Divorce

More than 50% of marriages end in divorce. Although no one plans to be a divorce statistic, it happens. So, what do you do now?

Ten Ways to Fall in Love With Valentine’s Day After a Divorce

During the early days of your courtship and marriage, Valentine’s Day may have been full of gorgeous red roses, glittering glasses of expensive wine, and ooey-gooey proclamations of love. Now, even the thought of Valentine’s Day may sting your already-hurting heart. If you’ve recently gotten divorced – even if it was definitely the right thing …

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In Sickness, Health…and Debt? Are You Responsible for Your Spouse’s Debts?

When you join your life with another in marriage, you make the promise to share all the joys and challenges of the future together…but does that include debt? What if you are a diligent saver while your husband comes into the marriage with $50,000 in student loan debt? What if he dreams of starting his …

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Top Ten Low-Cost Tips for Cleaning and Changing Your Home After Divorce

If you are coming out of a rough divorce, then spring cleaning is the perfect time to physically and metaphorically scrub away all the lingering bad memories of your marriage. Rooms, objects, and even décor all have the ability to absorb meaning, emotions, and memories. Walking into your bedroom may remind you of the fights …

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What Can You Do About Domestic Violence During the Pandemic?

  Unfortunately, domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse, relationship abuse, and intimate partner violence), is a reality for many women and even some men within their relationships and marriages. It is also a common factor in divorce. As much of the United States has gone into lockdown as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, …

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Broken Heart

A Bad Marriage May Literally Be Breaking Your Heart

Every year, Valentine’s Day, along with its epic run-up of love-soaked commercials and ads, is dreaded by singles everywhere.  But what if you are struggling in an unhappy or even abusive marriage? You may feel like a bad marriage is breaking your heart, especially as Valentine’s Day approaches…and you might be right! Bad Marriage…Bad Heart …

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Can I Get a Piece of My Husband’s Military Pension After Divorce?

The U.S. military offers one of the best retirement systems in the world. After 20 years of service, a service member can retire and receive 50% of their base pay for the rest of their lives, with cost-of-living increases thrown in just for fun. If you are (or were) married to one of the estimated …

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Social Security

Can I Get Social Security Benefits from My Ex-Spouse Even If It’s Not in My Divorce Decree?

 I recently heard that I may be entitled to collect Social Security benefits when I retire based on my ex-husband’s earnings. But I looked at my divorce decree and it doesn’t say anything about it. Did I miss the boat? Here’s some good news about your divorce. If you were married to your ex-spouse for …

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How to Negotiate for Your Children’s College Costs During a Divorce

  We love this guest article, written by Dr. Shokohi. It provides loads of important information for parents who are preparing for a divorce. College costs are always a difficult (and scary topic), but financial planning for college can become even more complicated once you are divorced. Who is going to pay when the big …

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How to Close Down Joint Accounts During a Divorce

Separating your life from another person can seem like an endless journey requiring a million steps. Many articles focus on the big picture tasks related to divorce, but you also need to know about all the nitty-gritty things, too, like how to close down joint checking accounts. With that in mind, here are some things …

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How Alimony Is Taxed

The sweeping tax bill signed by President Trump in December 2017 includes major changes that are sure to affect every American when tax day arrives. For those considering a divorce, one provision in particular could mean thousands of dollars saved or lost each year. The Alimony Reversal According to the Census Bureau, roughly 243,000 people …

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How to Divorce-Proof Your Trust

Trusts were once considered a tool that only the mega-rich used to shovel their huge piles of money into a safe place. These days, trusts are increasingly used by all sorts of people, including older couples who want to provide ongoing support for their children or business owners who appreciate a trust’s ability to protect …

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Why You Should Educate Yourself About Divorce Before Taking the Plunge

The decision to get a divorce will be one of the biggest and most consequential choices of your life. Your divorce will directly impact your finances, your quality of living, the lives of your children, and your own emotional health. Maybe you’ve already decided that a divorce is the right choice for you, or perhaps …

