Question abouot Savings

[lindaKC]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NJ

My husband and I are not getting divorced! We had a discussion this morning about Savings since we have been married 5.5 yrs. and debated so I told him i would post the question so find out the answer.

He comes into the marriage with $100,000 and it's in a random bank in a savings account.
During the entire marriage, he has had direct deposit of his paycheck into this same savings account where he has his prior $ sitting.
So, the hypothetical question is based on his discussion/debate this morning...

He thinks that if he spent the $100,000 on "whatever" during the marriage .... and saves $100,000 of direct deposit paychecks ... one will cancel out the other and the $100,000 he has saved during the marriage is off the table because it replaces the money he had before he married me. I told him that was not correct.....

Who's right, who's wrong.

 

[Antigone*]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NJ

My husband and I are not getting divorced! We had a discussion this morning about Savings since we have been married 5.5 yrs. and debated so I told him i would post the question so find out the answer.

Hypothetical!

He comes into the marriage with $100,000 and it's in a random bank in a savings account.
During the entire marriage, he has had direct deposit of his paycheck into this same savings account where he has his prior $ sitting.
So, the hypothetical question is based on his discussion/debate this morning...

He thinks that if he spent the $100,000 on "whatever" during the marriage .... and saves $100,000 of direct deposit paychecks ... one will cancel out the other and the $100,000 he has saved during the marriage is off the table because it replaces the money he had before he married me. I told him that was not correct.....

Who's right, who's wrong.

We don't do hypotheticals.

Just so you can do a little research on your own. NJ is an equitable distribution state. Google is your friend.

 

[Ohiogal]

Tracing. He can prove 100k is his in that account. At the end of the marriage, 100k is still his in that account. Tracing. Whatever was purchased with that money however is marital.

 

[lindaKC]

ohiogal... i don't understand but is this assumption correct....

It doesn't matter what he does with the 100K he came into the marriage with...... but if he earns and saves 100K during the marriage and it happens to be put into the same bank account... isn't it marital income since he earned it during the marriage. So than it's marital property, right?

 

[Ohiogal]

ohiogal... i don't understand but is this assumption correct....

It doesn't matter what he does with the 100K he came into the marriage with...... but if he earns and saves 100K during the marriage and it happens to be put into the same bank account... isn't it marital income since he earned it during the marriage. So than it's marital property, right?

Google tracing. If he has 100k in the savings account at teh beginning of the marriage and 100k at the end of the marriage -- that is his separate property. Anything bought with any money that was put in that account is marital property however. Now if he spent 100k right after you got married and the put money in -- then the 100k spent and what it bought is separate property and the money replenishing the account is marital.

 

[lindaKC]

Ohiogal. That is what I thought and that is how I explained it to him. He thought that if he came into the marriage with 100,000 and spent 100,000 during the marriage .... if he than saved up $130,000 throughout the marriage ... only $30,000 was marital property and I looked at him and thought What?????????????? LOL.

 

[Ohiogal]

Ohiogal. That is what I thought and that is how I explained it to him. He thought that if he came into the marriage with 100,000 and spent 100,000 during the marriage .... if he than saved up $130,000 throughout the marriage ... only $30,000 was marital property and I looked at him and thought What?????????????? LOL.

However you better be able to prove that the 100k he spent was NOT marital. The whole swimming pool thing. Every month x amount goes into the pool which already has y. If X amount is spent, how do you know if the money spent was from the x or the y (which is greater). In other words, if he started with 100k and every month 10k goes in to the account and after 10 months he spent 100k prove that the 100k spent was the beginning amount OR the 10k for 10 months he put in. Of course if you are arguing he spent 100kof his separate money on stuff -- that stuff would be separate property (including house mortgage, cars or whatever he spent it on).

 

[ecmst12]

Wouldn't the fact that he comingled his marital paychecks into the same account with the premarital money be a problem?

 

[latigo]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NJ

My husband and I are not getting divorced! We had a discussion this morning about Savings since we have been married 5.5 yrs. and debated so I told him i would post the question so find out the answer.

He comes into the marriage with $100,000 and it's in a random bank in a savings account.
During the entire marriage, he has had direct deposit of his paycheck into this same savings account where he has his prior $ sitting.
So, the hypothetical question is based on his discussion/debate this morning...

He thinks that if he spent the $100,000 on "whatever" during the marriage .... and saves $100,000 of direct deposit paychecks ... one will cancel out the other and the $100,000 he has saved during the marriage is off the table because it replaces the money he had before he married me. I told him that was not correct.....

Who's right, who's wrong.

As I understand it, he takes the position that he can unilaterally designate marital property as a replacement for his consumed non-marital property. If so, that is incorrect.

Non-marital property can be transmuted into marital property by several means, such as the commingling of marital and separate, or by direct gift. But transmuting marital property into a spouse's separate property can only be done by expressed intent and mutual consent.

All in my opinion, of course.

 

[justin1]

I think it is quite difficult to answer a question such as yours on a forum, consulting an attorney would be better as s/he would understand all the aspects of his savings and accounts and then come to a decision which both of you would agree.