Alimoney vs lump sum

[themoneytree]

So I'm on a vacation we booked pre decision with friends, my kid and stbxh. Fun times.

Our house is under contract and the new house closed and is being worked on while we are away. When we get back we'll only have a couple of weeks to get packed up and moved. I've been SO stressed recently that I've let things lapse a bit and I'm trying to get my ducks in a row now that I've had a chance to catch my breath.

I'm trying to put together a check list of stuff to take care of. I guess the biggest unknown is alimony. The attorney I went to for a consultation said that taking a lump sum could be an option instead of a monthly payment. I guess one of the benefits of doing that is that it's tax free? I think stbxh would rather pay monthly, but he also doesn't know how much it will be per month.
In PA the rule of thumb is 1 year of alimony for every 3 years of marriage. So I'm only looking at 4-5 years worth of alimony (which is terrifying to me for a variety of reasons).

Do you think I should push for a lump sum payment of just take the monthly income knowing it will be taxed? Has anyone done a lump sum?

[Deleted]

I prefer lump sum. It's tax free, you can invest all or some of it, and you don't need to worry about your ex keeping up with his payments for the next few years.

[Deleted]

I took a lump sum for the tax reasons and to be able to put 20% down on my own new place to avoid PMI. I also didn't like the thought of having to deal with a monthly financial reliance on him.

[themoneytree]

Thanks - I didn't really know that this was a thing.

We have so much stuff to sort out it feels overwhelming. I'm sure it's like that for everyone. It all just sucks.

[sweetchix]

I wish I had known taking a lump sum was an option. I would have preferred that.

[glynn]

Lump sum all the way....

[TR]

Random question. What if the XH doesn't have the amount of the lump sum? Can you still ask for it and he has to get a loan or something? Just curious.

[bg]

Aug 15, 2016 17:30:29 GMT -5 TR said:

Random question. What if the XH doesn't have the amount of the lump sum? Can you still ask for it and he has to get a loan or something? Just curious.

I was actually wondering this too...

[pinkdutchtulips]

If I had alimony coming - lump sum. I watched my mom patiently wait for that monthly check from my dad. No thank you, give it to me at once so I've got a clean break.

I waived alimony (and child support too) bc I wanted absolutley NOTHING tying me to my xh.