Going through a divorce is truly a tough and stressful experience. Aside from dealing with its emotional and mental impact, dealing with finances can also bring about complications.

Let us consider some points involving financial matters that can help you go through with divorce less painfully.

Child Support

If you have children, know your financial duties. It is crucial that both parents come to an agreement regarding child support. It is very common that one parent do not pay enough or do not pay child support at all. This matter should be addressed and cleared as early as possible.

Dividing Property

State laws differ when it comes to dividing properties between divorcees. If you live in a community property state (AZ, CA, ID, LA, NE, NM, TX, WA, and WI), your personal assets and your spouse’s assets acquired during your marriage will be divided equally between the two of you. For the rest of the states, the court decides the property distribution which depends on the financial state of the divorcing couple.

However, it is best for the both of you if you can come up with a fair agreement. Some divorcees use “bartering” in dividing properties where both parties decide on which assets they would like to keep and which they would like to give up. To be fair, some divorcees prefer to sell all their conjugal properties and divide the sales equally between them.

Dividing Debts

Dividing debts can be complicated. It is not unheard of when a spouse defaults on his or her debts and leaves the other spouse paying for the debts they were supposed to share. There have also been many cases where a spouse continues to run up more debts without the ex-spouse’s consent or knowledge. These unfortunate situations can be avoided by closing joint accounts and removing your spouse as an authorized user of your individual account.

Since both of you are parting ways, it is crucial that your finances and debts while you were still together are settled immediately. If both of you are still in the process of paying an existing debt, you can call your creditors and ask that your debts be divided in each of your separate accounts. Both of you may also agree to pay off all your debts in full with the proceeds from the properties you agreed to sell.

Whatever agreement you may come upon, be sure that it does not leave you in a vulnerable place. Obtain a copy of your credit report. Inform the three major credit bureaus as well as your creditors about which debts are yours and which debts will be paid for by your spouse.

Know your rights and obligations.

Clearly, divorce and finances can complicate things especially if you’re not aware of your rights and obligations. Aside from dividing your assets, debts and child support, you also need to know about tax issues, retirement, and other things that involve money. Don’t give your lawyer total control of your finances. It is always best that you analyze the situation. You may seek advice from a financial consultant. Read divorce articles especially ones that discuss financial or legal matters. It is very important to arm yourself with knowledge even while you’re still at the early stages of processing your divorce.