Divorce, Property Division, Dividing Debts, and the old Credit Rating

Divorce always creates an economic problem. That was true before the economy started slumping and will be true after gets better. You need to be aware of the problems divorce can cause for your finances.

New York Divorce Blog raises a lot of interesting points in How to Prevent Divorce From Hurting Your Credit. I suggest giving it a read.

In the post CREDIT CARD DEBT, Judith's Divorce Blog divides cashless people into two broad categories:

There are two kinds of cashless people in our society:


* Those who can use credit cards properly and don’t need cash

* Those who can’t handle plastic and never have any cash either.

The latter will find themselves looking at a bankruptcy, so learn to use credit cards properly.

Houston Texas Divorce & Family Law Attorney Blog writes about a remedy I have not heard of in Credit Freeze - One Method for Protecting Your Credit Before and During Divorce:

One option is to apply for a credit freeze. A credit freeze prevents anyone from taking your social security number or other personal information and opening an account in your name. Fees to initiate a credit freeze are anywhere from $5-$10 and must be initiated with each of the three major credit bureaus (CSC, Experian, and TransUnion). If you need to “thaw” your credit to apply for a new card, car loan, home loan, refinance, etc., then you must request for a specific creditor to be able to access your credit file. This, too, may require a nominal fee.

The article goes on to mention that a credit freeze is not for everyone.

The California Divorce and Family Law Blog published Lessen impact of divorce on credit last month. A bit lengthy but worth reading. I am not sure that many will be able to follow this bit of advice:

Finally, start planning for all this at least six months to a year before you file, or as early as possible before the divorce gets ugly. Once any problems begin, you and your embittered other half will have a hard time thinking logically. If this seems like a lot of work at the front end of your separation, remember that it will save you up to 10 years of credit-related headaches in the aftermath.

Following that bit of advice will mean - I think - that the choice to file for divorce must be more rational than not.