If you are getting divorced, you need to divide up your marital assets with your ex. However, you typically get to keep separate assets. These are things that your spouse does not have a claim to—since they are not owned jointly—and each of you will keep your separate assets in property division.
So what counts as a separate asset? If you own something prior to the marriage, does that mean that you still own it after the divorce?
Commingling makes things complicated
Often, this is how it works. If you owned a home before you got married or you already had a savings account, then you can likely claim that it is a separate asset. Your spouse had nothing to do with it. It was not jointly earned or acquired, and you already owned it prior to your marriage.
But this can get complex when assets get commingled, as often happens with married couples. For instance, maybe you had $50,000 in a savings account, and then you and your new spouse began using that account to get your direct deposits for your paychecks from work. That would commingle or mix the funds so that they are likely all marital assets.
Or say that you decide to refinance your house—which you bought years ago, when you were single—to get a lower interest rate. You and your spouse refinance the home together, and now it is a marital asset, even if you technically owned the building before your marriage.
Issues like these can raise some serious questions during property division, so be sure you know exactly what legal steps to take.