Two systems of marital property are:

Two systems of marital property 


  1. Separate properties and 
  2. Community property

Separate properties : Separate property belongs only to one spouse. There are some differences in how separate property is defined in different states, but the same general rules apply. The most common forms of separate property are:
  • property one spouse owned before the marriage
  • gifts received by one spouse before or during the marriage
  • property acquired during the marriage in one spouse's name and never used for the benefit of the other spouse or the marriage
  • inheritances received before or during the marriage
  • property that the spouses agree in writing is separate, as long as the writing meets your state's standards for that type of agreement (called either a transmutation agreement or a postnuptial agreement)
  • property acquired by one spouse using separate property assets with the intention of keeping it separate, and
  • certain personal injury awards (in general, the portion of the award that repays you for lost earnings is marital property, while any award for pain and suffering is separate).
Community property If you live in a community property state, the rules are more complicated. But in general:spouses own equally almost all property either one acquires during the marriage, regardless of whose name the property is in half of each spouse's income is owned by the other spouse during the marriage, and debts incurred during marriage are generally debts of the couple. 

In community property states, the following is separate property:
  • gifts given to one spouse
  • property either spouse owned before the marriage and kept separate during the marriage, and inheritances.


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