Just how much can a divorce affect credit ratings? To most people that haven’t gone through a divorce it doesn’t make much of difference. To them the ads here and there that offer financing help to people who have lost their jobs, had no credit history or have gone through a divorce are wastes of time.
Quite simply put, who can think that a divorce is as bad as having lost your job? Well, you only get an idea of how bad a divorce is one you have gone through it yourself.
Lack of Money in Real Life
Once you have gone through a divorce, the first thing that would hit you instantly has to run the same household with minimal resources. On top of that if you have a debt you were paying side by side through the course of your marriage, oops, your juggling act just went up a notch or two in difficulty.
If you can’t keep up with that, how will you deal with a situation that may arise with the authorities placing a lien on your vehicle and house for the lack of tax paid on your ex spouse’s business? Now add to that a delinquent credit card debt that the ex didn’t pay. Well thanks to community property laws you are equally responsible for such debts. And in flash, your credit rating which was healthy goes down the drain.
Reality
While these situations may seem too far-fetched to you at the moment, in reality these are all real life happenings that have happened to a number of spouses that have gone through an Orange County divorce. What this highlights is the importance of a proper and truthful disclosure on both sides to make sure neither of the spouses has to face the other’s problems out of nowhere.
How important is a Credit Score for you?
If you ask most people the difference between a credit score and a bowling score, some of them might struggle to answer your question. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know what a credit score is, it will continue to affect a number of things in your life.
Bad credit scores in particular can make life very tough for you, on top of an already difficult Orange County divorce that can be too much to handle. An example of what bad credit ratings can do to you is to look at the example of going to rent a house. If have a bad credit rating, the potential land lord will in most cases turn down your application. This is primarily because a credit score is determined by your past payments, a bad credit score highlights your potential ability to default on rent payments.
For all matters of finance, your credit score is a must, whether it’s getting a credit to buy a car, a home or any other thing. Bad credit ratings can often put a potential lender off.
Gerald A. Maggio is an experienced Orange County divorce and family law lawyer and family law attorney located in Irvine, California, serving the Orange County and Riverside areas. Mr. Maggio assists clients with legal issues including divorce, legal separation, divorce mediation, child custody, prenuptial agreements, stepparent adoptions, and other family law issues. Mr. Maggio has practiced law in California since 1999, and founded The Maggio Law Firm in 2005, focusing exclusively on divorce and family law matters.
