Although statistics show that most Americans end up marrying at some point in their lives, approximately 40 to 50 percent of married couples split. Regardless of the reason for the divorce, many divorcing couples would say that permanently separating from their spouse is one of the hardest, most stressful situations they’ve ever experienced. Because the process of divorce is never a walk in the park, it’s important to be prepared for what may be in store for you.
Breaking the Ties: 5 Tips for Filing a Divorce
1. Gather plenty of evidence.
In a divorce, one of the important tasks is claiming legal ownership over your assets.
Not all assets are easy to divide.
However, with evidence like photographs of your assets, receipts, and/or copies of account statements, you will have an easier time declaring ownership over the assets you deserve.
2. Don’t let your emotions take center stage.
As emotional as a divorce may be, letting your anger, sadness, regret, and resentment be the primary influencers of your decision-making is not the wisest idea.
Our emotions can mess with our judgment, and when our judgment is affected, we may do or say things that we regret, and in turn, end up in an even messier situation.
3. Ensure the kids are well taken care of.
Just because you and your spouse decided to call it quits does not mean that the children should have to suffer as a result.
Although a divorce can certainly be emotionally difficult for a child, they still deserve to have their basic needs met at the very least.
To ensure your kids are taken care of after a divorce, it’s important to get a good lawyer who will have their interests in your children’s favor be willing to provide the right living situation for your kids even if you don’t agree with it and calculate how much child support you owe.
Aim to provide the best life for your kids, always.
4. Don’t underestimate your post-divorce living expenses.
Living solely on your income after a divorce, it’s imperative to properly calculate the costs of your post-divorce living expenses and start setting aside extra money.
Especially if there are children in the picture, consider the fact that you may not be able to live the previous lifestyle you were able to before the divorce.
5. Be prepared to let some assets go.
Although splitting up assets in some divorces is a breeze, in other cases, one or both parties may be disappointed with how assets are split.
However, before fighting for certain assets, decide if you’re fighting for it because you truly want and need it and because it’s rightfully yours or merely because you want to “get back” at your ex.
Fighting for certain assets just to get revenge is a no-go, no matter how messy the divorce is.
Don’t waste more time, energy, and money fighting for ownership over things just to irritate your spouse.
Conclusion
It’s crazy to think that it’s possible to make a divorce easier than it has to be.
This is especially true in the most complex divorce cases.
However, it’s very much possible with conscious effort.
Things, like gathering enough evidence, separating your emotions from your decision-making, making the children a priority, properly calculating post-divorce living expenses, and being prepared to let some assets go, are all things that can make a divorce go smoother in the short and long run.