My wife is going to inherit $800,000 and told me she will use $300,000 to pay off our mortgage
‘What do you think of the way she has treated her inheritance? If we divorce, will I have to pay her alimony?’
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I’m 65 and still work. I earn $130,000 a year and plan to continue to work for another five years, as long as I am in good health.
My wife retired two years ago at age 59 after working for 13 years, earning $20,000 a year. She mostly stayed home and helped raise our two children, who are now adults with their own jobs.
My wife gets a small pension and I will also get a pension. We have no savings, no 401(k), nothing. I paid for my kids’ college education. We own one car outright. I have credit-card debt of nearly $80,000. My wife has credit-card debt of $2,800.
What do you think of the way she has treated her inheritance? If we divorce, will I have to pay her alimony?
Don’t allow your frustration over this inheritance OR the fact that you have been working since 16 to force you into doing something rash. Your wife has used more than one-third of this money to pay off your joint mortgage. Inheritances are not considered community property, so she is clearly taking her time deciding what to do with it. While that may feel like a slap in the face after 35 years of marriage, she is legally entitled to do that, and personally entitled to do so too.
You don’t say why you have $80,000 in credit-card debt and your wife only has $2,800. Assuming it’s not because of your children’s college expenses, this disparity may also reveal that you have different spending habits and abilities to manage your money. (más…)
