The Colorado divorce checklist

1. Documents the sworn financial statement will ask for

• Income: three years of federal and state tax returns with W-2s and 1099s; the last three months of pay stubs; profit-and-loss statements if self-employed.
• Bank and investment accounts: the last 12 months of statements for every account, joint and individual.
• Retirement: the most recent statements for every 401(k), IRA, pension, PERA, TSP or annuity, plus a statement dated near the wedding for anything opened before the marriage.
• Debts: current statements for every mortgage, HELOC, car loan, student loan and credit card, with the balance and whose name is on it.
• Insurance: health, life (with beneficiaries), auto, homeowner’s and umbrella policies.
• Business interests: formation documents, the last three years of business returns, and any buy-sell agreement.
• Agreements: a prenup or postnup, if one exists.
• Kids: childcare, tuition and medical costs, and the current schedule.

2. The house

• The deed (from the county clerk and recorder, or the closing package) showing how title is held.
• The mortgage statement and a payoff quote from the servicer; the same for any HELOC.
• A written valuation dated now. We provide a Smart Pricing Report free to both spouses; an appraisal is $550 to $800. Which one you need.
• The purchase documents (price, date, down payment source) and receipts for major improvements; both matter for taxes and for any separate-property claim.
• Property tax bill and HOA statements.
• Photos and a condition list of the house as it is today. Deferred maintenance is a real deduction and a real argument later.

3. Money steps to take now

• Open a checking account and one credit card in your own name; route your pay there.
• Freeze your credit at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Pull your reports and list every joint account.
• Photograph or download balances of every joint account as of today.
• Change passwords on your own email, phone and financial logins. Turn on two-factor.
• Build two budgets: one household as it is, and yours alone. A CDFA can help; so can the workshop.
• If you receive or expect support, understand that a lender will need six months of receipts and three years of continuance before it counts.

4. What not to do

• Do not empty, hide or move joint money. Do not sell, gift or “lend” property to relatives.
• Do not cancel insurance or drop your spouse from a policy.
• Do not stop paying the mortgage to make a point. It is your credit too.
• Do not sign a quitclaim deed, a listing agreement or a refinance deadline without advice.
• Do not post about the divorce, the house or the money online. Buyers, judges and opposing counsel all read.
• Do not agree to keep a house you have not been pre-approved to carry alone.

5. Who to call, in what order