Dividing assets during a divorce may be quick and easy or slow and painful. The house, the real estate property and financial accounts are among the obvious assets that get attention.
However, there are other assets taken for granted. The kind of assets that may be overlooked or which assumptions are made as to who gets them. Such overlooked assets may include jewelry collections, arts-related season tickets and the family pet.
Club memberships and collections, too
Among the more notable assets that may get overlooked in divorce include:
- Pets: Many families consider their pets as family members. Who will get the dog? Or the cat? Hard feelings may linger but an agreement must be made.
- Sports and events season tickets: Nostalgia and tradition may play a part in season tickets for New England Patriots games as well as the regional theater and opera. Squabbles may surface.
- Club memberships: Whether it is a private country club, tennis club or swimming club, many families may have been members for years. Their social lives may revolve around these clubs – some of which require members to buy shares to join.
- Frequent flyer miles: Traveling was a passion the two of you did together, and you acquired a sizeable number of airline miles on global and domestic trips. Now, a debate over who gets these miles is bound to surface.
- Collections: Whether it’s antiques, fine art, wine, jewelry, vintage baseball cards or luxury cars, collections may cause a tug of war between divorcing spouses.
- Storage units: These often are afterthoughts as they contain items that some assume are disposable. Think again. This “clutter” may contain items of sentimental and monetary value from family photos and documents to specific collections.
Give all these assets scrutiny and do not make assumptions as to who gets them.
Give them a thorough review
Working out an agreement is essential for these assets that hold some type of value. You may not get everything you want, and you even have to sell them if that is what the two of you agreed upon. But make sure to give these assets a thorough review.
