Serenity Life Transitions

10/21/2026

PART 9: Documents to gather when filing for divorce

Your monthly spending tells the story of how your household actually runs, and you’ll likely need it for a budget or financial disclosure.

Pull 6–12 months of:

➡️ Housing: rent or mortgage, HOA, utilities
➡️ Groceries, transportation, phone and internet
➡️ Insurance premiums
➡️ Childcare, tuition and activities
➡️ Subscriptions and memberships

Your bank and credit card statements make this much easier. Then build two budgets: what life costs now, and what it might cost after.

10/19/2026

PART 8: What documents to gather when filing for divorce

What you owe matters just as much as what you own. Gather:

➡️ Your credit reports from all three bureaus (free at annualcreditreport.com)
➡️ Recent credit card statements
➡️ Auto, student and personal loan statements
➡️ Any loans from family, documented in writing if possible
➡️ Tax debts or payment plans

Checking your own credit report doesn’t affect your score, and it can reveal accounts you didn’t know existed.

10/16/2026

PART 7: What to gather when filing for divorce

For many couples, the home is the biggest single decision. Gather:

➡️ Deeds for any real estate you own
➡️ Current mortgage and HELOC statements
➡️ Closing statements from purchases and refinances
➡️ Property tax bills and homeowners insurance
➡️ Any recent appraisals
➡️ Vehicle titles and loan statements

Keep, sell or buy out? There’s no one right answer, but knowing your equity and true carrying costs is where every good option starts.

10/14/2026

PART 6: What to gather when filing for divorce

Beyond retirement plans, gather records for everything that’s invested:

➡️ Brokerage account statements
➡️ Stock options, RSUs and ESPP grants, with vesting schedules
➡️ Cryptocurrency exchange and wallet records
➡️ Annuities, HSAs and 529 college savings plans
➡️ Cost basis information where available

Why cost basis? Two accounts with the same balance can carry very different tax bills, which can change what a “fair” split really looks like.

10/12/2026

PART 5: What documents to gather when filing for divorce:

Retirement accounts are often among the largest assets in a marriage, so it pays to get the details right.

Gather:

➡️ 401(k), 403(b) and 457 statements
➡️ Traditional and Roth IRA statements
➡️ Pension statements and benefit estimates
➡️ Plan documents or summary plan descriptions
➡️ Your Social Security statement (available at ssa.gov)
➡️ Balances around your wedding date, if you can find them

Why the wedding-date balance? Money saved before marriage may be treated differently depending on your state. Dividing retirement accounts also comes with its own rules and paperwork, so understand them early.

10/09/2026

Bank statements show where money comes from and where it goes, and they’re often the first thing professionals ask for.

Gather statements for every account, ideally covering 1–3 years:

➡️ Joint and individual checking and savings
➡️ Money market accounts and CDs
➡️ Accounts held for your children
➡️ Payment apps and digital wallets
➡️ A list of what’s in any safe deposit box

Most banks let you download years of statements online. Save them as PDFs now while access is easy.

10/07/2026

If you or your spouse owns a business, it’s often the most complex asset to understand, and the paperwork gets detailed.

Gather:

➡️ Business tax returns for 3–5 years
➡️ Profit-and-loss statements and balance sheets
➡️ Business bank and credit card statements
➡️ Operating, partnership or shareholder agreements
➡️ Any prior valuations, loan applications or buy-sell agreements

Loan applications are worth a look: they sometimes paint a different picture of income than tax returns do.

No business in your household? Skip this one and see you Friday.

10/05/2026

Part 2 of 13

Start with what comes in. Income documents are the foundation for budgets, support calculations and any settlement conversation.

Gather:

➡️ Federal and state tax returns for the last 3–5 years, with every schedule
➡️ W-2s, 1099s and K-1s
➡️ Your most recent pay stubs (and your spouse’s, if you have access)
➡️ Bonus, commission and equity compensation statements
➡️ Records of side income, rental income or benefits

Tip: can’t find old returns? You can request a free tax transcript from the IRS online.

10/02/2026

Thinking about divorce, or already decided? One of the most useful things you can do right now is quietly start gathering paperwork.

All October, we’re walking through the documents you’ll want on hand before you file, one category at a time: income, accounts, retirement, property, debts, kids and more.

Why it matters: the more complete your financial picture, the less time (and money) gets spent hunting for it later, and the better informed your decisions will be.

Save this post and follow along.

10/01/2026