South Florida Dads

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Financial columnists recommend the less than romantic activity of reviewing each other’s credit reports before tying the knot again.

Overlooked or forgotten accounts with an ex-spouse can rear their ugly heads even after a divorce.

Times two can make for a double whammy.

Before the marriage is the time to address these issues squarely and assess what you’re getting into.

Truth be told, checking your credit report is a pretty good idea during the divorce as well.

Read more in this Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article: Family Finances: Know how credit impacts your marriage.

Teenagers. Dating. Holding hands.

Murdering the objects of their affections …

A 20 year old man was convicted of stabbing and dismembering his girlfriend’s body in Indianapolis.

In Texas, a 15 year old girl was stabbed to death at school and an 18 year old girl was shot and killed there.

And these are not just rare, isolated cases.

As a result, communities are trying to raise awareness, among kids, their parents and their teachers, of the behaviors that should raise red flags.

Texas passed a law that defines dating violence within the school safety codes.

Rhode Island passed a law that mandates teaching seventh-graders through twelfth-graders about dating abuse.

New York recently made restraining orders available for the first time to teenagers who are victims of dating violence. Before this, victims’ only remedy was to press criminal charges.

Indianapolis is training police officers in schools to recognize warning signs of dating abuse, and older kids to act as dating mentors and advisors to younger kids.

According to surveys, dating violence has risen by about 40% since just 1999, and may victimize 10% of teens.

Experts believe that cell phones and the internet have facilitated harassing behaviors. Another survey suggests that twenty-five percent of teens have been harassed by a date.

Yet another survey suggests that one-third of teens have been victims of emotional abuse by a dating partner, if not physical abuse.

Dating abuse is also believed to spur drinking, suicides, aggression and sexual activity in teenagers.

And even among teens, dating violence and abuse is about exerting power and control in the relationship.

Talk to your kids about their dating habits and …

Read more in this New York Times article: A Rise in Efforts to Spot Abuse in Youth Dating.

Once the divorce is out in the open, sometimes activity on the credit cards of one or both spouses suddenly escalates.

This can happen due to one spouse’s lack of cash to live on. It can also happen due to the malice of a spouse. Or any number of other reasons…

Both spouses’ credit ratings can potentially experience dramatic impacts in a very short timeframe.

A mortgage broker offers advice on protecting your credit.

It may be prudent to order a credit report early in the game, to gather all the pertinent debt information.

What is the current outstanding balance of each debt?

Is each debt secured or unsecured?

Who is legally responsible to the creditor on each debt?

(Which may have nothing to do with who family court assigns payment of the debt to.)

Does the current value of any security exceed the amount of the outstanding balance?

Can the security be sold to pay the debt?

Of course, while protecting your credit rating is important, sometimes there are other considerations as well.

Like short-term survival until court-ordered temporary support.

Sometimes the steps you should take to protect your credit rating will also deny you much-needed short-term access to credit to cover living expenses.

Read more in this American Chronicle article: Protecting Your Credit During Divorce.

I LOVE Oysters on the half shell. It is the time of year to go harvest oysters in my neck of the woods. Even though it is wicked cold, it is an activity I rarely miss. We can harvest oysters in the summer months in Massachusetts (a rule of thumb is you can only harvest them in months containing an “R”). We’ll go out on a clear winter day and get a bucket of them-my dad always collects a bucket for Thanksgiving and Christmas- and then sit down and eat them. Everyone dreams of finding a pearl in

Original post by Jill Stanek and synicated by Search Marketing Consultants