What Does The Census Says About Divorced Women? Know Your Finances

According to data from the most recent census, women are shown to be disproportionately affected by divorce when it comes to finance. Compared to men, women tend to earn less money and tend to be less likely to be able to afford to live independently. Why is being single so expensive?

There’s the obvious answer ”“ two incomes are better than one. But it’s more than just income. Here are some reasons why being single is just more expensive ”“ and why women often face harsher prospects of independence.

  • Taxes: Married couples can typically save thousands of dollars in taxes when they file jointly. This is because of the bevy of federal and state laws that benefit married couples. When you get a divorce, you lose these benefits, which means your taxes will probably be higher. Additionally, studies from ConsumerReports.org and the University of Central Florida reveal a hidden “woman tax” when it comes to sales. Products marketed to women, even if they are functionally identical to men’s products, are more expensive on average.
  • Health Spending: Did you know that, on average, single women spend more on annual healthcare than single men? The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that while men spend 3.9 percent of their annual income on health care, single women spend 7.9 percent, just over double of what men pay. The National Women’s Law Center says that a nonsmoking woman often pays more for health insurance than a smoking man. Women also have to worry about gynecological costs as well as pregnancy, two things that men do not have an equivalent of. Furthermore, women just go to the doctor more, according to a Louis Harris and Associates study that found that men avoid doctors at three times the rate of women yearly, and that a third of men don’t even have a regular physician.
  • Housing: According to the BLS, single women are ”“ once again ”“ paying disproportionate amounts for housing compared to couples and single men. Couples spend an average 23.9 percent of annual income on housing. Single men, 30.3 percent. Single women, 39.8 percent. It breaks down logically; couples can combine income, single men tend to make more money and single women are victims of the wage gap, thus the higher percentage.

It’s definitely not fair and shows bias against not just singles, but specifically single women, at an institutional level. For these reasons (and several more), it’s just harder to be financially independent as a single woman.

Introducing The Divorce Matters Spousal Maintenance & Child Support Calculator

Hello, readers! We have an exciting new announcement that may help you and your spouse figure out some of the logistics of your divorce, and you can access it directly from your Android or iOS device. Our law firm has published a free app, which you can find on Google Play by searching “Child Support Calculator CO” and on the App Store under the name “Divorce Matters Colorado Spousal Maintenance and Child Support Calculator.”

It does exactly what it sounds like it does ”“ it is a simple, portable method of quickly estimating how much you might be expected to pay for spousal maintenance (alimony) and child support if you are involved in a divorce. Knowing is half the battle ”“ our app provides a thorough, inclusive analysis of your financial situation and applies Colorado laws and statutes to help provide you with an accurate estimate of how much you or your spouse will be expected to pay, based on factors like gross monthly income, length of your marriage and a breakdown of costs you might not realize can affect alimony and child support payments. Knowing what to expect ahead of time can help relieve some of the stress and uncertainty of an upcoming divorce.

App Requirements:

If you are on iOS, our app is supported by iPhone, iPad and iPod touch running iOS 8.0 or later.

If you are on Android, you should be able to access our app as long as you are running Android 4.0 or up.

Our Denver divorce attorneys seek to provide the premier client experiences for divorcing couples in Colorado.

Plumfund: The Crowdfunding Platform For Divorce

There’s a crowdfunding site for everything nowadays. Kickstarter, for pretty much anything; GoFundMe for personal funding; PledgeMusic for up-and-coming bands; the ill-fated SwanLuv, which once promised to pay for your wedding on the condition that you would have to pay it back upon divorce. And now, divorce has a new crowdfunding platform, albeit more traditional than SwanLuv’s lofty intentions. Meet Plumfund.

Plumfund seeks to provide a valuable service for divorcees, who are often hit with exorbitant fees and financial turmoil upon divorce. Things like attorney fees, setting up a new home and even unexpected costs like the chance of a contentious, drawn-out divorce can rapidly deplete a person’s bank account and leave them susceptible to snowballing debt, credit hits and even bankruptcy.

