Not all marriages last as long as the couple may have hoped for and when they make the decision to divorce, the mortgage on their house remains a silent partner in the proceedings. In effect, one is not just divorcing a spouse — one must also divorce the mortgage.

The housing market today is slow and with even tighter lending requirements, divorcing couples face an uphill battle to get divorced. Before the housing bubble burst, it was relatively simple to divorce, sell the marital home, split the proceeds (equity) and each buy another home. With the market the way it is now, this rarely happens. The home, once an asset, has turned into a liability — one that is increasingly difficult to discharge.

From the point of view of the bank financing the mortgage for a home, a couple will stay married and keep paying the monthly debt unless the home is sold or refinanced. However, when things happens and a couple can no longer stay together, they need to consider other options, and check them out with a great deal of care.  This means attempting to put aside all the emotions involved in a divorce in order to make logical and informed decisions, often with the assistance of an experienced Brandon divorce lawyer.

The main goal is to keep an eye on the long-term results, and move past the short-term pain of the divorce and losing the house. If a couple cannot move past the immediate issues and focus on the future, things are likely to be bleaker for them as they try to deal with financial issues. The main focus needs to be selling the house, as it still remains the easiest way to put a joint debt, like a mortgage, behind you.

Although selling the home may be the best solution, it is not always what happens, because the market is so unpredictable. At this point, the couple needs to look at their situation from a different point of view, by considering other ideas. For instance, could one of them refinance the home? Does one spouse have sufficient credit and income to remain in the home and continue with the payments? Is there another arrangement a spouse could make with a roommate to share the mortgage payment?

Nothing should be off the table when it comes to determining a way to settle the mortgage issue. Just because the house might not sell right now does not mean it will not sell later, when the economy begins to recover to a point where the housing market starts to pick up once again. Considering all options will make the divorce process easier to navigate. Getting stuck on what to do with the house should not be regarded as a stumbling block, but rather a chance to be creative in solving the problem. If you’re hung up on how to deal with the mortgage, ask your Brandon divorce lawyer for advice.

Joshua Law is a Tampa divorce lawyer and Brandon family law attorney with the Osenton Law Offices, P.A. To learn more, visit http://www.brandonlawoffice.com/

A divorce can be emotionally exhausting and can make the holiday season practically unbearable. All of this can be unfair to the children of a divorce. But there are some things to keep in mind as the holidays approach that can help calm the storm.

Here are five tips to help your children enjoy the holidays and help you survive through January.

1. Have a strategy. As much as possible, plan out where everyone will be and when so that your children will know what to expect and the other parent can plan his or her schedule as well. Be on time with planned phone calls and pick ups and drop offs.

2. Stay connected. Keep in touch with the other parent so that you are not overlapping gifts or giving the children presents that are forbidden to have. It is important to know what is going on with the children when they are not with you in order to be a good parent to them when they are with you.

3. Focus on the children. Remember that the children like parties and presents and seeing their cousins that they only get to see a couple of times a year and they should get to enjoy that. Try to surround young children with things that they know – especially if this is the first holiday since the divorce.

4. Be positive. It will hurt your ability to negotiate with the other parent if it gets back to them that you have been speaking unkindly about them. Since your family will be around the children, too, remind them to stay positive about your children’s other parent in front of the kids. It may be your dad’s instinct to make remarks about the other parent under his breath. Or it may be in your sister’s nature to want to discuss all of the details of how the marriage ended. But it is your job to tell your family that all comments about the family around the kids need to be upbeat.

5. Start some new traditions. Your children will miss the old traditions you had as a family. That is natural and you may miss them, too. But use this as an opportunity to start some new celebrations. Let your children help to design some of these new holiday rituals so that they can take some ownership of them.

Tampa divorce lawyer Joshua Law is an experienced child custody attorney at Osenton Law Offices.
O. Reginald (“Reggie”) Osenton is the Owner and President of Osenton Law Offices, P.A. If you need a Brandon child custody attorney, Tampa divorce lawyer, or Tampa family law attorney, call 813.654.5777 or visit Brandonlawoffice.com.

If you find yourself getting emotional or stuck, it helps to get the support of your family and friends to keep you from being stalled. Read every part of the petition thoroughly and be sure to fully understand what it all means. Remember that the next chapter will be all about focusing on yourself and your kids, so do what it takes to muster the courage to face the reality of what is happening and not close yourself off to your kids and their needs.

Ignoring the petition will only leave you with more heartbreak and stress. It can create a default divorce, where you could also end up having your wages garnished for child or spousal support. And chances are high that you will not receive a notice of the final hearing date either if you do not respond.

The best advice after finding the right divorce attorney to represent you is to get your finances organized and game plan together. Get the records of assets, property deeds, and any mutual businesses so that you are aware of what your share is. It is also smart to review all credit cards and bank accounts that are in both names. In the event that your spouse is prone to go on a spending spree, you will want to remove their name from key accounts or cards. Dedicating some time to analyze your true monthly bills is also helpful. Many divorces lead to an individual needing to cut spending habits and building a fund worth of six month’s reserves for any future, unexpected events that might come up.

As hard as receiving a divorce petition is, you owe it to yourself to find a skilled divorce attorney to help you through all the steps. An attorney can assist you with effective legal advice to set the foundation for a better stage of your life. In Florida, Brandon family law attorney Joshua Law counsels individuals to achieve their divorce goals. As part of Osenton Law Offices, the firm stands by its commitment to high-quality client service and the latest in technology to help secure the best outcome in every divorce case. To learn more, call 813.654.5777 or visit http://www.brandonlawoffice.com/

O. Reginald (“Reggie”) Osenton is the Owner and President of Osenton Law Offices, P.A. If you need a Brandon family law attorney, Tampa family law attorney, or Brandon divorce attorney, call 813.654.5777 or visit Brandonlawoffice.com.