Hi all,
I offered a provisional offer of approx. £2,000, a clean break order and no pension sharing order.
Was that wise for me to do, even if I have nothing to offer?
What else must I consider, if I go to court?
What guidance can anyone give me? I don't have a lawyer, can't afford one.
Here are my facts:
I am in my 20's and my ex is in her mid 20's. I was married for a year.
I pay for child support via CMS.
Currently, I make approx £23,000 after tax. I receive no benefits, nor any other source of income.
During marriage, both roles were equal contributors. We both put in proportionally what we earned.
During marriage, we kept financials separate and we went on 1 holiday which was our honeymoon to which we both contributed to financially.
During marriage, I contributing to the family pot up till the breakdown of marriage. I had to start again and so I mortgaged a home using the help to buy scheme and the help of family.
I am in negative equity. I am currently overdrawn by a large margin in ALL accounts. I currently contribute 0% to workplace pension. The net value of the property I am liable for MINUS what assets I have equal to a minus figure.
Hi,
am no expert, but from what I read, is if your ex does not agree with a clean break, she could ask for spousal maintenance, and court decides whether to grant that and how much you are to pay. she could stop working to look after kids, and that way argue she needs spousal maintenance.
lot of info here:
If the marriage or civil partnership is short (typically, less than five years), it might not be paid at all or only for a short period through what’s called a ‘term order’.
property:
What if you are in negative equity? If you get divorced while your joint home is in negative equity, it can be difficult to sell the home and pay off the mortgage in full. You might have to split the outstanding debt between you or come to an agreement with your mortgage provider
Unfortunately I do not believe the debts has any effect on Child Maintenance. It will be worked out on your gross income, regardless of debt and outgoings. Suggest you can mitigate a little by paying into a pension.
It seems unfair, 2 people are generally responsible for the debt, but only one has to carry the full CMS can......
In terms of property, it was bought after separation. She didn't leave the family home, I left the family home to start again. I doubt she would want the debt - it wouldn't benefit either of us.
This is a regular payment made by a former husband, wife or civil partner to their ex-partner. It’s only paid where one partner can’t support themselves financially without it. The amount you receive would depend on:
How much you need to live on;
How much income you already have; and
How much you could potentially earn in the future
Technically I am the financially weaker partner now, but during marriage she was. My potential earning is no more than what I made in previous year. In fact, considerably less (by £10k). It does say it’s only paid where one partner can’t support themselves financially without it. Her position is still the same as when she left the marriage.
If you are the financially weaker partner you can ask for spouse maintenance.
The spouse maintenance is not related to who has the children.
I went through the divorce without a solicitor and she has no spouse maintenance or pension sharing. I got clean break by giving her a larger share of the house (as the kids live with her).
You need to remember that the judge in the first two hearings can't force you to agree.
It will hardly ever go to final hearing but if it does the judge will see your financial needs and income (including the debt) and then if either of you has more money left than the other, an order can be issued for maintenance which can be varied if circumstances change.
The chances are the judge in the first two hearings will try and explain that none of you will get that as you both have similar situation and that a clean break is the best.
But as I said, if you are sure that you are financially weaker then you ask for maintenance. This will make her think twice before asking for anything else than a clean break.
As for the family house. If you bought it together then it is an asset and you can ask for half of it. Even as a bargaining chip.