Is There A Way To Preemptively Handle Financial Issues That Might Come Up With My Ex After Divorce?

Many parents who are going through divorce do not realize just how many surprise expenses might come up in the future. Even with important issues such as child support and custody figured out, there will likely be surprises, such as who pays for camp, college, a phone, materials for extracurricular activities, or a child’s car when the time comes, etc. Many say it’s part of the lifetime job of co-parenting.

This is why it can be important to not only to try to maintain civility with your ex, but also work with an experienced divorce attorney who has been through this with couples over time, and can help you predict and address as much as possible ahead of time in your divorce agreement. Below, we discuss some tips on how to handle money with your ex after divorce:

Addressing How to Split Up Surprise Costs Ahead Of Time

Some couples choose to write into their divorce settlement that they will split any child-related costs that come up 50/50, while others decide to do it based on what is proportional to each person’s income (i.e. split it up by percentage based on who makes more money). The latter can be especially helpful if you want to build in some flexibility in case employment circumstances change over time.

Individual Parental Priorities

You and your ex may also have some different priorities in terms of what is important to you—for example, for one parent, their child starting or continuing to learn a musical instrument is important, while perhaps being on a sports team is important to the other, etc. It is possible that, if a particular activity is only important to you, it may make sense for you to assume the full cost for that activity.

Including Children in Financial Discussions

When to include your children in financial discussions is another question we sometimes hear from some of our clients. While most would agree that involving them when they are very young does not make sense, as they get older, some families do find it helpful to bring their children into discussing and helping with arrangements to pay for things like a Smartphone, as these can provide important opportunities for them to learn about the value of money and planning ahead, as well as compromise.

Communication & Picking Your Battles

Although it may sound obvious, communication is, of course, key. There are times when your ex may need to be reminded that they agreed to pay x to help with y. There may also be issues come up that seem so small to you that it’s just easier to handle it on your own without getting your ex involved or going out of your way to make sure it is addressed in the divorce agreement.

Florida Divorce Attorneys

If you live in Florida and are contemplating or going through divorce, contact one of our experienced Orlando divorce attorneys at Arwani Law Firm, PLLC today to find out how we can help.

Resource:

huffingtonpost.com/entry/handle-money-with-an-ex-after-divorce_us_5ba8fa93e4b0181540df2a97