It is widely reported that money is at the root of many divorces. This does not necessarily mean that a lack of money is the main issue that creates tension among married couples. In fact, it may go much deeper than that. For some couples, and perhaps for you, the financial issues that caused the most trouble in your marriage revolved around basic philosophies about handling money.
If you and your spouse never reached an agreement about how you would earn, spend, save and borrow money, chances are you are among the many couples whose marriages suffer under the strain of regular financial disagreements. Often, the same arguments that defined your marriage become a serious part of your divorce. It may help you to understand what is at the core of most money struggles for married couples.
Money disagreements complicate a marriage
From the beginning, your finances may have been in jeopardy if you came to the marriage with different backgrounds and financial outlooks. If one of you valued saving and frugal spending but the other came from a family that enjoyed spending freely, you certainly clashed when it came time to distribute your earnings among your creditors.
Some couples can grow together and learn to compromise, but you and your spouse may have been firmly ingrained with your financial personalities. Perhaps one or more of these issues existed in your marriage:
- Feelings of insecurity or mistrust when it came to combining your incomes and accounts
- One of you earning considerably more than the other and using this fact to control the other
- One spouse feeling resentful of the other spouse’s higher income
- Lack of financial preparation or understanding of how having children would change your finances and goals
- Extended family members who interfere either by expecting handouts or offering extravagant gifts
- Too much individual debt or an imbalance of debt brought into the marriage by one spouse
Debt is a heavy burden in a marriage, and often, it is too much for a couple to carry. The court will divide your joint debt, but it may not always be easy to determine which spouse incurred the debt. This will be an important factor to argue if you hope to avoid taking on more of the marital debt than is fair.
If it is clear that your financial differences may make it difficult for you to reach a reasonable settlement with your spouse, you will want the strong and effective representation of a skilled attorney who understands community property laws in a Texas divorce.
