4 Major Life-Changing Ways a Divorce Impacts Your Family Finances

Getting a divorce changes the shape of your family forever. As much as it changes your daily life, it also changes your finances. 

If you're considering or preparing for divorce, make sure you understand the key ways it can impact your finances so that you'll be prepared to move forward with your new life.

1. You're no longer splitting expenses

Maintaining your standard of living after divorce can quickly become a real challenge, especially if you weren't the primary breadwinner in your family. 

It's estimated that you will need at least a 30% increase in your earnings in order to maintain the same standard of living you experienced prior to divorce. In some cases, this may mean little things: eating out less often or making impulse buys less frequently, for example. 

In other cases, it may mean a smaller home, a lower grocery budget, or the need to choose a less expensive car. 

2. Alimony and child support will become a key part of your financial future

Whether you're the one who needs to pay support or you expect support from your former spouse, you need a strong divorce attorney who will advocate for you and ensure that you get what you need out of the divorce, from fair alimony or child support to a reasonable distribution of your assets. 

Working with a firm like Thomas Associates Law Firm LLC is one of the best ways to protect yourself financially throughout the divorce process.

3. Capital gains taxes are an important consideration

When you're in the middle of a divorce, one of the easiest ways to divide your assets is to simply sell them for cash. 

Cars, houses, stocks and bonds, and investment portfolios are frequently easier to divide when they exist as straightforward cash numbers rather than as less tangible assets. Unfortunately, this can lead to heavy capital gains taxes at the end of the year. 

Make sure you understand what you're going to be expected to pay at the end of the year, rather than immediately using those funds for a different purchase. 

4. Your marital assets will be divided

This means that anything you own jointly is fair game: cars, boats, property, and even, potentially, your retirement account. 

It really comes down to whatever the judge decides at the end of the day. You can only hope that the decision is fair and that at best some things go in your favor. Unfortunately it doesn’t always turn out that way. 

This can have a substantial impact on your plans for the future! Everything, from the artwork hanging on your walls to the cars in the garage, needs to be fairly appraised before you and your spouse part ways. 

This will help ensure that you receive a fair percentage of your assets, paving the way for a better financial future.

Following divorce, it may take time to get back on your feet financially. There are a lot expenses before and after your divorce that you will have to pay for and that often take a significant amount of time for anyone to recover from. 

While it's a big change, with time, you can return to your previous lifestyle and learn how to manage your new, single state. You may even eventually remarry and hopefully be in a much better state financially and emotionally than where you were before. 

Either way, be prepared for some major life changes. Going in prepared for the financial changes that divorce will bring, however, will make it easier for you to take care of your financial needs throughout the process.