The first step is establishing a budget when you are preparing to move out. It sometimes seems impossible to figure it all out but you can do it. The first question is where will you live? Do you have someone you can stay with? Parents, relatives, friends? You don’t want to impose, but if you are in a bad situation, having a soft landing spot can help you as you save money to get on your feet.
Expenses To Consider Before Moving Out After Divorcing
Find out what your credit score is before you begin approaching places to rent. You may need a co-signer if you don’t make sufficient income or don’t have credit established. One of my clients, who will have her spouses retirement and alimony to l live on after the divorce, doesn’t have the ability to get a rental on her own without proof she has the funds. Some rentals require six months of proof of money coming in before they will rent to you. These are all factors to consider. If you are tempted to move in with someone make sure it’s going to be an acceptable alternative if you have children. Are there allegations of adultry? You should absolutely not move in with the alleged paramour. This may seem obvious, but I have had people question me about this. This becomes less important if you are not asking for alimony. I still don’t consider this the best option. If you have children, then it becomes a problem for visitation.
What other expenses do you have? I caution clients to stay in the marital home as long as possible because that way we know the expenses are going to be paid as they were being paid. If you decide you can’t stand it any longer, without domestic violence or serious allegations necessitating a move, you may well be tasked with the costs of the move until we get to court. Child support should kick in immediately but you also need to have an agreement about who will have custody pendente lite.
If you have expenses that are in your spouses name, such as car insurance or a vehicle payment, they will most likely continue to pay due to their credit obligations. There is a standing order in Madison County that says everything will be paid the same and most of the time health insurance remains intact. I have seen health and car insurance canceled but if that occurs you can seek court redress immediately.
Can I Take My Personal Property After Divorcing?
If you intend to move think about what you can take with you. During court proceedings you aren’t allowed to move items without agreement. You can take your personal property but furniture and the like will need to be discussed and you’ll need this in writing. If you intend to leave things at the marital residence you need to have an inventory of what you are leaving that’s valuable. I have had so many clients lose personal property when they’ve left and we haven’t had proof that it was there before. Having the opposing sign off on the inventory is a good idea too if you can make it happen.
Once you have a new address, make changes to your address with the postal service and all other relevant businesses. Getting your mail can be another challenge if you in the middle of a divorce. Don’t count on your soon to be ex to deliver important documents to you. Make sure you notify well in advance to avoid chasing your mail down through the use of your attorney. Staying on neutral terms with your spouse is the best way to accomplish a smooth move but it isn’t always possible.
If there is a way to separate assets before you move out, then speak to your spouse about dividing up the joint savings, investments, etc. You may need these funds and even if there aren’t huge sums it can be helpful when you are moving to have a little cushion. Any money that you take right before the separation date is likely to be counted towards your portion of the assets. The same goes for spending money post separation. If you spend it, you can expect to pay it.
Moving out merely takes planning and a willingess to step out of your fear. You can do it!
