Marriage And Divorce And Your Credit

Everyone loves a wedding and no one plans on a divorce, but both happen. Thousands of people get married every year, and over half of the population is divorced, so the math is worth working out. People that get married to someone with bad credit often let the stress of what could be ruin their upcoming nuptials while people who get divorced can go on a spiteful rampage and try to sabotage their former partners. Bad credit does have a way of creeping into your life whether you want it to or not.

Couples discuss many things before getting married; kids, cakes, houses, in-laws, and a number of other important topics. Included in these discussions should be the money talk. Couples need to be aware that if one or the other has bad credit and one does not, applying for things like joint loans and credit cards will be difficult. They should be prepared for these joint applications being turned down.

A common misconception is that if your spouse has bad credit, you will also take on that stigma. The only time this would affect the spouse with the good credit is in the case of a joint loan. Before walking down the aisle both partners should decide how they want to handle their financial future. Being proactive about a situation never hurt any relationship, but instead has made the communication lines stronger. You should order copies of both of your credit reports, then sit down and have an honest conversation that outlines the when and how your partner got themselves into a jam. After having a heart to heart, try to enlist the help of a professional, and consolidate your debt.

You may cut down on future strains and arguments if you have an expert that can tell you the truth without trying to sugarcoat things. If you or your spouse starts to be unable to see eye to eye on a situation, you will have your debt manager's number on hand to defer the argument to. Then there is the divorce issue.

If you have ever been divorced, you know that amicable is really a term that was created by divorce lawyers trying to make things reach a state that is impossible, therefore, increasing their bottom line. If you do have an amicable divorce (crazier things have happened), be prepared to hate the other with passion at least part of the time. The logic behind these tips is that if you liked each other enough to get along in such a Mary Sunshine way, you wouldn't be divorced. The best thing that you can do following a divorce is to protect yourself. You should notify credit-reporting agencies whenever you marry, legally separate, or become completely free. The agencies will record all of the pertinent information for the two people that are involved separately and it will help you to make separate transactions.

You should also make sure that anyone involved in billing you in any way has your current address. As childish as it may seem, divorced parties have a bad habit of throwing away an estranged partner's mail. All of your joint accounts should be closed following a divorce, and in an ideal situation, all balances would be paid off. If there is an extensive amount of debt that has been incurred during your marriage, you should talk to your lawyer about writing in a plan to rectify the situation in your divorce proceedings.

When it comes to divorce, nothing is valid unless it is in black-and-white. Credit problems won't magically go away if you ignore them. The problems will keep growing and get worse.

Add to this a new marriage and the stress of trying to work out a dozen or so other things it can all quickly spiral out of control. Marriage may or may not last, and in the event that it goes sour, you have to be sure to take care of yourself.

John Edmond runs Credit Card Debt where you can read many more articles on bad debt and for the latest information on personal loans checkout the blog.