What if I had property before the marriage or attained property during the marriage through inheritance or gift from a third party, and the property grows in value during the marriage?
This can get rather complicated, but the easy answer is that if the property grows in value because of natural market forces or inflation, then no portion of the increased value will go to the other spouse. On the other hand, if for example the property involves a business, and the value of the business increases during the marriage because of the efforts of one or both parties, (or because of the contribution of marital assets) then that increased value may well be divided 50/50. The same example can be given for stocks or other assets. Although the stock or other asset may be the separate property of one spouse because it was attained prior to the marriage, or during the marriage through inheritance for example, if it can be shown that the efforts of either or both parties during the marriage led to an increase in value of the asset, then that increase in value may be divided 50/50.
Related Questions
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