Have you ever thought about just how complicated personal finances can be? Since personal finances can be complicated, it makes sense that when two people marry, their financial picture becomes even more complex. Each spouse still has his or her personal finances and personal financial history, and then there are the couple’s joint or household finances. When one or both spouses own businesses and other diverse types of assets, either together separately, there is a chance that the couple’s financial situation is highly complex.
When a couple has a complicated financial situation, both spouses stand to benefit from bringing a financial planner and an accountant into the mix of people that they consult with during their divorce case. In the past, few couples used the services of financial professionals during their divorce cases because many of their financial situations involved relatively simple questions of how to divide income, debts, and tangible assets like the family home and the spouses’ cars. In today’s society, things are more complicated. More families have two working spouses, and many more people own businesses. The rising cost of college has made college savings plans a popular class of assets, and there are more ways for people to invest money than ever before. These are just some of the reasons why more and more couples are consulting with financial professionals in addition to consulting with attorneys during their Texas divorce cases.
Since financial professionals understand how the various assets that a couple has work, they can help the spouses come up with ideas about how they could divide them equitably. They also know how to accurately assess the values of various types of assets, which is essential to being able to distribute them equitably. Sometimes it makes sense to split an asset in two. At other times, it is best for one spouse to take an asset and the other to take another asset of comparable value. Some assets require specific procedures to be followed to successfully split or transfer them. Financial professionals know all of the ins and outs of transferring, splitting, and otherwise dealing with financial assets, and they can advise spouses on what their bigger financial picture would look like, such as tax consequences, if they divide their assets in certain ways. All of this information can help spouses work through the question of how to divide their assets equitably.
Financial professionals can also help divorcing spouses make the transition from their joint financial lives to their single financial lives. They do this by helping them develop budgets to address their current day to day financial needs and financial plans that meet their future financial needs.
In some cases, financial experts may be able to offer valuable assistance if it appears as though one spouse has been hiding money. They can often review personal and business books and records and find out where the money is.
Texas Family Law Attorney Alex Tyra – A Strong Advocate in Your Texas Divorce
If you are divorcing in Texas, you could benefit from the assistance of an experienced family law attorney. You may even benefit from enlisting the aid of one or more financial professionals. To learn more about your Texas divorce, call Texas Family Law Attorney Alex Tyra today, at (903) 753-7499.