California is a community property state. This means that if you’re filing for divorce in California, you’ll need to divide the value of all of your community property 50/50 with your spouse. Virtually all of the assets you’ve acquired since you got married will be treated as community property unless a compelling reason exists to treat a particular asset as separate property. In the event that an asset is treated as separate property, you won’t need to split its value with your spouse.
When considering how to divide your community property, take some time to consider the value of your marital estate as a whole. Your martial estate is the sum of your assets that will be treated as community property for the purposes of divorce. By keeping in mind that you don’t have to divide the value of each individual asset 50/50, but the value of your marital estate as a whole 50/50, the task of splitting your community property may become less daunting.
Enacting an asset division strategy that makes sense
It’s time to think about which assets are most important to you as you’re building your newly single life. Is keeping your marital home your top priority or are you more interested in retaining the value of your retirement accounts? Whatever your needs may be, keep the top one or two in mind as you negotiate the split of your community property. This level-headed focus will make it easier to navigate the division of the bulk of your estate so that only the details concerning minor assets remain open for discussion.
Whether your divorce process is likely to be contentious or amicable, remember that you only have to divide the overall value of your marital estate 50/50. You don’t have to get bogged down in the weeds of dividing every single asset’s value 50/50. If you have questions about crafting a strategy that makes sense for your unique circumstances, don’t hesitate to connect with an experienced legal professional.