Once you have made the decision to dissolve your marriage (divorce), there are some action steps you should take.
If you and the soon-to-be-ex are taking the DIY route to divorce you should:
- Cancel all joint credit cards - open new individual accounts
- Cancel Direct Deposit if you have it and unlink bank accounts if linked online
- Split the money in joint accounts and each open separate, individual accounts
- Change all passwords - email, ATM, websites - and don't use the same old ones!
- Monitor your credit report to be sure the accounts are closed
- Start a folder to collect monthly bills in one place - this makes the Financial Affidavit easier
- Decide how the household bills will be paid during the divorce process