Blog Banner
Do I have to pay off debt before I divorce?
Do I have to pay off debt before I divorce?

Do I have to pay off debt before I divorce?

On Behalf of | Mar 10, 2020 | Divorce |

If you and your spouse have realized that your marriage is over, you must now embark on the process of figuring out how to disentangle yourselves from each other. This will impact every facet of your lives from your social circle to where you live and more. Like most people, you and your spouse probably have some amount of joint debt whether as a vehicle loan, home loan, credit card debt or something else. When you are working out details of how the two of you will split up your joint assets, you will also need to figure out which one of you will be responsible for what debt. 

As explained by U.S. News and World Report, it is important that you do not allow any credit accounts to remain in both of your names after your divorce is final. The reason for this is that despite whatever terms your divorce decree lays out stipulating which spouse is responsible to pay which debt, a bank or creditor will consider anyone named on the account to be liable for the debt. 

Some people may choose to pay off all debt before their divorce is final in order to avoid issues later on. If you cannot do this, you might require your spouse to take out a loan in their name only to transfer the debt they must pay so you can close joint accounts. 

This information is not intended to provide legal advice but is instead meant to give divorcing spouses some useful information to help them make wise choices about how to divide debt in their divorce and to protect themselves financially after they get divorced. 

Archives

FindLaw Network