One of the biggest challenges in divorce mediation is helping a couple organize their money to support their separate lives. A comprehensive yet flexible and easy-to-use divorce budget worksheet is indispensable tool for gathering and working with that data.
Money is often a difficult topic in any marriage. Having those conversations while going through a divorce can be even harder because now that money may have to be shared across two households.
It’s not unusual that the combined marital income supported a comfortable life with plenty of discretionary spending. Eating out, vacations, and lots of activities for the kids were real options.
Now, both parties may have to be more frugal because they will be living in separate homes. Mediation offers a neutral setting and good tools to explore what would be a difficult discussion at your kitchen table.
I offer two separate tools to help you with this task. While I’ve made every effort to ensure the accuracy of these tools, the full responsibility for their accuracy lies with the person who uses them. Please double-check your calculations before making decisions or taking action. Share your data with other professionals who are helping with the divorce (attorney, accountant, financial planner).
Appendix G of my book, A Better Not Bitter Divorce: The Fair and Affordable Way to End Your Marriage, contains an expense worksheet. It’s very similar to the expenses section of the NYS Statement of Net Worth form each spouse is required to provide as part of the divorce process. My Appendix G expense worksheet does not contain a place to record income sources and amounts.
If you purchased my book and filled in the expense worksheet in Appendix G, or you’d just like to use that format, you have two options:
This tool resembles the Expenses and Income sections of the NYS Net Worth form mentioned above. It’s a spreadsheet that calculates totals for you. It has detailed sections for both expenses (pages 1-3) and income (page 4) and compares the two grand totals.
If you are familiar with spreadsheets, it’s easy to modify this one to reflect your particular situation.
If you do make changes, check to make sure that the affected Total cells still sum up the correct cell values.
I’ve created two versions of this divorce budget spreadsheet.
If you prefer to use Google Sheets, first download the desired Excel file to your hard drive. Open your Google Drive in your browser and upload the desired Excel spreadsheet. Then click on it to work on it.
By the way, this spreadsheet is useful for anyone looking for an easy-to-use budget spreadsheet. Just delete categories related to divorce. Then check to make sure the calculated totals are still accurate.
You have a team available to help you create a plan, whether that’s your attorney, divorce mediator, or accountant. Your local library has books on budgeting. There may be free local classes sponsored by a YMCA or other community organization. They can help you take back your life by taking control of your finances. The work will be worth it.
For more divorce topics covered by BJ Mann: BJ Mann Site Content Index
