When A Saver And A Spender Get Divorced: How To Split The Bank Account

When you're getting divorced, sometimes it pays to think creatively about the assets that you have. What happens, for example, when one of you has a savings and one of you doesn't? Most people assume that they have to divide everything with their spouse right down the middle, but there are a lot of reasons this might not be true—or even the best option. Look at these examples.

If There Are Other Assets

If you and your spouse have other assets that need to be divided up, you may want to leverage the savings account against the other assets. For example, if you and your spouse have a family home together and your spouse wants to stay there a while, you can always work out a deal that might satisfy you both. If the savings account is enough to pay off the mortgage, you can always take that option and both of you defer your share of the savings account when the house is sold at a later, agreed-upon date. Assuming that your property rates aren't on the decline, you could both stand to make a little extra that way. Just don't forget to calculate in the value your spouse receives in not having to pay a mortgage during that time so that you get compensated fairly for your sacrifice.

Alternately, if your spouse wants to stay in the home indefinitely, you can use the savings account to pay off the current mortgage. Then, your spouse can refinance the home in order to pay you back your share of the account plus your share of the home's equity. That can allow you a clean start and disentangle you financially from your ex very quickly.

If You Don't Have Any Other Assets

If you don't have any major assets that you and your spouse need to split, it hardly seems fair that your spouse is entitled to half of the savings that you put away. This is where you need to turn to your family law attorney and your state's laws for advice. If you're in a community property state, you may be stuck dividing things up 50/50 even if you were the one who squirreled the funds away while your spouse spent freely. However, if you have joint debts from your spouse's spending habits, you may find that it's to your advantage to use the savings account to pay those off instead. You won't walk away with cash in the bank, but you won't be saddled with 50% of the spousal debt either.

If you don't live in a community property state, you may be able to keep more of the cash that you've put aside, especially if you were lower wage earner. You may also be able to argue for a larger portion if you can show where the money came from and it came exclusively from your own funds.

For specific advice about your financial situation, talk to an attorney, such as those at Law Office of Dalia Rasha Kejbou, P.C.. Don't assume that you're necessarily locked into one path or another until you've examined all the details and maybe even discussed things with a financial advisor as well.

Share