Manassas Property Division
The entanglement of assets is often a huge source of conflict during divorce, because most or all of these assets qualify as marital property. All marital property is divided equitably (fairly) during Virginia divorces, and unless you have a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, all of the income that you and your spouse earned while married, any real estate you purchased, and all of the retirement funds or pensions that either of you have worked towards is up for equitable distribution. To ensure that you receive a fair deal, you need to work with an attorney. Manassas divorce attorneys at Simms Showers are here for you.
Factors The Court Uses to Determine Equitable Property Division
Virginia follows the doctrine of equitable distribution during divorce. This means that all property that you acquired, including debt, during the course of the marriage is up for equitable distribution. Some property obtained during marriage may not qualify as marital property, such as lawsuit awards, gifts, and inheritance, but chances are that if you have been married for more than a year or two, the vast majority of your belongings are marital property. Courts use the following guidelines to determine how certain property should be distributed between the two spouses:
- Financial and non-financial contributions each spouse made to the well-being of the family;
- Financial and non-financial contributions each spouse made to the acquisition, care, and maintenance of marital property;
- Duration of the marriage;
- Age of each spouse;
- Physical health of each spouse;
- Mental condition of each spouse;
- Potentially the reason for the dissolution of marriage if wrongdoing, such as adultery, occurred;
- How property was acquired and when it was acquired;
- Debts of each spouse;
- Whether the property is liquid or non liquid;
- Tax consequences to each spouse;
- Potential use of marital assets for nonmarital purposes; and
- More.
Examples of Marital Property
While a survey found that photos are the top prized possession of most Americans, photos have little to no monetary value, especially when they can be duplicated. In fact, the most valuable property owned by Americans is the family home, which comes in at an average value of just under $300,000. Homes, along with businesses, are one of the hardest types of property to divide, due to their non liquid asset form. Below is a list of common marital property—property that will be divided equitably—that may exist in your own marriage:
- Business assets;
- Checking accounts;
- Savings accounts;
- Retirement accounts;
- 401(k) accounts;
- Pensions;
- Real estate;
- The family house or condo;
- Vacation homes;
- Motor vehicles;
- ATVs, motorcycles, RVs, and boats;
- Furniture;
- Electronics;
- Personal belongings;
- Jewelry;
- Art;
- Family dog or cat;
- Student debt;
- Business debt;
- Credit card debt;
- Gambling debt;
- Medical debt;
- Vehicle debt; and
- Home mortgage debt.
Call a Manassas Property Division Attorney Today
Property division is incredibly complex, involving careful discovery and documentation of all assets, valuation of real estate and other property, and months of negotiations, if not longer. Because of this, we encourage you to contact a Manassas property division attorney here at Simms Showers. Call us at 703-879-1364 to schedule a consultation today.
