Sometimes, relationships and financial accounts don’t mix. This can be true when you and your now estranged spouse are thinking about or going through a divorce. Most married couples share some financial assets and responsibilities that can include bank accounts, mortgages and credit cards. Since California is a community property state, there can be additional things to consider in terms of finances, separation and divorce.
It’s good to keep an eye on all financial accounts while you and your spouse are separated or during the divorce process. The last thing a person wants is for their spouse to go on a spending spree, to open or close accounts without a person’s knowledge or to affect a person’s credit score by affiliation by marriage. However, it’s also good to keep an eye on it to ensure there is no unusual activity on those accounts and also to keep a person’s financial accountability in check.
Failure to do so could result in a negative impact on a person’s credit due to the spouse’s decisions financially. Keep in mind, marriage can bind a person to another’s financial decisions. While there may be ways to discredit this in the end, it’s not a situation one wants to find themselves in. Understanding how splitting assets in a high asset divorce can impact your credit can be notable, especially when a person is removed from a mortgage or takes on the debt with a payout by the other spouse and other large financial decisions that can be the result of a high asset divorce.
Understanding living as a single income, versus a double-income family can be challenging as well. If alimony or spousal support is a part of a divorce decree, that can also show on a person’s credit report or tax return. Long term ramifications of a divorce decree can be farther reaching than many expect or initially understand.