According to Forbes research, the average cost of divorce in California without children is about $17,500. The average cost of divorce in California with children is about $26,300. Determining how much does a divorce cost in California depends on multiple factors, including readiness to cooperate with your spouse, minor kids, issues on property division, alimony, and similar details of your marital life and divorce.
An important fact is that CA divorce will cost you more than average spending on marriage termination around the US. It is connected with the higher cost of living in the state. So if you plan to end your relationships officially at the Gold Coast, study what it takes financially to prevent personal bankruptcy and succeed with your divorce easily.
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How Much Is a Divorce in California
When exploring the divorce cost in California, it is necessary to understand your strategies and visions for your marriage termination. Depending on whether you are open to cooperation with your partner and relevant professionals, you may finalize the divorce quickly and at a considerable price or waste a fortune on a dragged-out process.
Cost of Uncontested Divorce in California
The uncontested divorce implies you can come to an agreement with your partner on major divorce issues and reduce the divorce price in California to a minimum as a result. Suppose you are ready to devote your time and efforts to the process, discuss and settle all the key points together with your spouse, use the forms from the official sources, then you will only have to cover the official fees of $435 for bringing your papers to the local law office. Plus, you may opt for using the online divorce platform services which will add around $150 to your divorce budget. So, your mutual divorce in CA will hardly exceed a thousand.
Still, if you cannot decide on one or two issues, it doesn’t mean you have to participate in a trial. Mediators and similar professionals will help you to get a simple divorce cost by leading you to an agreement on the problematic question quickly. As a result, you will deal with your failed marriage and guarantee mutually comfortable outcomes for around 5K dollars, counting that the mediation process is commonly charged between 2 and 4 thousand dollars.
Cost of Contested Divorce in California
As soon as you understand that your marriage cannot function properly and divorce is the only solution, it is necessary to start saving on the spot. More when you know that amicable marriage termination is not an option, expect to spend tens of thousands in the end.
The typical divorce cost is over 17 thousand dollars with the average process lasting between eight months and one and a half years.
Failing to settle your divorce arguments peacefully, you will certainly need to hire a California divorce attorney with an average hourly rate of $330, participate in trials, and cooperate with accountants, evaluators, and other costly professionals. The research shows that a couple that needs only one issue settled during a trial is expected to spend between 15 and 19 thousand dollars, while one more issue will make tho total sum reach between 23 and 26 thousand dollars on average.
How Much Is It to File for Divorce in California
When calculating a probable cost to file for divorce in CA, a mandatory expense to consider is an official fee. The filing fee for a divorce in California is about $435 and is the highest one in the US connected to the high cost of living in the state. Still, if you cannot pay them, you can appeal to waive the fees or request your spouse pay for you.
In addition to court fees for divorce in California, you may also have to pay for serving your spouse, attending official co-parenting lessons, and retrieving the final divorce settlement. Mind that in case of an uncontested divorce it is only a petitioner who pays the fees, while in case of litigation both spouses are charged with the same sum.
How Much Is a Divorce Lawyer in California
A California divorce lawyer cost is often a key determiner for the final sum of your marriage termination expenses. Even for the simplest processes, it is recommended to get a general revision of your case by a divorce attorney. So you will have to consider divorce attorney fees in any case. For a CA divorcee, a family lawyer costs around $330 per hour. Meanwhile, the average cost divorce lawyer will charge your case equals $13,800.
The attorney-specific expenses depend on numerous factors. This includes the reputation and qualification of a lawyer, the issues you need to resolve, the complicacy of your case, the number of trials, and many more. Yet, if you cannot afford an attorney, it doesn’t mean you don’t need one. You can get cheap or free legal assistance in your local bar association, social community centers, online forums, and so on. There a law student, social attorney, or an experienced divorcee will help you with useful tips and legal guidance on your case.
Factors that Affect the Cost of a California Divorce
You cannot just add average numbers and precalculate the cost of your upcoming marriage termination. Every case is unique and requires a professional approach. Still, by exploring the affecting factors on the divorce cost, you can increase or decrease your waste by making the right choices.
Check out the issue that can impact your divorce-related expenses:
- Property division – if you have any expensive property, big debts, or business assets and are not ready to distribute them equitably, expect to pay a high price for your divorce settlement. Yet, even if you can come to an agreement without a trial, you may still need to hire a professional evaluator, a financial advisor, a personal accountant, and so on.
- Custody and visitation – having minor children makes a case more complicated and costly by default. Divorcees rarely share views on custody and visitation so they waste a fortune as a result. Still, in such a case it is necessary to act in your children’s best interests and crave to settle the discussions peacefully and beneficially for your whole family.
- Spousal support – alimony is often an issue for divorce arguments. It is expected that if your spouse is reluctant to grant you spousal support, you will waste more time and costs getting your partner to maintain you than you will receive in the end.
Disagreements on these and similar divorce issues increase the divorce expenses, time, and efforts for you to waste. It is up to your preferences to settle your divorce as amicably as you can. Cooperation is a key to a simple, fast, and cheap marriage termination.
Yet, if your case is too complicated to end your marriage peacefully, don’t go cheap unless you wish to spoil your life after divorce. Hire a qualified attorney, be open to cooperation, and make wise decisions to reach beneficial outcomes.