4 January 2017
 Categories: Law, Blog

If you are going through a divorce or starting the divorce process you might be wondering how the estate will be divided. If you don't have a prenuptial agreement, it is likely that the estate will be split in half and both spouses will get essentially the same amount, excluding things regarding the children. Here are some of the things that you should expect to be divided.

1. Retirement Accounts

You and your spouse likely have retirement accounts. Things like IRAs and even perhaps a pension. Even if only one spouse was the working spouse and the other was a stay at home parent, or only worked a small amount, the retirement will be split. This is because being a stay-at-home parent is considered working for the family. So long as you earned that retirement while you were married, or if one spouse acquired the pension while you were married, it will have to be split. Thus, you shouldn't expect your retirement to be saved for you alone, even if it was under your name and you were the one who technically worked for it. So long as it was earned while you were married, it is joint property.

2. Your Debts

Many families carry debt with them. These debts can be consumer credit cards, auto loans, a mortgage, student loans and any other type of debt. The division of the debt may vary depending on whose name it is under and the nature of the loan, but in most cases you should expect to have part of the debt given to you as your responsibility.

Ideally, you should pay off most of your debt before you get a divorce. Unless you can refinance the debt, it may still be in both of your names, but only one person will be responsible for it. This means if your spouse fails to make payments it could harm your credit score and financial future.

3. Real Property

Lastly, you should expect all of the property that you have acquired while you were married to be split. Any belongings that you have, the house, cars, vacation property and so forth will all have to be split up. In many cases the couple can divide it themselves in a way that works for them, but in some hostile situations, the attorney will have to help determine who gets what.

By understanding what will need to be divided in the divorce you can prepare yourself. For more information, talk to a professional like Kleveland Law.