Divorce Season: What to Know

First comes love. Then comes marriage. And for around 670,000 couples per year, then comes divorce. 

While you’re thinking about the holiday season that’s off and running, the nation’s divorce attorneys are already looking ahead to another kind of season: divorce season. Sadly, if not surprisingly, filings tend to go up in January after the holidays are done, says Liz Vaz, a divorce attorney and mediator based on Long Island, New York.

Sure, the holidays arrive each year wrapped in with warmth, wonder and magic. But that magic often comes with a price: heightened stress. What’s meant to be a time of connection with loved ones, in reality, can become an emotional pressure cooker — one that can get hot enough for a couple to call it quits. “Lots of couples start the new year thinking, ‘I barely survived the holidays with that person,’” says Vaz. 

Alongside the chaos, the holidays also invite reflection. “There’s the anticipation or the opportunity for a new beginning, a new start, something different, a transition into a new period of life,” says Julie Brines, associate sociology professor and co-author of a University of Washington divorce study. “They’re very symbolically charged times.” 

Why am I thinking about divorce right now? I’m a bridesmaid in two weddings next year: maid of honor in one, asked to wear a champagne-colored dress in another. Amid all of the congratulations and scheduling my PTO, I’ve found myself thinking about what marriage truly entails, from its hopeful beginnings to the endings we’d all prefer not to think about. 

I’m also not the only one thinking about divorce right now. Searches for “divorce” rose from Thanksgiving to January and spiked again in April and mid-August — mirroring historical filing peaks in March and August found in the University of Washington study. 

When you’re married, in theory, you’re signing up for a forever companion, someone to stand beside you for the good times and the bad. But marriage doesn’t only merge households; it merges finances. And the personal finance reporter in me can’t help finding that unsettling.

I genuinely hope all the marriages out there last forever. But statistically, many won’t — and if you aren’t familiar with ins and outs of divorce, the process can be overwhelming. Even if these tips never apply to you, they could help someone you love. Here’s what you might not know about divorce, but should, according to the experts.

The costs — and the timeline — vary widely depending on the couple 

The average cost of a divorce in the U.S. is between $10,000 and $20,000. However, every marriage is unique, and so is every divorce. Vaz has charged between $5,000 and $6,000 for a divorce on the lower end of the spectrum. “But, when we get forensic accounting involved, that can take the costs up to well over $100,000,” she says. 

The more there is to divide up — debts, assets, estate plans, investment accounts, custody time — the more expensive and drawn out the process will be. The timeline will also vary, but in Vaz’s experience, a few months from end to end is considered speedy. Two to three years is more common for most couples in a cooperative divorce. But if the couple can’t come to an agreement, there’s a possibility of going to trial. In that case, the process slows to a glacial pace. Taking a divorce to trial is a necessary part of the process for some couples, but it can take between three to five years. 

You and your spouse’s financial situation isn’t the only thing that matters in terms of divorce timelines; your state’s laws can significantly influence how long a divorce takes. In Texas, couples must wait at least 60 days from the date of filing before a judge can finalize the divorce. California’s mandated “cooling-off” period is longer, extending to six months. Some states also require spouses to live separately for a set time before filing. Exceptions are often made in cases involving family or spousal violence.

Each state also has different rules on how marital property gets divided up. Without a prenuptial agreement in place, you default to your state’s rules on how your marital property gets split. If you’re preparing to file, or even just thinking about it, reviewing your state’s divorce requirements can help you understand what to expect and plan accordingly.

Divorce can lead to worse financial outcomes for women

In heterosexual marriages, women tend to initiate more divorces than men. While they might be the ones to start the process, they’re also the ones who usually face a steeper financial fallout. 

Here’s some harsh truth: Women make less money than men. For every dollar a man makes, a woman earns just 81 cents. Compared to men, women are more likely to fall into poverty after a divorce, a study from the University of Michigan found, largely due to a steeper drop in household income. After a divorce, women’s household income decreases at double the rate of men’s, which the study credits to women having lower personal incomes. 

