Texas Divorce Law
What Is Community Property?
Texas is one of nine states that is a community property jurisdiction. What this means is that all the property (and debt) that you or your spouse has at the time of your divorce is considered community property. Community debt is debt either person incurred during the marriage.
Community property includes real property such as land or buildings, your businesses, retirement accounts, bank accounts or furniture. It doesn’t matter if it is only in one spouse’s name, who purchased the property or created the debt.
Separate property does not get divided at the time of divorce. But, it must be established to be the separate property of one spouse.
When dividing community property or debt, the law states that it shall be divided in a way that is “just and right”. It does not mean that it has to be divided 50/50.
If you are involved in a divorce proceeding, make sure that you have a professional review the division of your community property. Once your divorce is final, your position will be very different. The property that goes to you or your spouse will affect both of your lifestyles.