Divorce Advice for Stay-at-Home Moms

September 27, 2019August 13, 2020
by Angie

If you’re a stay-at-home mom who’s facing divorce, you probably have a lot of questions. While most of them can be solved during a consultation with a Stockton divorce attorney, here’s a quick peek at a little divorce advice for stay-at-home moms.

Divorce Advice for Stay-at-Home Moms

Being a stay-at-home mom is wonderful – but it can be incredibly scary when you choose to (or when your spouse files for) divorce. When you don’t have your own source of income, or when you’re not sure what the job market holds for you, it can all seem overwhelming. However, you can follow these five tips to help make things easier on yourself:

Gather financial documents.
Find out what your assets are worth.
Get familiar with your credit score.
Plan to return to work.
Think about asking for alimony.

Let’s take a closer look at each of these so you can be as prepared as possible.

#1. Gather financial documents.

Pull together all the financial documents you have. One of the best pieces of divorce advice for stay-at-home moms is to keep records of everything – including things like:

Pay stubs
Loan and mortgage documents
Insurance policies
Bank statements
Investment account statements
W2s from previous years
Tax returns from previous years

When you have as many financial documents as you can get, keep them all organized in a folder. Later, if you choose to ask the court for alimony, you may need to provide proof of your family’s income – and your spouse may not be as truthful as you will.

#2. Find out what your assets are worth.

Maybe you want to continue living in your marital home after the divorce. That’s fine, but no matter what you intend to do, you need to find out how much it’s worth. That’s because divorce is financially tough on many couples – and you may not be able to keep it. It’s often a good idea to get the house appraised before your divorce so you know how much it’ll be worth if you have to sell it, and so you can prepare to divide the cash or come up with the remainder of what you owe.

If you have other assets, you should also find out what they’re worth.

#3. Get familiar with your credit score.

Use a site like CreditKarma to keep up with your credit score. You may need to apply for credit during or after your divorce, and the better your score is, the more likely you are to get favorable rates and terms. If there are things you need to fix on your credit report, now is the time to do it.

#4. Plan to return to work.

Another great piece of divorce advice for stay-at-home moms is to start planning to return to work. While a judge may award you alimony (commonly called spousal support), it’s not likely to last forever – and even if it would last forever, it may not be enough to support yourself in the lifestyle you want. A lot of stay-at-home moms end up going back to work during or after divorce, and you may be one of them. Brush up your resume and start looking at jobs that are available – and remember, even if they’re outside your field, they’re still worth considering when you really need to work.

#5. Think about asking for alimony.

You don’t have to ask the court for alimony, but your Stockton divorce attorney might suggest that you do. If the judge sees that you’ve been out of the workforce for a significant amount of time, and that you’re unlikely to be able to return to work right away because you need to get current on your skills, he or she may order your spouse to pay alimony. There are never any guarantees on how a judge will rule, but if you can show a need, the judge in your case may agree that you need – and deserve – spousal support.

Are You a Stay-at-Home Mom Considering Divorce?

If you’re thinking about divorce, or if your spouse has already filed, we may be able to help you. We’ll give you more specific divorce advice for stay-at-home moms, plus case-specific advice that helps you in your unique situation.

Call us right away at (209) 546-6870 or get in touch with a Stockton divorce attorney online to schedule a consultation today.

5 Divorce Finance Tips to Ensure You’re Prepared

April 17, 2017August 13, 2020
by Angie

Whether you’re thinking about filing for divorce or you’re already working on developing a parenting plan, one thing’s for certain: You need to have a financial plan in place. Most people who divorce in Stockton (and everywhere else, for that matter) notice a substantial change in circumstances, and that’s true whether they were part of a one-income or two-income household.

5 Divorce Finance Tips to Ensure You’re Prepared

While it’s always helpful to ask friends and family for divorce finance tips and advice, your best bet may be to turn to a professional if you’re not sure how to prepare for your divorce. Your attorney can help you find a financial adviser if you feel you need one. However, most people—with a little forethought and planning—are able to transition smoothly.

Divorce Finance Tip #1: Separate Your Finances and Close Joint Accounts

Your attorney will be able to help you plan the timeline for your divorce, such as when you should move out of your marital home and handle other affairs. Before you do any of that, though, it’s a good idea to start separating your finances from your spouse’s and begin working toward financial independence.

For most people, a logical first step toward financial independence during divorce is to separate your joint accounts. If you can, close the accounts you shared; if you can’t close them or your spouse is unwilling to cooperate, see if you can remove your name from them. Do the same with joint credit card accounts.

Divorce Finance Tip #2: Open New Accounts Right Away

Open your own checking and savings accounts as soon as possible, and update your bank information with your employer to make sure your paychecks are deposited in the correct account.

You should never drain your spouse’s account or a joint account during divorce. Doing so can get you into serious hot water with the court.

Divorce Finance Tip #3: Change Your Will

Just to be on the safe side, remove your spouse from your will and make sure he or she doesn’t have any powers of attorney on your behalf. If your soon-to-be ex-spouse has the authority to make financial, healthcare, or end-of-life decisions for you, you’ll need to revoke that authority and give it to someone else.

Divorce Finance Tip #4: Replace Beneficiaries

If your spouse is listed as the beneficiary on your life insurance policy, your 401(k) or IRA, or anything else, replace him or her with someone else.

Divorce Finance Tip #5: Develop Your Own Credit

If you don’t already have lines of credit established in your name, now is probably the time to start some. Landlords and lenders often get your financial information from your credit report, and it can be difficult to find a place to rent, obtain a mortgage, or get a car loan if you don’t have credit that’s solely in your name.

What if You’re Not Working?

If you’re not currently working, talk to your attorney about spousal support and whether you should begin looking for a job. Spousal support can be temporary or permanent; typically, the judge’s support order is considered temporary when you’re still going through your divorce and becomes permanent once your divorce is final. (“Permanent spousal support” doesn’t mean it’s going to be paid forever. It simply means that the order from the judge is permanent, and the support order stays in effect until a certain amount of time has elapsed, the receiving spouse remarries, or another condition is met.)

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Divorce Advice for Stay-at-Home Moms

Divorce Advice for Stay-at-Home Moms

#1. Gather financial documents.

#2. Find out what your assets are worth.

#3. Get familiar with your credit score.

#4. Plan to return to work.

#5. Think about asking for alimony.

Are You a Stay-at-Home Mom Considering Divorce?

5 Divorce Finance Tips to Ensure You’re Prepared

5 Divorce Finance Tips to Ensure You’re Prepared

Divorce Finance Tip #1: Separate Your Finances and Close Joint Accounts

Divorce Finance Tip #2: Open New Accounts Right Away

Divorce Finance Tip #3: Change Your Will

Divorce Finance Tip #4: Replace Beneficiaries

Divorce Finance Tip #5: Develop Your Own Credit

What if You’re Not Working?

Do You Need to Talk to a Lawyer About Divorce?