Relocation after Divorce: Financial Considerations

While it is preferable to remain close to the marital home after divorce, especially when there are children involved, it is not always possible. Quite often one of the parties to the divorce, usually the wife, must face a substantial loss in financial support during and following a divorce. For the wife who has always remained home to take care of the husband and children—or only worked part-time—the transition can be difficult if she does not receive substantial spousal support that allows her to return to school in order to train for the current job market. rnWhile some men are more than willing to pay their spouses enough temporary support until they are able to secure a job that allows them to become self-supporting, many refuse to pay anything beyond child support while others even attempt to shirk their financial responsibilities to their children until forced to do so. In other cases the courts are unbending and assign child support obligations that prevent the fathers from having any kind of a life. In both of these situations relocation following the divorce is often the only answer, an it usually amounts to moving in with relatives or sharing an apartment or house with others. rnThere are other situations that may require relocation after the divorce because of finances such as the following: • Loss of the second income in a two-income familyrn• Additional burden of child support and/or alimonyrn• In the case of couples that have worked opposite shifts to avoid daycare costs, there may now be a need for the custodial parent to find childcare in order to continue working. • Assumption of a portion (or entire amount) of the joint debtsrn• Relocation after divorce may result in taking a job that pays a lower salaryrnWhile relocating after a divorce is not always the most favorable situation for the children, it is often the only one that is financial feasible. Each party in the divorce must learn to become self-supporting, and that sometimes means obtaining temporary residence with relatives. Certainly if the relatives live close to the marital home it is not as traumatic for the children, but in some cases it involves moving out of the city where they live and sometimes even the state. rnOne of the problems that sometimes arise when there is relocation following divorce involves visitation by the non-custodial parent when the custodial parent must move out of state. While some people would like to think it is the responsibility of the custodial parent to provide the transportation, this is not the case. In reality the only responsibility the custodial parent has is to make the children available to the non-custodial parent. In other words, a mother who has custody of the children does not have to pay the cost of an airline ticket for the children to visit their father, but she does have the responsibility to get them to the airport or otherwise arrange for the completion of the visitation.