It is normal to be anxious about many things when thinking about getting a Texas divorce. You may have heard of horror stories about getting a divorce from your friends or acquaintances who have been through it. It’s difficult not to feel anxious when there is a possibility that something unpleasant will suddenly pop up before or after the Texas divorce has been finalized. Your spouse’s hidden assets could be one of these things. It will surely be complicated to deal with it especially when you don’t really know anything about it. The Basics of Hiding Assets in a Texas Divorce It is not uncommon for one spouse to try to hide some assets during the divorce. This is especially common when a lot of money and properties are involved. A common way to hide assets is to just choose not to announce a certain account or property. If your spouse has an account or property that you don’t know about, chances are, he will keep you uninformed about it. This is of course illegal, but that doesn’t really stop some spouses from hiding away some of their assets. Often, properties that are hidden throughout the marriage only are […]
A divorce in Texas or anywhere else, is definitely life-changing. It could be a major turning point in your life. The result of the divorce might make you feel like you’ve won or lost, but regardless of that, you will have to cope along with your family members. There are many legalities you and your family will have to deal with before you can properly start a new life after your divorce. You will have to discuss these things with your family members too. Changing your Name Even before you started the process of your divorce in Texas, you might have thought about keeping or discarding your last name. Of course, this typically only applies when you’re a woman. Your decision about changing your name should be included in the documents that your attorney will submit for the divorce. The request to revert back to your maiden name is usually included in the Original Petition for Divorce. Even if you’re not the one who initially filed for divorce, you can always file a counter-petition to request for the name change. It’s also possible to request for a name change for children who are minors but it is not […]
The first thing people worry about when they start thinking about divorce is their children and their property. The children, the house, the cars, the money and other properties are things people think about the most when they’re on the verge of getting a Texas divorce. If you happen to be in the same situation, these are subjects you need to seriously think about. Were there any debts incurred during your marriage? How seriously have you contemplated about the financial issues and responsibilities you have during your marriage? If you think that only the property and assets are divided when a divorce happens, you’ll have to think again. Debt is just as important as retirement accounts and properties and it is divided between the couple as well. The amount of responsibility each spouse needs to take at the time of the divorce for the debts incurred during the marriage is extremely important. Preparing for Debt in Your Divorce One of the most common debts in a marriage that are strongly debated about by both parties are credit card debts. When marital debts are divided, they can be handed to either of the spouses or both. Credit cards are a different […]
When you have just started the process of getting divorced, it might feel burdensome and endless – like you’re in a dark tunnel and you can’t even see the light at the end yet. A divorce certainly does not happen overnight, but it really doesn’t go on forever either. It’s just a matter of time before the nightmare would finally be over. Before the divorce would be finalized, you will have to go through the pain of sorting out finances, debts and even retirement accounts. Splitting retirement accounts either of you own is an important and undoubtedly complicated part of the divorce. Texas Laws on Community Property Texas laws pays utmost attention to the distinction between community property and separate property. Community property refers to any property that was acquired during your marriage. Retirement accounts that were secured during the marriage is considered community property. On the other hand, separate property refers to properties acquired before the marriage. In a Texas divorce, community properties are subject to division along with other community assets. Though it can be split exactly in half, it doesn’t necessarily have to be. You can create an agreement with your spouse with regards to the percentage […]
These days, it is not uncommon to see unhappy couples staying together because of the kids. There are many reasons why a lot of people choose to live their lives this way. They may not want to go through the mess of a divorce and the psychological effect it will have on the kids. Without a doubt, divorce is really daunting. Think about how the kids would have to be passed to the other parent on schedule. Co-parenting after a divorce is definitely challenging. A lot of parents are concerned about its effects on the children’s growth and development. Many also worry about the financial impact that goes along with it even more. Child support can pose serious financial issues, and these issues are enough to keep couples together despite mutual dissatisfaction in their marriage. Financial Impact on Relationships Many researchers have conducted various interviews and studies addressing this issue. One particular study focused on the relationship between finances, children and relationships. According to the results, 14% of the respondents of the research divulged that they chose to stay in an unhappy relationship because it was more practical. For obvious reasons, when children are in the picture, money concerns are heightened some more. Most parents […]
