A Short Introduction to Alimony Calculators for Maine
What is a Maine alimony calculator?
An alimony calculator estimates the amount of alimony an individual owes in spousal support based on several factors related to their finances and the terms of their marriage.
Since alimony calculators require a strict formula, they are only helpful in states with hard guidelines for setting alimony. Unfortunately, Main does not have such guidelines, so very few alimony calculators for Maine exist.
What is a calculator for Maine alimony duration?
Even if there are very few general Maine alimony calculators, the state has a hard guideline on how long alimony payments are meant to last, which means that you can easily make a calculator for Maine alimony duration.
The formula follows as such:
• If the marriage lasted ten years or less, no alimony is given.
• If the marriage lasted from ten to forty years, the alimony payments are extended for a period equal to the length of the marriage when divided by two.
• If the marriage last forty years or more, then the alimony payment cannot be extended for more than twenty years.
For an example of this Maine alimony calculator at work, consider a marriage that lasts fifteen years. The alimony payments should extended for seven-and-a-half years.
Which factors should an alimony calculator for Maine consider?
One of the reasons that no real Maine alimony calculators exist is the number of different factors that a Judge is ordered to look at by law. These elements decide how great your alimony order will be, so pay careful attention to all of them:
• How long the marriage lasted;
• How able each spouse is to pay for alimony;
• How old each spouse is;
• The work experience of each spouse;
• The income potential of each spouse;
• The education of each spouse;
• Whether each spouse has retirement benefits and health insurance and if those benefits should be divided between the two spouses;
• The health of each spouse and their ability to take care of themselves;
• The income tax benefits of paying alimony;
• How much one spouse contributed to the other’s education during the marriage;
• How much one spouse contributed to their shared home during the marriage;
• Whether either party mismanaged the joint marital property;
• What standard of living was kept during the marriage;
• Whether the party who receives alimony will ever become able to develop economic independence;
• Whether child support is being paid by either spouse.
What types of alimony does a Maine alimony calculator estimate?
The most famous type of alimony is general support for providing income to a less wealthy spouse, but there are five different types of alimony that may be ordered which you should familiarize yourself with.
1. General Support
2. Transitional Support, for needs derived from divorce transitions such as moving
3. Reimbursement Support, in recognition of one spouse’s contributions to a couples livelihood
4. Nominal Support, may be named to award support after divorce proceedings conclude
5. Interim Support, may only be awarded for during the divorce trial itself.