Divorce is painful, but it is also expensive. There are a variety of factors that do into a divorce.
Temporary Orders
If there are children involved, you need to reach an agreement as to who is going to pay what during the interim. Life goes on. You still have to pay for the sports activities, the doctors visits and all the day to day expenses. If the primary wage earner is leaving the household, the mortgage payment and the power bill still have to be paid. Hopefully the spouses can agree on a temporary arrangement. However, it may be necessary for the judge to rule on temporary orders.
Litigation is obviously the most expensive route. How friendly is your relationship with your ex? Mediation or a collaborative are much less painful and less expensive alternatives.
One of the spouses may have a lot of anger or deep emotional feelings that may not be entirely rational and that may get in the way of process. There may be a perceived need for some sort of revenge or a need to create pain. Someone needs to give consul to the angry party, and try to hep them move through this.
Liquidating Assets
The more assets, the higher the cost of the dissolution. If it will be necessary to sell the house, this is going to take some time. Buying a house in today’s market is incredibly challenging. Sellers are frequently receiving multiple bids, with many way over the asking price. There is a considerable shortage of homes, particularly on the more affordable housing. If one of the spouses is downsizing, this is going to be tricky. Interest rates have gone way up on mortgages, and it’s only going to get worse. You may experience a horrible sticker shock, and you may have to downsize more than you had hoped, due to the increased costs.
Hidden Assets
Do you suspect that your spouse has hidden some things? If you do and you need to pursue this, the investigative process is going to take time and can get really expensive. perhaps you can find a financial person that you could agree on who you would consider neutral who could examine your assets and give you an opinion.
You need to be informed going forward. You should call our office and arrange for a consultation with Steve Hair.
Steven W. Hair, focuses his practice as a divorce attorney, family law attorney in Clearwater, Palm Harbor, and Safety Harbor.
For more information, visit our website at www.FamilyLawClearwater.com
or call (727) 726-0797.