Many of the divorce cases nowadays are caused by financial issues. It doesn’t come as a surprise when after post-divorce couples fall behind mortgage and face foreclosure. Foreclosure is enough of a headache as it is. When it is complicated by issues pertinent to divorce, it can be more difficult to manage. When a couple gets a divorce, it is not an uncommon move to transfer the interest for the house to the other spouse. Usually, they do this thinking that this will place the responsibility for the mortgage completely on the other spouse. However, it just doesn’t work that way. When the mortgage is originally listed under both names, both spouses are responsible in making sure the mortgage gets paid. Even if you transfer the property to your ex, the bank won’t care about that. All the bank cares about is getting the mortgage paid off. Transferring the house to your spouse might even become a bigger financial burden. If your ex would let the mortgage go unpaid after the transfer, and it won’t be just his/her credit that would be affected, but yours as well. There is even a possibility that you would face a deficiency judgement. A […]
The decision A divorce isn’t a process that a lot of people know much about before they begin and there tend to be a lot of questions. The first step of a divorce is to file for divorce, or rather to petition the court for a divorce. I will go into that briefly before answering one of the biggest questions, where do I file for divorce? You can find more information about it elsewhere on our blog as well. Filing For Divorce Filing for divorce is the process during which you submit paperwork to the court stating that you are seeking a divorce. This is called the Original Petition For Divorce. Essentially this states the reasons for which you are filing for divorce and what you are asking the court to do. Texas offers several different types of divorce and you can read about those on our blog. At this stage, you can also request a temporary hearing to determine various issues that need to be decided while the divorce is pending as well as a temporary restraining order in regards to the parties behavior during the case. Many counties include a number of these temporary injunctions as part of […]
During a divorce you are going to go through some of the worst times you have ever experienced. That is why many people make financial mistakes, too much is going on all at one time. Making a financial mistake will only make the experience worse. We have prepared this article to help you avoid making costly financial mistakes. Not Planning For Expenses A lot of people just spend their money without keeping track of it. This kind of expenditure during a divorce can be risky. There will be extra expenses that you will have to account for. Your lawyer will also need to know how much you spend every month in order to properly defend you. Sitting down and planning out your monthly expenses versus your income is incredibly important. Not Considering Finances When Deciding Where To Live Most people want to keep their family home during the divorce process. While this might help you keep positive memories alive, you need to consider your finances. You will no longer be operating monthly with two people’s income. Take a look at the monthly mortgage payments and look at your expenses from above to determine whether or not you can realistically continue […]
Being in the position of having a potential divorce is often one of the worst times in a person’s life. Should you think you have reached that point in your life where your marriage is past any point of being repaired and you think a divorce might be necessary, there are some steps you should take to prepare yourself for a divorce. Step 1. Find A Divorce Attorney Unless you have been through a divorce before, you probably do not have a divorce attorney. You should start looking for one right away and consult with them on the process of a divorce. This will include inquiring about your rights and responsibilities in regards to custody and property. Step 2. Prepare A Property Inventory Go through everything you and your partner own. That means finding major items throughout the house and inventorying them. From furniture to art and automobiles you should make sure to get everything of value. This also includes things that might not be at home such as those in safe deposit boxes and storage facilities. Knowing all you can about the property owned between you can be key in a divorce case. Step 3. Get Copies Of Everything […]
Going through divorce is a long and complicated process it doesn’t help that it happens to be one of the most emotional times of many people’s lives. It is also a process that has been stigmatized for years. As such, not everyone knows too much about the process. To help you better understand the process of divorce in Texas we have created this quick guide about filing for divorce. Mandatory Texas Residency Like with many states, Texas has a requirement for residency in order to file for divorce. At least one party in the divorce must have resided in Texas for at least 6 months before filing. There is an additional requirement that you must have lived in your county for at least 90 days. This prevents people from attempting to file from out of state using the Texas courts. Grounds For Divorce In most states, there are two different types of divorce that you can file for. These are at fault and no-fault. Texas is a mixed state, meaning that they will hear cases for both at fault and no-fault divorces. No-fault divorces are the most common cases that Texas courts hear. It means that there is no blame […]