Plumfund works like any other crowdfunding site. After setting up your fund, you promote it through social media in hopes of having your friends, family and other associates donate funds to help keep you afloat and pay for those expensive divorce fees.

Is Plumfund A Good Idea?

Often, divorcing couples tend to keep their cards held close to their chests. It can be a difficult time and it is not uncommon to retreat inward instead of asking for support from those closest to you. Plumfund helps with exactly that ”“ it shows financial and emotional support for friends and family going through divorce.

Not only that; it has attracted the attention of several investors, including Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary who sees it as a tremendous business opportunity. With so many marriages ending in divorce (general estimates say that somewhere around 40 to 50 percent of marriages end in divorce), O’Leary says he cannot wait to start promoting the company, touting the importance of responsible monetization of divorce.

At any rate, we hope they don’t pull a SwanLuv and bite off more than they can chew.

Our Denver divorce attorneys are skilled in all matters of family law and offer financing options for divorcing couples.

The Benefits of Filing Bankruptcy before Divorce

The financial hit of divorce sometimes drives a couple to consider bankruptcy, and it can be complicated depending on the individual circumstances of your divorce to determine whether you should file bankruptcy before or after your divorce. While there are benefits to both, generally speaking, filing before your divorce can put you on more stable ground once your divorce is in motion.

If you and your spouse are on good enough terms to work through a joint bankruptcy, you will be able to have most of your joint debts addressed under that bankruptcy. This includes debts like car loans that cost too much, mortgages on homes that are underwater, medical bills and even your unsecured credit card debts. If you wait until after divorce to file for bankruptcy, and only one spouse files, the non-filing spouse will still be on the hook for debts.

What Type of Bankruptcy Do I File For?

Filing for Chapter 7 takes a much shorter time to complete than filing for Chapter 13. In Chapter 7, your debts will usually be discharged after a few months, whereas Chapter 13 can take three to five years. Depending on which you plan to file for, it can affect your decision to file before or after divorce.

Of course, every divorce is different and there is no one-size-fits-all solution to filing for bankruptcy when you are planning a divorce. However, the benefits can be great and can allow you to move forward with your divorce with less debt to divide, which simplifies the property division process in divorce.

Our Denver divorce attorneys help clients throughout Colorado with matters such as property division, including debts.

When Are the Worst Times Financially to Get a Divorce?

You can’t really control divorce; every case is different, and it isn’t exactly something you can plan for long-term. And while there is no good time for a divorce, there are definitely times that can be worse than others.

Four Times When Divorce can Deal a Major Blow to Your Finances.

  1. When the economy is down. You are already going to have to make some major financial decisions when you get divorced. You might have to rent or buy a new house, sell your own house, buy or sell your cars or maybe even take a new job. When the economy is down, all of those things are going to get harder.
  2. When you have bad credit. You need good credit for most major financial decisions, like renting apartments and even opening new credit cards. While divorce proceedings do not directly affect your credit score, many of the factors surrounding your divorce will. For example, assume you and your spouse had a joint credit account. If you do not deal with this credit account before your divorce, then you are still liable for contracts you made with your lenders. Your divorce decree does not end your relationship with the lender, so if your divorced spouse fails to make payments on the account, it will hurt your credit, too. Don’t let divorce make your bad credit worse and take care of these issues in a timely manner.
  3. When you have kids under 19. This is a no-brainer ”“ you will need to work on child custody issues like child support. On the upside, your children may later become eligible for student loans and grants that they would not otherwise have had access to had you not divorced.
  4. When the real estate market is down. Many divorcing couples sell the marital home, but if the market is low, you might find that you cannot sell your home for anything close to what you paid for it. That coupled with real estate fees, land transfer taxes and the general costs of moving can deal a heavy blow to your wallet.

The family lawyers at Divorce Matters serve the entire Denver, Colorado area.