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Understanding Social Security Survivor Benefits After Divorce

Here at WIFE, we have written several articles about the huge Social Security benefits women can receive if they were married to their husbands for at least ten years before their divorce. When you reach retirement age, you are eligible to receive benefits equivalent to 50% of your ex-husband’s Social Security benefits if that amount …

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Here are Six Important Assets You Can’t Afford to Overlook During Your Divorce

My husband and I have drawn up a list of what we own and we have tentatively agreed on how to split everything in our divorce. I’m afraid we might have missed listing something. Can you help? As a financial divorce consultant, I often review final property settlements to determine additional tax and financial considerations …

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The Benefits of Being Married Ten Years

My nine-year marriage has been rocky for quite some time, and my husband and I periodically talk about divorce. A friend told me I should stick it out a while longer since there are benefits to being married ten years or longer. What are those benefits?

How Understanding the Four Walls Strategy Can Keep You Afloat After a Divorce

The biggest mistake women make when they decide to get divorced (and most divorces are instigated by women) is that they fail to plan for their post-divorce life. This is understandable. The decision to separate from a marriage is highly emotional, and it can be difficult to focus on practical questions, such as how you …

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Five Things You Need to Know About Filing Your Taxes After a Divorce

Tax season !!!  (Anyone hear the Jaws theme suddenly start playing in the background?) If you are either in the process of getting divorced or got divorced last year, then you may be facing a totally different tax situation than you are used to. Take care! You don’t want to accidentally lose out on some big new deductions …

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How Much Money Will You Need for Your Post-Divorce Life?

Divorce can be emotionally freeing for women, but it can also be financially devastating. Women, far more than men, face a stark plummet in their standard of living after divorce. That is why, if you are considering divorce, you must start planning right now for your post-divorce life. One of the most important questions you’ll …

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Spring Clean Your Budget in Five Easy Steps

Isn’t it amazing how you’ll spend an entire back-breaking day cleaning your garage every few years and promise yourself that you’ll never, ever let it revert back into the cluttered mess that it was? Then, come next spring, your beautiful, spic-and-span garage has somehow de-evolved once again into something that looks suspiciously like a landfill. …

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Would You Pay $150,000 to Keep Your Pet in a Divorce?

How to prioritize in your divorce negotiation It’s common enough for people to go a “bit crazy” during their divorce proceedings, but the case of a San Diego pointer-greyhound mix named Gigi was so outlandish that it managed to make national headlines. Gigi belonged to Dr. Stanley Perkins and his wife, Linda. When the couple …

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Are You Entitled to Some of Your Husband’s Retirement Savings In Your Divorce?

Aside from your home, it is likely that the retirement accounts you and your husband hold make up a large portion of your shared assets. Divorce accounts, like 401(k) plans, IRAs, and pension funds come with a lot of rules and regulations, which makes them a little tricky to tackle in divorce. However, retirement accounts …

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What If One Spouse Wants to Sell the House After the Divorce and the Other Doesn’t?

Q: My husband left three years ago and is continuing to pay the mortgage. I want to sell [the house] so I can move, but he doesn’t. He doesn’t have enough money to buy me out or the credit to refinance it on his own. What do I do? ~ Brenda Brenda, we are sorry …

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What Can I Do If My Ex-Husband Won’t Pay Child Support?

Monthly child support payments can be a financial life saver after a divorce, especially if you earn far less than your husband. After a divorce, you will need to learn how to make do on a single income while raising children who seem always to be emptying your refrigerator, growing out of their clothes, and …

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What Brangelina’s Divorce Can Teach You About the Value of a Prenup

Say it ain’t so! Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are getting divorced. Maybe you were originally on Team Jennifer when Pitt and Jolie got together, but you’ve got to admit the two Hollywood superstars seemed like a match made in gorgeous person heaven. After 10 years of dating (possibly a world record in Hollywood), Pitt …

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Should You Consider a Separation Instead of a Divorce?

