Real estate:
If you have a house, condominium, vacation property or vacant land, you will need:
- A copy of the deed (this is not the same as the description on your real property tax bill or receipt)
- The name of any company or person or association with a lien against the property (house loan, home equity loan, line of credit, liens from unpaid utilities, unpaid homeowner association dues, any judgments against any owner) related to debt associated with the property
- The approximate present balance of the debt secured by each lien
- Who is going to be responsible for the payment of each such debt and the consequences of non-payment
- Whether any debt is to be refinanced and the consequence of the failure to refinance
- When does the person receiving the house receive sole possession
- What happens with the personal property in the house
Motor vehicles (including cars, trucks, motorcycles, motorized scooters, boats, trailers and watercraft
- The date, make and model of the item, the identification number
- The name of any company or person or association with a lien against the item related to debt associated with the item
- The approximate balance of the debt secured by each lien
- Who will be responsible for the payment of each such debt and the consequences of non-payment
- Whether any debt is to be refinanced, by whom and the consequence of the failure to refinance
Bank and savings and loan accounts
- Name of the institution, last 4 digits of the account number, names on the account, approximate value, date of division, what the division will be (a percentage or specidic dollar amount) and how the division will occur (electric transfer, cash, certified check)
Personal property and household goods
- Ideally all of this will be physically divided already but if not, list the items in excruciating detail
- The name of any company or person with a potential lien against any individual item of personal property
- The approximate balance of each debt (other than credit card debt) associated with any item of personal property (including household goods)
- Who will be responsible for each such debt and the consequence of non-payment of such debt
Securities (stocks, bonds, mutual funds and like property NOT held in a retirement account)
- The name of the security, the holder of the security and/or mutual fund
- The holder of the security or mutual fund
- The name(s) on the account
- The value of the asset
- The proposed division (percentage or dollar amount)
- Method of division (Qualified Domestic Relations Order or other)
Life insurance
- The issuing company, owner of all policies with cash surrender value, the name of the insured and the net amount of the cash surrender value
- The amount of any loan against each such policy
- The division of the cash surrender value and how that will be paid out or accounted for in the division of property
- The person responsible for the loan
Retirement (pension, profit sharing plans, IRAs, 401(k), 403(B) and like accounts
- Name of the institution holding the account, account numbers name and the valuation date for the account or amount to be set aside to the non-account holder
- The method of division or payout
- Whether the non-account owner will be named as the surviving spouse with respect to a pension
Interest in a trust
- The name of the settlor of the trust, the name of the beneficiar(y)(ies) to the trust, the value of the interest in the trust and the allocation of the trust asset(s)
- Specifically how the assets will be divided or the value considered in the division of property
Interest in any pending litigation or suits to be filed
- A description of the pending litigation or claim
- A designation of who has the authority to settle the claim and how the proceeds with be divided or the value considered in the division of property
Miscellaneous property
- How any other property not identified above (a patent, a copyright, a screenplay, etc) will be divided and how any equalizing payment will be made or considered in the division of assets
Debts
- Identify each debt
- Identify the persons responsible for the debt now
- Identify who will be responsible in whole or in part for each debt
- State the consequences for failure to pay the date