Financial security during a divorce might seem like an unattainable prospect. The severity of your divorce, however, shouldn’t discourage you from working out a solution. In Arizona, you have the right to protect your assets and maintain your financial well-being.
Avoid waiting until the divorce
Many spouses are unprepared for the reality of divorce because they don’t consider it a possibility. When you’re married, it is not an insult to consider what you’ll do during a divorce. Planning ahead equips you with the timing to protect assets early on.
List your personal assets before you marry
The assets you owned before your marriage have the highest prospect of remaining ineligible for a spouse to take. Premarital assets cover everything from savings accounts to cars and investment trusts. These assets may lose their protection later on but are honored as separate property unless you transfer them without being aware of it. Here are a few things to consider as separate property that can remain yours during and after a divorce:
• Anything you brought into the marriage
• All property and assets listed within a prenuptial agreement
• Compensations received from prior litigation
• Inheritances and trust funds
• What the court ultimately rules as separate
Understand the significance of community property
The challenge with tracking separate property from community property is the structure of your relationship with a spouse. Allowing a spouse to, for example, enter their savings into yours could immediately make your private savings community property. Community property, in many cases, is divided up equally. This includes things you bought and received during the marriage.
Negotiate with fairness
At the heart of every divorce is the art of negotiation. Entering this legal process without a mind to work together is, itself, a likely burden on your finances. Whether losing or gaining assets, it’s in your best interest to make a smooth transition by working with your former partner in fairness.
