Albany Family Law Blog

2 kinds of assets you shouldn’t ignore when negotiating a divorce

Posted by Joanne P. Monagan, Esq. | Jul 11, 2021 | 0 Comments

Splitting your property will probably be a sticking point in your upcoming divorce. Spouses frequently focus on major assets like their houses and their retirement accounts when negotiating a settlement.

However, all your personal property can have an impact on the overall value of your marital estate and the best way to split your assets. Before you reach an agreement with your ex, you might want to double-check for valuable assets you may have overlooked.

Items for hobbies or collectibles

You probably have zero interest in any of your spouse's triathlon bicycles. You don't want to go out and race, so the bikes have no value to you as an individual.

However, they represent hundreds or possibly thousands of dollars of marital wealth if your spouse purchased them during your marriage. Some people intentionally build up these collections before divorce to hide wealth from their spouses.

While there may be items you have no interest in keeping because your spouse uses them for their hobby or passion, that doesn't mean you shouldn't figure out their value and factor that into your property settlement.

Designer clothing and jewelry

Much like with collectibles, you probably have no interest in asking to keep some of your spouse's handbags or neckties. However, if they have a valuable wardrobe purchased with income earned during your marriage, figuring out the estimated value of those assets can be important.

It is not uncommon for one spouse to have far more in personal property, jewelry and clothing than the other. While you may not want their clothes, recognizing the discrepancy between the values of your individual wardrobes can lead to a better outcome when you split your other assets.

Remembering that it is important to understand the value of items and when or how you acquired them can help you push for a fair property division outcome.

About the Author

Joanne P. Monagan, Esq.

Managing Attorney

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