When going through a divorce, it is important that you understand how to divide your assets and property.
Most of your assets will fall into one of two categories: community or joint, and separate.
Community property
Diffen takes a look at community and separate properties. Which category a property falls into will impact how to handle the asset in divorce property division.
Community or joint properties include anything that you and your spouse own together. This can include things like jointly owned bank accounts or things with both of your names on it, like the deed to a house.
It can also include anything purchased with the funds from a joint bank account, which is why it is important to keep track of expenses during the marriage.
Separate property
Separate property, on the other hand, is not typically up for division due to divorce. Several assets can fall into this category. This may include inheritance, gifts specifically given to you, and anything that belonged to you before the marriage.
However, some separate property may end up categorized as joint property due to actions taken throughout the course of the marriage.
For example, say you received an inheritance and then placed that money into a jointly owned bank account. Though the inheritance is separate property, the assets in a joint bank account are not. This money thus could become joint property and is subject to division.
This is why it is important to manage and separate finances and assets well before the possibility of a divorce arises.
