Tuesday 25 August 2009

Are Divorce Settlements Fair?

By Moses Wright

A divorce settlement includes detailed information on the division of assets and debt as part of the divorce. Custody agreements that determine the primary custody and visitation arrangements may be part of a divorce settlement.

A divorcing spouse should avoid agreeing to a divorce settlement without understanding how every aspect of the divorce settlement will affect them. A divorcing spouse may be tempted to sign the papers hastily just to end the divorce process. While the divorce settlement may seem unfair, many times things are more complicated than they appear.

A divorcing spouse should carefully consider each component of the divorce settlement with a lawyer. Before signing the papers, the divorcing spouses should understand how every aspect of the agreement will affect them.

The division of debt is often a cause of conflict in divorce settlements. Spouses may blame each other for the debt.

A bank is not likely to remove one spouse's name from a loan if both names were on it initially. If the loan is not refinanced in the name of only one spouse, there needs to be a clear agreement on who was responsible for the payments. Unfortunately, if one spouse is held responsible for a loan and does not pay on time, it will affect the credit of the other spouse of their name is still on the loan.

Dividing retirement accounts and investments can be complicated and confusing. If a divorcing spouse has questions about the effects of how the investments are divided in the divorce settlement, the spouse should consult an accountant.

Many financial components of a divorce settlement can affect the divorcing spouses' finances. A spouse may assume that they will have the benefit of the total alimony payments for financial support only to realize when they file their tax return that alimony is taxable income. Therefore, they have to pay taxes on alimony.

Even if a spouse feels that they have done better in the divorce agreement then the other spouse, they may not realize there may be complications. Often, one spouse will receive the home while the other will have a larger share of the couple's savings.

However, to get cash from a home may require getting a home-equity loan which can cost money in the form of closing costs and other bank fees. This process also takes time which can add to the person's financial stress.

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