A divorce is a difficult and long-term process. Divorce does not happen on an impulse but requires the necessary preparations. Where should you start and what should you consider? A marriage is easy to conclude, but a divorce is more difficult to achieve. Simply because a marriage merges two financial households, it is difficult to separate the financial households again. It is not without reason that divorce is only initiated in extreme cases. Attempts are initially being made to save the marriage. The children also play a major role in this. If an attempt at bonding does not work, divorce is inevitable.
Make the subject open for discussion
Step one is of course to have a conversation about it together. Where are things going wrong and what can be changed? If the conclusion is to end the marriage, discuss how you will approach it together. If there are children in the family, the focus should be on the interests of the children. Also discuss the financial consequences in advance and provide insight into the amount of assets and liabilities.
Should you hire a lawyer or a divorce mediator?
If you need help with the divorce process, you do not have to immediately contact a lawyer. You can save on the hourly rate by hiring a divorce mediator or mediator. They also know all the ins and outs and you only have to engage one independent third party.
Provide insight into all income, expenses, assets and debts
If you have not gone to the notary to draw up prenuptial agreements before entering into the marriage, you are married in community of property. This means that your assets are joint assets. The value of these assets must be estimated because everyone is entitled to half of these assets. The same goes for debts. The income and expenses must be made transparent in order to determine any right to alimony after the divorce. In addition, the level of income will also be important to determine whether either partner can continue to live in the marital home.
Record matters properly in the divorce agreement
It is often wrongly thought that the judge will impose mutual agreements between the former partners. Initially, the ex-partners must make the agreements themselves and record them in a divorce agreement. The parties must also agree on the amount of alimony themselves. If you cannot reach an agreement, the judge may make a ruling on this.
The distribution of the money will not be the problem
Your own home is often the problem in a divorce. If the house is purchased on the basis of two incomes, the house must generally be sold. After the divorce, the bank also wants to have sufficient financial security that the new owner can bear the monthly costs. In practice, not only does an income disappear, there will often be an alimony obligation for the ex-partner with the highest income. The house poses an even bigger problem if the debt on the house exceeds the value of the house. In that case, the house has become unsellable. Together you must bear any legal debts.