Divorced with a Dating Profile? Don’t Fall for This Scam!

Heartbreak hurts. But don’t let heartbreak blind you to deception, or you may end up paying a high price. If you are recently divorced with a dating profile, be careful.

Every year, federal Internet crime investigators receive thousands of tips involving online romance scams; just last year, victims of these scams reported a total of more than $82 million lost to scammers. A Colorado woman who recently divorced fell victim to one such scam, to the tune of $510,000, after meeting a new man on Match.com.

The woman, known only by the name Joy, signed up for the dating website and quickly became enamored of a man called “Michael Vinci.” He claimed to be an international businessman. They emailed regularly and spoke on the phone, and Vinci even wrote Joy “unbelievable” love letters. But as they say, if it sounds too good to be true.

Six months into their relationship, Vinci asked Joy for a short-term loan in the ballpark of $300,000 for a business deal. Joy had the money from her divorce settlement in an investment account and blinded by her feelings for the enigmatic Vinci, she pulled out the money. And because it was an investment account she took money from, the IRS and Colorado Department of Revenue got involved, sapping more and more money for taxes. Immediately following the transfer of funds, Michael Vinci vanished.

Joy had planned to use the money to buy a new house, but now that is a distant dream. She lives with a relative out of state and faces the horrendous financial aftermath of one bad decision in a moment of intense vulnerability. Let this be a lesson to those in grieving over their lost marriages ”“ it is okay to feel depressed or heartbroken after a divorce, but stay vigilant.

The family law attorneys at Divorce Matters serve the Greater Denver area.

Can Mediation Make My Divorce Cheaper?

Divorce is expensive, there is no way around that. The average cost of a divorce in the United States as of 2015 is somewhere in the range of $15,000-$20,000. This price can be prohibitive for some people, but there are ways to bring the costs down.

Mediation

Mediation is one of those ways. Mediation is a way for a couple to work through their problems to arrive at an agreement that both parties accept and find fair. Once the terms of the divorce are agreed upon, a divorce settlement can be drafted. The key to mediation, though, is the ability to work amicably with your spouse. Not every couple can do this, but it can drive down the costs of divorce. Some couples will use this method to avoid having to pay for an attorney, but even in those cases, it is still a good idea to have an attorney look over the final agreement to ensure that neither party makes a costly mistake; after all, some agreements cannot be changed once the divorce is final.

Collaborative Divorce

You might also consider what is called a collaborative divorce, which is similar to mediation in that you are working together with your spouse as well as separate attorneys for each of you. You might share an accountant or therapist, but lawyers cannot be shared. This is one way to avoid a lengthy and expensive litigation process.

Speak with an Experienced Denver Family Law Attorney

If you find that there is no way to be amicable with your spouse for the divorce proceedings, you may also consider arbitration, which is similar to going to court but is usually quicker and less expensive. You would pay an arbitrator to act as a judge and make all of the decisions a judge would. The best way to decide which option is right for you would be to present your case to a divorce lawyer.

Quitclaim Deeds Can Make Refinancing Home Easier

Financial difficulties are pretty common in divorce cases, especially involving the marital home. With one party now absent, whoever ends up with the house might face daunting costs related to taxes, upkeep and utilities. Many divorcees will refinance their homes, but depending on their credit, interest rates might actually go up, making it even more difficult to keep the home.

What is a Quitclaim and How Can it Help?

This is one situation that could benefit from something called a quitclaim deed. What this does is shift the ownership of the home from one party to another. This has a few potential benefits.

In a situation where one spouse has much better credit than the other, a quitclaim deed can be essential in getting lower interest rates from home refinancing. You go through the process to transfer the house to the party with better credit, and that party can apply for refinancing and likely get a better interest rate. However, this is not a simple process due to the nature of mortgage companies.

Quitclaim deeds can also be used when one spouse wants to add the other to titles of separate property, when property needs to be transferred as a result of a divorce settlement or when one spouse wants to be removed from a title.

