No one imagines that their marriage will end, but sadly, it’s a reality that many couples face. The divorce rate in America hovers around 34%, and while that’s lower than many people believe it to be, it’s still something.
As anyone who’s gone through a divorce can tell you, the process is exhausting in many different ways. Yet once the divorce has finalized, most people don’t realize that they’re not out of the water yet. So what do you need to be ready to do?
Keep reading to learn about five things you must do after finalizing a divorce.
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Update Your Legal Information
If you’re choosing to go back to your maiden name, you’ll need to get to work updating all of your legal information.
You’ll need to ensure that your social security card, driver’s license, car registration, and any other important documents all reflect your updated name and marital status. Make sure you do this before you need to use these documents for any reason.
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Sort Out Your Finances
Did you and your ex share any bank accounts? If you did, close them and reopen them in your name.
The same goes for credit—close any credit accounts that the two of you shared and start to use your own personal credit.
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Update Your Tax Information
Taxes can be a tricky area to navigate regardless of your marital status, but one of the first things you’ll need to do post-divorce is to make sure that your taxes reflect your new filing status. In most cases, you should now be Single or the Head of Household.
Check out www.lawmoffitt.com to learn more about how divorce can affect your annual taxes.
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Create a New Will
Schedule a meeting with your estate planning attorney to create a new trust and will. Depending on where you live, divorce may void your previous ones.
You’ll also want to make sure that your ex no longer has any attorney privileges. Spend some time thinking about who you’ll designate as the successor trustees and executor of your new will.
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Change Your Passwords
It might seem like a strange step to take, but you can never be too careful. Living with someone means that they know a lot about your life, so changing the passwords to your online accounts isn’t a bad idea.
Spend some time changing your login info for bank accounts, social media, and anything else you can think of.
Power Through While Finalizing a Divorce
Divorces can be stressful, exhausting, and often times, messy. It’s tempting to think that you’re out of the water once you’re done finalizing a divorce, but there are still some things you should do.
Make sure to do the five points mentioned in this guide, and you can then rest assured that you’ll start the next chapter of your life with the right foot forward.
Do you now have a better idea of what to do once you’re finally divorced? If so, make sure to take a look at some of our other posts for more helpful guides and tips.
