I have a few more questions about my ex now saying he needs to reduce child support due to disability-
If child support is to assure the child has as close to possible the same standard of living they had when the parents were married- then to a degree I have been able to do that (with the help of Child support) the kids and I were able to stay in the same house/neighborhood as when their dad and I were married.
When he moved out ( 6 years ago) he bought a house in a nice neighborhood; at the time he bought it it was worth a little less then ours but now is of equal value. He then married and with joint income bought a bigger boat with cabin then his last boat ( I do not own a boat) he also bought a much bigger house in addition to the one he used to live in - in his same neighborhood and he rents the other one. He travels and vacations often, we do not. Other then child support for our youngest one, he refuses to help our aged out kids (2) with anything- like money for college, their weddings etc.
For years he made good money and now sees what it is like to live on a little- but does he really? His household income due to having re-married is still much higher than mine- Bottom line the great reduction in child support due to his disability will most likely mean I will need to move my daughter in her Junior year of high school because we will not be able to afford to stay in the same house- her standard of living will greatly decrease- Her dad will most likely stay in his house because of joint income and even if he lost his bigger house he still owes another house of his same neighborhood. I doubt he would lose his present home because although it is worth about 400,000 he brought it at foreclosure and got it for a great price thus having a lot of equity in both his homes. So this child support reduction would change her standard of living but not affect him- does the court take that into consideration when calculating child support?
Child support is established in order to meet the children’s reasonable needs based on what they are accustomed to while giving consideration to the incomes, insurance expenses, work-related child care costs, and any extraordinary expenses incurred on behalf of the children. The court will have to recalculate the child support based on his current income, though you may want to try and prove that he is intentionally decreasing his income to reduce his obligation.
I am saying that such a reduction of child support may result in me losing my/ daughters home but would not make him homeless. Is that taken into consideration?
Thanks
Donna
No
Like Erin said, if he’s intentially decreasing his income to reduce child support, then find evidence and present it. OR get the court to order support outside the guidelines.
It is almost IMPOSSIBLE for single parents to maintain the same standard of living they had when they were married. Your ex has remarried. That automatically adds to his family income just as it would if YOU had remarried.
I relate to your situation. I was on the brink of losing my house and would have if I had not found a better job and gotten a little help from family. My ex was paying child support.