How Can My Spouse and I Successfully Divide Up Our Debts Fairly?
Aside from dividing up your assets, you will also be required to divide up any debts that were acquired during your marriage when filing for divorce.
One of the most difficult areas of divorce a couple will encounter is when it comes time to divide up their marital assets along with their debts. While it is typical for both parties to try and maintain possession of any and all assets they can that have been acquired during their marriage, both are also looking to push off their debts to the other party so they aren’t liable for satisfying them. Unfortunately, when a couple does decide to divorce in Florida, both their assets and their debts need to be equally divided.
So, how can a couple successfully divide up their debts or handle them accordingly so that one party isn’t stuck paying more than what they bargained for and credit scores aren’t jeopardized? Below are a few tips provided by Fox Business that may be able to help you.
- Close any joint credit card accounts or place a freeze on them so no future purchases can be made. If both your name and your soon-to-be-ex spouse’s name are the account, then you are both liable for the debt that has already accrued as well as any new debt. While you both may agree to cut the total amount due in credit cards down the middle, you don’t want any additional charges being made by your spouse that you will increase the amount you have to pay.
- Pay off your joint debt before filing for divorce. If you and your spouse recently decided to file for divorce, try and pay off any joint debt before the divorce process is initiated to avoid from having to deal with it in court or at a later date.
- Transfer the balance. If your spouse has agreed to satisfy a debt you both are responsible for paying, move the debt over into an individual account so that they are responsible for paying it. This way, if they decide down the road they no longer want to pay, even if your divorce decree stipulates they must, the creditor won’t come after you for the money that is owed. The fact is, creditors aren’t concerned with your circumstances and they don’t care if you are getting a divorce. All they care about is that they receive the money you and your spouse agreed you would pay.
- Close any loopholes. In the event your spouse has taken on the responsibility of paying one or more debts, be sure you “include a provision in [your] settlement agreement [that] labels the debt as a support obligation that is nondischargeable in bankruptcy.” This way, if your spouse decides at some point in the future he/she wants to file for bankruptcy, the debtor doesn’t come after you for the money that is owed to them.
To ensure your debt is equally divided during your divorce, you will want to retain a family law attorney in Winter Park, FL who can see to it that this is done.
Although it may sound easy to get all your debts in order either before or during the divorce proceedings, when a divorce is contested and/or the couple struggles to agree on anything, settling debt-related matters can become a major obstacle that requires the help of the court. However, rather than have a judge make decisions on how debt should be divided, you are encouraged to retain a Winter Park, FL family law attorney who can assist you and your spouse in resolving any debt-related issues. If you would like to connect with an attorney now who can begin assessing your marital debt and help the two of you either divide it equally or divvy it up so that each party is responsible for their own debt they acquired, contact the Winter Park family law lawyers at The Aikin Family Law Group today.
The Aikin Family Law Group is located at:
2180 Park Avenue North, Building 100
Winter Park, Florida 32789
407-644-4040
Website: www.aikinlw.com
