Winchester Property Division
Virginia law requires that all marital property be divided equitably. Equitable division does not necessarily mean equal division. Instead, all assets and debt are divided fairly. Spouses should never attempt to divide their property without the guidance of an attorney. Our Winchester property division attorneys at Simms Showers will safeguard your best interests and ensure that your rights are protected throughout the divorce process.
Equitable Division of Marital Property
Virginia is an equitable division state, which means that all marital property is divided fairly. Marital property is all debt and assets that are acquired during marriage. Examples include:
- Bank accounts;
- Savings accounts;
- Roth IRAs;
- Retirement accounts;
- Pensions;
- Real estate;
- Stocks and bonds;
- Automobiles;
- Collectables;
- Furniture;
- Electronics;
- Sports equipment;
- The family home;
- RVs, boats, and motorcycles;
- Credit card debt;
- Student loan debt;
- Medical debt;
- Business debt; and more.
Who Determines What Equitable Means?
Under Virginia law, the following factors are used to determine equitable division of assets:
- Age and health of each spouse;
- Monthly wages of each spouse;
- Other sources of income of each spouse;
- Financial and non-financial contributions each spouse made to the marriage;
- Child Raising or household duties of each spouse;
- Sacrifices each spouse made for the other’s job or education;
- Circumstances leading to divorce;
- Length of the marriage;
- Liquid or non-liquid character of the property;
- Tax consequences; and more.
Divorces With Highly Complex Property Division
Not all married couples have their assets neatly separated or held in a bank account that can easily be divided when the time comes to divide equitably. For example, there are 32 million small businesses in the U.S., according to the Small Business Administration, which means there are tens of millions of Americans who have most of their assets invested in their small businesses. According to Nerd Wallet, there is $1.6 billion in student loan debt. Issues like these can make it very difficult to separate marital assets easily and fairly. Below are examples of situations in which division of assets can be complicated:
- Marriages lasting multiple decades, in which all property owned by each party is marital property;
- When a large portion of the marital assets are held in a business;
- When both spouses run a family business together and neither wants to give it up;
- If there are poorly written prenuptial or postnuptial agreements that may or may not be legal;
- When all of the marital property is tied up in the family home, and the couple is not willing to sell the home off and divide the proceeds; and
- High net worth divorces.
Call a Winchester Property Division Attorney Today
There are many factors that go into property division. Even adultery can play into how the courts divide assets and debt. In order to protect your interests, you need to ensure that all marital property is located and accurately valued. Working with an experienced attorney is crucial in this regard. We strongly encourage you to reach out to our Winchester property division lawyers at Simms Showers today at 703-879-1364 to schedule a consultation.
