Can a husband get alimony? Yes, he can definitely get it. While decades ago alimony was only made to ex-wives, this is no longer the case. More men are getting alimony than ever.

If you are going through a divorce and you are in a bad financial position, talk to reputable divorce lawyers and find out whether you can receive spousal support. Some of the factors that can make you eligible for alimony include:

Your wife earns more.

The whole purpose of alimony is to ensure no one leaves the marriage institution with more money than the other. As you are parting ways, you should feel equal to your spouse. After all, you were in it together, right?

This means that if your wife makes more money than you, you are more likely to get alimony. The chances are especially heightened if you got as many expenses as she does.

During the marriage, you most likely pooled the money, so both of you had equal access to it, but you can no longer access this cash with divorce. Since your spending is still the same, your wife should allow you to continue your lifestyle once the marriage is over.

You stayed home with the kids.

The same way there are stay-at-home mothers, there are stay-at-home fathers. If you stayed at home with your kids while your wife was out working, you have a shot at alimony. Since you were at home, you didn’t have the opportunity to make the same amount of money as your wife.

Taking care of children is in itself a full-time job, and since you saved your household a boatload of cash that could have gone into childcare, the court will most likely rule that you deserve spousal support.

Your career suffered during your marriage.

Did you move due to your wife’s job and, as a result, lost your job or a place in school? Or you stopped working or missed a college opportunity so you could take care of the babies? You are more likely to get alimony.

If you lost a job because of your sacrifice to the family, it would be hard to start over, so your wife will have to give you alimony.

How long does alimony last?

Alimony ends upon remarriage and ends or reduces upon cohabitation. Although the alimony agreements are similar in length for both men and women, men often remarry faster than women. Studies show that up to 80% of men remarry within two years of divorce, while 75% of women do it within ten years of divorce.

If you don’t want to pass on an opportunity to remarry so you can continue receiving alimony, you should consider going the lump sum route. Here your wife gives you a single sum at the beginning, and that’s it—there are no other payments.

If you go this route, you should note the amount is often discounted because:

• The amount is paid with after-tax dollars, and it’s not taxable to the recipient.
• You don’t repay the amount when you remarry.
• The money paid to you is worth more than what would have been paid in ten years.

Talk to a divorce attorney.

If you feel you will be left in the dust when your wife leaves, talk to the best divorce lawyers Fairfax VA and let them know your situation and the reasons you feel you can’t push on with life without your wife’s financial support. Remember, alimony is based on the financial circumstances of marriage, not gender. So don’t shy away from talking when you feel the divorce is leaving you in a bad financial place.