Many couples who are getting divorced realize that moving out of the family home is not easy. That is why some divorcing couples choose to stay in the same home during the divorce process. However, this can be very difficult for all members of the family. If you plan to share a home with your soon-to-be ex-spouse, follow these tips.
Determine Financial Responsibilities
The first thing you should do is work out how the financial responsibilities of sharing a residence will be split. Come up with a budget that includes all living expenses. Will one person pay the insurance bill while the other covers utilities or will you split the cost of all bills? You may even change some joint accounts and bills so they reflect the spouse who will solely handle them.
Plan for Child Custody Disputes
Many divorcing couples choose to live together in the same home because it could help their children cope with the fact that their parents are splitting up. However, you also need to be aware that sharing parenting duties will not be the same as before you decided to pursue a divorce.
It may be helpful for you and your spouse to work out an arrangement to take over parenting responsibilities for certain hours or days. Doing this will allow you, your spouse and your child to become accustomed to how life will be when the divorce becomes final.
Additionally, living in the same house with children may allow you to begin working on a parenting plan. If you and your spouse can reach an agreement before going to court, you will not have to undergo a grueling and expensive custody battle. More importantly, your family won’t have to suffer unnecessarily and the divorce can be as peaceful as possible for everyone involved.
Establish Personal Boundaries
Living together while your divorce is pending may be extremely difficult if your living environment causes either of you stress. Crucial to reducing stress is establishing boundaries in your home.
Work out which rooms each of you will be staying in and how much space each of you need in the home. Make sure that common areas like the living room and kitchen aren’t off limits for either of you. You should also be willing to have times where each of you can have the house to yourselves.
Household duties like cleaning, cooking, laundry, dishes and yard work can all be divided so that one person isn’t doing all of the work.
It is not advisable to bring a new partner over or spend a lot of time in the vicinity of your soon-to-be ex-spouse during your free time.
Contact the Divorce Attorneys at Wallin & Klarich Today
If you are considering divorce, it is important that you contact a skilled family law attorney right away. At Wallin & Klarich, our family law attorneys have over 35 years of experience successfully representing our clients in divorce matters. Let us help you now.
With offices in Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino, Victorville, Los Angeles, West Covina, Torrance and San Diego, you can find an experienced Wallin & Klarich divorce attorney available to help you no matter where you are located.
Call us now at (888) 749-7428 for a free phone consultation. We will be there when you call.
Sources:
http://info.legalzoom.com/can-two-people-live-together-during-divorce-20738.html
