Commencement of Spousal Support

[justwondering67]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CO
My wife I & have agreed to a divorce. We are still living under one roof & I have agreed to support her through completion of college (May 2011). She wishes to file for divorce immediately citing that she wishes to apply for a Pell grant & divorce status will increase her odds of getting the grant.

My question is two-fold, first is this a legitimate reason (will it really help her with the grant) & second when will I have to start matinence payments (immediately or upon physical separation in May-June of 2011?

 

[mistoffolees]

You have to start support payments when the court tells you to do so. Typically, support payments last for a percentage of the length of the marriage - so by staying married longer, you will probably increase the amount of time that you make support payments. Any payments you make before the divorce is granted will not reduce the amount of time you will eventually be paying.

The only POSSIBLE advantage to delaying is if she gets a good job after school, you might get a lower alimony payment. But even if you divorce her now, if she gets a good job after school, you can ask for a modification. Or you can explain to the judge at the time of the divorce that she will be graduating in a year and you would like for the alimony to drop or be re-evaluated at that time.

I'm not sure how Pell Grant rules work. For tax purposes, court ordered alimony is deductible to you and taxable to her. If the grant formula uses taxable income as the parameter, it would affect things. I also don't know whether status affects your chance of a grant.

Essentially, you're planning to get a divorce. You are willing to pay support. SHE thinks that divorcing now will ease her burden financially. If you delay, it will cost you more (both in terms of property division and alimony if it's applicable). In addition, she wants it now, so you have more favorable negotiating conditions. Under that scenario, what advantage is there to delaying?

 

[Silverplum]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CO
My wife I & have agreed to a divorce. We are still living under one roof & I have agreed to support her through completion of college (May 2011). She wishes to file for divorce immediately citing that she wishes to apply for a Pell grant & divorce status will increase her odds of getting the grant.

My question is two-fold, first is this a legitimate reason (will it really help her with the grant) & second when will I have to start matinence payments (immediately or upon physical separation in May-June of 2011?

How long have you been married?
Why do you assume you will be paying spousal support?

 

[justwondering67]

The only advantage to delaying is that right now I control the finances. I am not being rediculous about it, I'm maximizing payments to eliminate the shared debt & have established a cash budget for each of us to live from check to check. If I have to start making matinence payments immediately my concern is that this will limit my ability to pay down the debt & frankly don't want to have to give her more that necc. thus supporting her "activities". We have been married for 17 years. Also if you could tell me more about the amount of matinence req'd. This is a fixed rate set at divorce? Would I be expected to pay full matinence even though we're still living under the same roof? I would assume this amount would change based on whether she has a job or not. Thanks for your input.

 

[mistoffolees]

Spousal maintenance is no where near as well defined as child support. For child support, you can easily look up a calculator, plug in a few details, and get close the the required amount. There's no such calculator for spousal support (at least none available to the public) in most states, although there do appear to be some guidelines in CO (see the link below).

Spousal support in Colorado is discussed here:
Colorado Divorce Laws - Colorado State Divorce Laws

"Spousal maintenance may be awarded on a temporary or permanent basis to either spouse. When the parties' combined annual gross income is less than seventy-five thousand dollars, and temporary support is requested during a legal separation or during the dissolution of marriage, the court may apply a presumptive formula to determine the level of maintenance. The monthly amount of temporary maintenance shall be equal to forty percent of the higher income party's monthly adjusted gross income less fifty percent of the lower income party's monthly adjusted gross income. In determining the level of support to be paid after the dissolution of marriage, the court will take the following factors into consideration when determining the level of support:

The duration of the marriage;
The standard of living established during the marriage;
The financial resources of the spouse seeking support, including marital property received in the divorce settlement, and the party's ability to meet his or her needs independently;
The time necessary to acquire sufficient education or training to enable the party seeking maintenance to find appropriate employment and that party's future earning capacity;
The age and the physical and emotional condition of the spouse seeking maintenance; and
The ability of the spouse from whom maintenance is sought to meet his or her needs while meeting those of the spouse seeking maintenance."

While is not specifically addressed, the fact that she is living with you would certainly affect support. Note that the above only applies if combined income is under $75 K. The farther away you are from $75 K, the farther off those guidelines will be.

 

[LdiJ]

The only advantage to delaying is that right now I control the finances. I am not being rediculous about it, I'm maximizing payments to eliminate the shared debt & have established a cash budget for each of us to live from check to check. If I have to start making matinence payments immediately my concern is that this will limit my ability to pay down the debt & frankly don't want to have to give her more that necc. thus supporting her "activities". We have been married for 17 years. Also if you could tell me more about the amount of matinence req'd. This is a fixed rate set at divorce? Would I be expected to pay full matinence even though we're still living under the same roof? I would assume this amount would change based on whether she has a job or not. Thanks for your input.

With your marriage being 17 years long, I certainly would weigh out the benefits of her being able to get a Pell Grant, vs the potential long term savings in spousal support if you can put off the divorce until she gets her degree...AND lands a job.

Despite your lengthy marriage you might not have to pay any spousal support if her degree will net her a job paying a fully living wage.

Or, if you agree to start the divorce now, then it should be agreed officially, that you will share a household and you will support her within a shared household, (with no spousal support being paid) until she graduates...assuming that your state laws will allow for that.

Consult a local attorney on this as well, before you do anything. I can see potential advantages and disadvantages both ways.

Also, while the accountant in me very much agrees with your plan to pay down the marital debt, you also need to realize that she will be responsible for 1/2 of that debt. If her degree is putting her on a career path that would allow her to share in the debt, without risking your credit, its not necessarily in your best interest to pay it down out of your current earnings...unless of course the bulk of the debt would be legally considered to be your separate debt.