Not every marriage ends with an epic fight and an eternal hatred for one another that can never be quenched. In certain cases, a marriage can just quietly wither until one spouse (usually the woman) simply decides that she would be happier on her own. This is especially true of “gray divorces,” divorces that take …

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Why You Should Make Your Ex-Husband Buy Life Insurance as Part of Your Divorce Settlement

Going through a divorce is a huge emotional blow and will undoubtedly be a pretty big financial blow, too. Even though we ladies are climbing up the rungs of the corporate ladder, we still earn less than men. We are also still more likely to drop out of the workforce in order to care for …

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If You Know That You Are Getting a Divorce, Should You Still Pay the Mortgage?

Q. My husband left me three months ago and now wants a divorce. Should I keep paying the mortgage on my house even though he could get half of it? A. It can certainly be financially difficult to carry the full cost of a monthly mortgage payment on your own! We definitely understand why it …

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What to Do If You Find Out that Your Spouse Hid Money From You During Your Divorce

Many divorces are downright nasty, especially if a lot of money is on the line. A high-earning spouse isn’t exactly happy to hand over his assets to his soon-to-be ex, especially if they live in a Community Property State that requires couples to equally split their marital estate. Hiding assets during a divorce is more …

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Can You Get a Better Divorce Settlement If Your Spouse Cheated?

Even though you know that cheating is surprisingly common in marriage (just grab the latest People Magazine if you need a reminder), you never think that it will happen to you…until it does. According to TruthAboutDeception.com, estimates peg infidelity rates in the United States at between 30% – 60%.  It may be nice to know …

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Divorce Preparation Guide – Now Is the Time to Start Preparing for a New/Better Job

We’d like to believe that when it comes to life, work, and family that men and women have reached something nearing equality. Not so. According to the Pew Research Center, in 2012, 84% of stay-at-home parents were women. Likewise, women are far more likely not to work or to work part-time than men even if …

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Five Reasons Why You Should Request Alimony as a Lump Sum During Your Divorce

If you are in a position to receive alimony as a part of your divorce, the settlement (or the judge) may specify exactly how much your ex-spouse is obligated to pay and over what time period. Normally, your ex would be required to send you a monthly alimony payment, but you can attempt to negotiate …

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Why You Should Definitely Never Try to Hide Assets During a Divorce

Understand the Penalty for Hiding Assets During a Divorce You feel angry. Betrayed. Frustrated and furious. Divorce rarely brings out the best in us and oftentimes reveals our inner monsters. This is especially true if abuse and/or infidelity are part of the equation. Nonetheless, you may be obligated to hand over a significant amount of …

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Can I Go After My Husband’s Stock Options and RSUs in a Divorce?

In the past, stock options were primarily an award for a company’s top management team. In the past few decades, however, stock options and RSUs (Restricted Stock Units) have become a much more common employee incentive, and the National Center for Employee Ownership estimates that “since the late1980s, the number of people holding stock options …

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Divorce is Probably Way More Expensive Than You Realize

The decision to get divorced should never depend on whether you think you can afford it; however, it is important that during this emotional time you prepare yourself for the potential costs involved. One of the most popular articles on WIFE.org is The Twelve Financial Pitfalls of Divorce. The very first pitfall we wrote about …

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Spring Cleaning After Divorce: Cleaning Out Your Closet and Your Life

Spring has sprung. If you are coming out of the winter of divorce, consider this season as your chance to clean your home and your soul of the emotional burdens. Back by popular demand is this useful and uplifting article. The season of spring is all about renewal, which is why it is the perfect …

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Can I Still Visit My Grandchildren After a Divorce?

Watching your child go through a divorce is a difficult experience, especially when emotions get hot. What’s even worse is the possibility that your child’s spouse will receive full custody of your grandchildren and may seek to prevent you from having contact with them. Divorce has a tendency to bring out the worst in people, …

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Single Parent Support

How one woman created her own support group With divorce on the upswing and the original family foundation being divided, there is a growing population of single parents needing support and information on surviving the breakup of the classically acceptable family unit and the reincarnation into the new single parent lifestyle. With the advent of …

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