Quitclaim Requirements

Additionally, quitclaim deeds can be used to convert marital property into separate property, exempting it from the process of equitable division of assets. For a quitclaim deed to be valid, it must:

  • Be in written form
  • List the involved spouses
  • Identify the property by address or by legal description
  • Be signed in the presence of a notary public
  • Be recorded in the county where the property is located

Contact a Colorado Family Law Attorney

If you have questions about property division during divorce or would like more details on quitclaim deeds, speak to a Colorado family law attorney. The team at Divorce Matters has the skills and experience to help you!

You Don’t Need to Be James Bond to Find Your Spouse’s Hidden Assets

In this increasingly digital world, there are more options than ever before for finding out if your spouse is hiding marital assets. But you don’t have to be James Bond and spy on them ”“ in fact, that can get you into a lot of trouble.

Be Wary of “Snooping”

It might be tempting to run to the spy store and purchase a cheap GPS tracking unit to hide on your spouse’s car, giving you an idea of where he or she has been ”“ visits to a bank you weren’t aware he or she had an account, for example. The more technically savvy spouse might even go as far as to install spy software on the home WiFi to sniff incoming packets for suspicious info. Here’s why you shouldn’t.

Domestic courts in Colorado are courts of equity, so snooping, while a legal gray area, could hurt you in the courtroom. If the courts become aware of your snooping, you could be seen as the bad guy/girl. This could factor into every aspect of your divorce ”“ child custody, property division, etc.

The High Road Approach to Finding Hidden Assets

It is not that difficult to find hidden assets when you have access to the particular set of skills of a divorce attorney. Attorneys can subpoena a great deal of your spouse’s electronic data, and it is very difficult to hide assets without leaving a digital trail of breadcrumbs. Emails, cell phone activity ”“ most of the things that you would probably be able to find by snooping can be found legally and effectively by a divorce attorney.

Speak with a Colorado Divorce Attorney

So don’t risk a charge for spying or stalking ”“ you’re not a 00 agent. Don’t risk your standing in court. Speak to a divorce attorney, and you will get the help you need to ensure an equitable division of your marital property.

How To Deal With 3 Common Divorce Fears

Divorce can be a scary time. It is a huge upheaval in a person’s life. You will have to consider money, your kids and maybe a new place to live. As such, it is not uncommon for divorce proceedings to be underlined with a pervasive sense of fear or anxiety, especially regarding property and money. The good news is that the three big fears about the financial ramifications of divorce can be mitigated through a little work and planning.

The Three “Divorce Fears” and How to Deal With Them

Many divorcees worry that they are not getting their fair share of assets. The more assets a couple has, the scarier it can be, especially when there are homes, stock options and businesses to consider. This is why Colorado uses equitable division to split marital property. Your share may not be equal, but as long as all assets are discovered or disclosed, the courts will split them accordingly. A divorce attorney can help you ensure that you get your fair share.

  1. Another common fear is not knowing exactly which property you will get to keep. Maybe you want the house, but don’t have enough liquid assets to ensure that you will be able to keep it. The way to lessen this fear is to take inventory of your assets, and know which are liquid and which are not. Having $500,000 in cash is very different than having a $500,000 house, after all, and you want to be able to remain financially flexible after your divorce instead of being stuck with only illiquid assets.
  2. The other big fear can be simply summed up as fear of change. Will I have enough money left after spousal support (maintenance, alimony), child support, taxes and living expenses to survive and thrive? Will I need to sell the house and move somewhere else? How will the divorce affect my health insurance? These are big questions, and there are a lot of them. Speaking to a financial advisor can help you budget for your future and assuage these fears.

Get in Touch With an Experienced Divorce Attorney

Divorce is a big change, but there are people out there ready to help you. If you have any questions about your finances during and after divorce, bring them up with a divorce attorney.

Divorce Matters ”“ Denver Family Law Attorneys