Divorce impacts life in many ways. If you are a woman in California, one of the ways ending your marriage might most affect your life is through your finances. Understanding these effects before the divorce will help you create a plan for how to deal with them.
Affording your life
Divorce can drastically change a woman’s financial standing. One of the biggest financial challenges of divorce women face is how to afford their life on less income and with similar expenses of running a household. There are many reasons why divorce often affects women more than men, including:
- Women often earn significantly less than men.
- Some women might not even have a steady source of income if they were the stay-at-home parent.
- They might have allowed their husbands to make all financial decisions for the family during the marriage.
The question of retirement
Another big financial challenge that women often must face during divorce is the question of retirement. While they might have had retirement plans with their spouse, the end of the marriage can complicate or even eliminate those original plans. Depending on the woman’s age, they might not have enough time to recover financially and catch up regarding their retirement savings.
Supporting your children
A major issue that is negotiated during divorce is child custody and support. However, with mothers still often becoming primary caretakers after divorce, many expenses of childrearing will fall on them. While child support is supposed to address the costs of raising children, the reality is that it often does not really cover all the costs and that a significant number of parents who receive support do not receive the total amount awarded.
Once you understand the different challenges you might face if you divorce, you can prepare for what is to come. Plan for your divorce negotiations and be realistic about necessities and luxuries as you create a budget for life as a single person.