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IceCreamforLunch t1_iuifvh7 wrote

There are two separate issues here.

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The first is the immediate issue with the lease. See if your lease allows you to sublet and roommates might be an option. Also talk to your landlord about what it would take to get out of the lease early so that you can find something you can afford.

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The second issue is the divorce and marital property. You need a divorce lawyer right now. Seriously. Immediately. In the meantime document everything. Your wife can't just drain the accounts and leave the state. It's very likely that at least half that money is yours. Depending on where you are and how long you were married you might be entitled to some of her retirement savings or even spousal support as well. Call a lawyer.

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Sideways_X t1_iuigtjc wrote

It's trickier than that. They do allow subleasing and I'm already trying to find a roommate, but to break the lease costs two months' rent. Our savings were already tapped prior from covid. We already lost any retirement savings. All we had was about a month worth in the bank. I could sue, but it's her parents who helped her with her new rent first month, and it wasn't a man in another state she's moved in with in case it wasn't clear, she took a sublet herself. I don't have any money for a lawer, and she doesn't have anything to sue for.

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newbeginingshey t1_iuj3jef wrote

You know your situation better than any of us and your biggest asset right now is having a solid head on your shoulders - major kudos to you for keeping that during a jarring, life altering event.

When there are no assets and no children, a legal battle is never worth it. It’ll just land you in debt. Yes a lawyer may sell you some vague hope but lawyers aren’t exactly neutral when it comes to telling you whether you one and it is common for the legal fees to exceed the monetary award in a divorce, meaning your networth is worse off having pursued “justice” with a lawyer than if you’d just let her go. She has no assets. You have no kids. One month’s worth of living expenses - even six months worth of alimony - the legal fees could easily exceed whatever you hope to be awarded.

You can file in small claims court for her share of the lease rent without mucking up your divorce with it or getting lawyers involved. That’s a separate contract and is easier/cheaper to resolve on your own.

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Annonymouse100 t1_iuiyofg wrote

None of those tricky details makes much of a difference, you still need to break the lease. Let your landlord know ASAP and ask them to begin looking for a new tenant (as should you). Be prepared to deliver the property back to them in pristine condition, and then get on a payment plan for repayment of the fees associated with breaking the lease.

Then find a cheap room rental close to work and start to recover financially.

In the mean time, close any joint accounts with your wife (sounds like they are empty) and make sure that you remove her as an authorized individual on any of your personal credit accounts.

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itsdan159 t1_iuiwike wrote

Even if she has $0 she has more than you since you got stuck in the house unable to leave. It likely won't cost much if anything to at least get the advice of a lawyer.

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