Your daily living expenses will likely increase when you live separately. Maintaining a home on your own is more expensive than sharing the costs. For many people, this means having less money to spend. A budget can help you make the most of the money you have.
Here are some tips to keep in mind:
1. Make sure you keep paying your bills throughout your settlement period. While your emotions might be raw while working through a divorce, refusing to pay joint bills is literally cutting off your nose to spite your face. Recent slow or missed payments will make it either prohibitively expensive or downright impossible to qualify for mortgage financing in the foreseeable future. The best advice is to make sure that all of the bills are paid (you can seek reimbursement for the expenses your spouse should have covered during the settlement phase, so keep your receipts!)
2. Separate your joint accounts as soon as possible and check your credit report to ensure that you did not miss anything. Regardless of what you and your ex-spouse have agreed about who is responsible for paying what bill, a missed payment on a joint account will hurt both your credit ratings equally. Also, if all or most of your credit has been in your spouse’s name, set up your own accounts as quickly as possible because it is much easier to get approved for a mortgage with an established credit history.
3. Since no lender will provide you with a mortgage until all of your future financial obligations can be clearly understood, complete your separation/ divorce agreement as a matter of priority. Also, because your soon-to-be ex-spouse can make a claim against any of your assets, lenders will not risk such a claim on your new home while divorce proceedings are still underway.
More specifically, if you are looking to buy out your former husband/wife’s share of the matrimonial home, the first step is to agree on the property’s current market value. This can be done by working with a realtor who is mutually accepted as a trusted resource.
4. If your spouse is buying out your equity in the matrimonial home, get confirmation from the lender in writing that you are no longer registered on the mortgage, and keep in mind that simply being taken off the property’s title is not the same thing. Until you have this proof in hand, you could still be on the hook for the outstanding mortgage balance for a house you no longer own.When going through a separation or divorce, the very best way to reduce conflict and to save money in the long run is to ensure that you can make the big decisions effectively with as much awareness, open communication and educational support where needed, as possible. I will help you to set realistic expectations by combining the very best data and my expertise. I am committed to being non-judgemental, supportive and transparent. I will never take sides, and truly want what is best for BOTH of you.
Because you have spent years, if not decades together, your lives are very intertwined, and this whole process needs to be handled with compassion, nurturing and understanding. I too have been where you are – and so I understand it
on a visceral level. I can also help to reduce conflict and overwhelm during this strenuous time because I have a vast amount of education in psychology for supporting couples during difficult transitions.
Please let me know how I can be of help to you. I know how stressful this all can be - and there are no questions too small. We can get you through this - together.
Contact Krista Lachapelle today (905) 251-9699.