling price and the time frame in which they would like the home sold.

It is also essential to determine how much marital debt exists and how it will be divided in the divorce. After all, just as assets must be split between the two parties, so must shared debts. The amount of debt an individual carries impacts the person’s ability to get other credit and thus purchase a car or home on his or her own in the future.

Even though divorce can be both emotionally and financially challenging, being proactive may help a person to feel more in control of the situation. If the parties can negotiate property division directly, with the help of their attorneys, they may be able to avoid confronting the uncertainty of having those issues decided by a judge. If a Michigan court does have to step in, the judge will ultimately decide how the couple’s assets and liabilities will be distributed according to applicable laws.

Source: wishtv.com, “Experts: January 2nd is considered ‘Divorce Day’“, P.J. Randhawa, Jan. 2, 2015