75/25 split in her favour

I recieved a letter from her slicitor saying that a 75/ 25 split is fair. I have not replied yet mainly as i feel this is almost laughable. The sale of our home should be complete in weeks. Can anyone suggest any advantages or disadvantages to not replying to this tripe. Judging from his letter it seems he requires a quick reply.

If it needs a quick reply, then how about:

'Thank you for your letter of the NNNN.

I note the contents with interest and am currently seeking legal and other professional advice.

I will respond with my counter proposal in due course.

Love,

davjam'

Don't be pressurized by her sol. You need to get your ducks in a row and look at your own needs going forward in order to make a sensible and plausible counter offer, with as much supporting evidence / analysis as possible.

Respond, but with nothing of any substance.

Mike

Thanks mike i may do that. He also states she has 4 dependants. I may also ask how this is so as kids are 22,18,17 and15. He also says i have a greater capacity to work and earn. My wife works 16 hours. Maybe i should ask if she is working to her true potential. He also says she is reluctant to sell the house and is only doing so as i have exerted pressure and threatened to stop paying the mortgage. Maybe i should ask if my remaining homeless is fair so as to keep her in the marrital home. Maybe i should just keep it short and sweet and say no. Also my son says he wants to live with me. Will have to consider that from all sorts of different angles and would have to break that to her in a nice way rather than through a letter to her solicitor.

Dav
Just follow what Mike has suggested. I wouldnt ask or respond to anything at this stage. All you are doing is acknowledging the letter and will respond to the detail later.

No matter how much you disagree with it and really want to put your point of view across say nothing now.

Tinny

I wouldn't be inclined to give him any detail or discussion at this stage. Just play for time, and begin to gather the information that you need.


I would be inclined to get a blank sheet of paper and write down all of your day to day living expenses. Establish what you truly need to live.

Then look at what you could earn monthly. Take account of seasonal variations (not much work in January for example) and come up with a low and a high figure (optimistic / pessimistic) Take a middle figure.

Calculate what you could earn up to your retirement age.

Calculate your living costs up to retirement age.

Subtract one from the other, to give you your nett earnings potential.

Calculate the total value of the marital home, the contents and all of the other marital assets.

Calculate her earnings up to retirement age.

Calculate her living costs, based on what the bills etc used to be

Add up the marital assets and your earnings potential and her earnings potential.

Subtract her living costs and your living costs

The remaining pot, divide by two.

What %age of the overall value of the marital home and assets does this represent?

Bet it isn't 75%

Mike

Try using the Divorce Calculator, its pretty good and will give you a realistic idea of where you stand.
Biggest thing in her favour is length of marriage and her low income compared to yours. I see she only works 16 hours - obviously to claim maximum tax credit! The male will always be assessed as having greater ability to earn even in these times of equality. My ex held on to my son to get maximum payout then evicted him 2 months after the settlement, which is virtually uncontestable. Mine was 76.5 - 23.5 and she got half the pension and everthing in the house and I mean everything and she got £250 a month for life and the judge decided in her infinite and totally biased opinion that all marital debts except the joint current account were mine (£45000). Ex and daughter now live in an unmortaged new £335000 house. So beware and be careful - every case is different but being the male certainly means being the poorer relation, and thats poorer for the rest of your life ! Depressing isnt it.