Community Property States Divorce
Divorce Papers > Property Divorce > Community Property States Divorce
In the United States, the following states are regarded as community property states.
- Arizona
- California
- Idaho
- Louisiana
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- Texas
- Washington
- Wisconsin
Apart from the above, Puerto Rico is considered a community property jurisdiction.
Concepts in Community Property States Divorce
- All the property that has been attained in the marital status, with the exclusion of inheritance and gifts, is termed as community property
- Let us assume that during the marriage one partner has earned all the money to purchase the property. Still all this property is termed as community property
- Each of the states listed above might have slight differences in the laws that deal with community property
- However, all the above mentioned states have special laws that have been based on the following theory
- Both the partners have contributed equally in the marriage
- So, the combined efforts of both the partners has resulted in the accumulation of this property
- As a consequence of this ideology, when a divorce takes place both the husband and the wife each get 50 percent share of the community property
- If any spouse has any property prior to the marriage or has received any property in the form of a gift or an inheritance, then all of these are regarded as 'separate property.' This is not divided in course of a divorce, but allotted to the single owner
- A 50 percent share in community property does not imply that the court divides each and every asset in half. The intent of the court is that every partner should get 50 percent of
the total net value. The total net value is (fair market value of assets) minus (community debts)
Exceptions in Community Property States Divorce
- If separate property is blended with community property, such a separate property is frequently classified as community property
- If one of the spouses has increased equity in separate property, then in certain circumstances, this property is categorized as community property
- If one of the spouses is disabled and unfit to continue a job, then this is an unusual situation. One should contact the local court to determine how it would deal this case
Community Debts
The ideology applicable for assets is also applied for debts in community property states. Community Debt is the sum of debts contracted from the date of marriage till the date of separation. Both the husband and the wife have equal liability to repay this debt.
In a majority of cases, community debt is inclusive of car loan balances, home mortgages and credit cards. It is advisable that as soon as a divorce is declared, both spouses should close all joint accounts, bank accounts and credit cards. If they avoid this step and instead remove names from these accounts, then it is not adequate to safeguard one financially.
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