The stakes are even higher for older women. Women who file for a divorce in their 50s or later — a phenomenon known as “gray divorce” — are five times more likely to fall into poverty relative to their female married peers. This study, also from the University of Michigan, found that divorced elderly women don’t experience the same high rates of retirement that married men do at milestone ages of 62 (Social Security eligibility) and 65 (Medicare eligibility). They’re also more reliant on their paychecks to sustain themselves, versus their retirement earnings. 

No matter how you slice it, the numbers tell a similar story: a divorce doesn’t just break up a household, it can also deepen the financial inequity women already face. For women staring down the barrel of a divorce, whether it was their decision or their spouse’s, the financial aftershock isn’t a temporary setback — often, it’s a harsh new reality.

You might need more than a lawyer 

It’s reasonable to assume you need a lawyer for a divorce. But you might need more than just a lawyer. It seems counterintuitive, but more professional support might actually make the process less expensive. 

Melissa Pavone, a certified divorce financial analyst (CDFA), encourages folks to consider a three-person team: a lawyer, a CDFA and a mental health specialist. A CDFA is a financial professional with one job — making sense of the money side of a divorce. They determine the value of the marital property, help clients understand the tax implications and calculate alimony and child support. “You don’t want to pay your lawyer $750 an hour to read your bank statements when a CDFA can do it better and cheaper,” says Pavone. Vaz is also a fan of CDFAs. “If you have one on your team, your time, energy and money is going to be much more well spent,” she says. 

Divorce ranks as the second most stressful event on the Holmes–Rahe Life Stress Inventory — a psychological scale that measures the impact of major life changes — outranked only by the death of a spouse. Venting to a $750-per-hour lawyer is an expensive therapy session; during what’s undoubtedly a turbulent time, your mental and financial health can benefit from having a dedicated expert on your side to help you sort through it.

A financial professional can help you separate emotions from money, which is essential for long-term stability.

— Melissa Pavone
CDFA, CFP and founder of Mindful Financial Partners

Divorce can be just as much of a financial reckoning as an emotional one. While there’s no one way to make the process fast and stress-free, these three tips might help make the process a little easier.

Set money aside for ease of access 

When you’re married, your finances are comingled with your spouse’s. After you separate, there’s a real possibility of being cut off from shared bank accounts and credit cards. “If you’ve been thinking about getting divorced for six months or so, start to take money and put it aside in a separate account,” says Vaz. This is especially prescient for women; we’re less likely than men to have grown our emergency savings this year, per Bankrate’s 2025 Annual Emergency Savings Report.

This isn’t about hiding money — it’s about keeping access to it. Setting aside just $10 or $20 a week in your own account can help you build a small safety net and start an exit plan. Any money you move will be properly accounted for and credited to the right person during the divorce process if needed. “In all my years of litigating, I’ve never once seen a judge say that this is a bad idea,” says Vaz. “If a judge has to sign a motion because one party has no access to their money, that can clog up the process.” Again, a clogged process will usually be an expensive one. 

Consider a postnuptial agreement 

A prenuptial agreement, commonly called a “prenup,” is a legal contract signed before marriage that outlines how a couple’s finances, property and other assets will be divided if they divorce. A postnuptial agreement, or “postnup,” serves the same purpose, but it’s created and signed after the marriage has already taken place. 

Vaz says she’s had couples come to her who aren’t necessarily planning to separate or divorce, but want to better understand their financial options. For these couples, a postnuptial agreement can provide clarity and peace of mind — establishing clear terms in advance, should they ever decide to go their separate ways. When a prenuptial agreement wasn’t put in place before the wedding, a postnup can be a practical next step for protecting both partners’ interests.

Get organized ahead of time

Preparation is key for a faster, smoother divorce. Having bank statements, tax documents, the marriage certificate, birth certificates (if you have kids), Social Security cards, recent pay stubs, mortgage and credit card statements at the ready can help expedite the process. If you’re working with a CDFA, they can let you know exactly what you need to 

While it might look like just compressing a ZIP file together, getting all the information together can be emotionally taxing. “There’s a lot of shame in realizing you didn’t know where all your money was going, or that maybe you missed some warning signs along the way,” says Pavone. “A financial ally can help you move past that shame and rebuild from a place of knowledge and control.” 

Vaz agrees: “Opening your eyes a little bit at a time is really the most powerful thing someone can do,” she says. “Especially women.”