In our last post we brought up some of the stereotypes men face when going through a divorce and the importance of being financially prepared to not only go through the divorce, but live life afterwards within a new budget. In this post we are going to look at alimony in terms of men paying to ex-wives and men receiving payments from ex-wives.
The first thing to realize is alimony, also known as spousal support, is not automatic in Missouri. This means the court has quite a bit of discretion when it comes to determining if it should be awarded, how much should be awarded, and for how long it should be awarded.
Many times alimony comes into play when one spouse was financially supporting a couple. Often times this is the case when one parent goes off to work and one stays home to raise the children.
This being said, it is still not unusual for a husband to feel that an ex-wife does not deserve alimony. After all, who wants to go to work and give their hard-earned money over to someone else? However, while it is tempting to be resistant, the advice is to try and find the positive, at least in the tax perspective as spousal support is tax deductible.
However, along these same lines of some not wanting to pay alimony, fathers in Missouri should not be against receiving alimony either.
According to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, more than 47 percent of divorce lawyers surveyed reported seeing an increase in the number of mothers paying alimony. Another 56 percent also reported seeing an increase in the number of mothers paying child support.
For a father in Missouri, if he was a stay-at-home dad and was being financially supported by his wife, he should not feel bad about asking for alimony. Rather, just realize this is something an ex-spouse is entitled to in certain divorce situations.
Source: The Week, “8 financial tips for men getting a divorce,” Hayley Krischer, Sept. 30, 2013
