Uncovering Financial Infidelity: How to Know When Your Spouse Is Hiding Money

Having years of experience in Pennsylvania divorce litigation, my team and I at the Law Office and Mediation Services of Elissa C. Goldberg, LLC know the signs of financial infidelity when couples are seeking a divorce. 

Hiding money from one’s spouse is generally viewed as a sign of distrust to the spouse who has been deceived. The deceiver may think he or she has good reasons for hiding money, but when divorce proceedings begin, both spouses must disclose all assets.

If either spouse hides assets, serious penalties could result: the judge may fine the offending spouse, may award the injured spouse a larger portion of the estate or even the entire value of the hidden assets, or may reopen the case once hidden assets are discovered. Lying under oath can lead to even more severe penalties.

How to tell if your spouse is hiding money or assets

Often, if one spouse has handled all the finances for the marriage, the other spouse doesn’t know how much money the family has or where it is. This makes it very easy for one spouse to hide assets. If your spouse guards the passwords and won’t let you see what is in the accounts, this is often a sign of dishonesty. 

If money is being hidden, usually the numbers don’t add up. For instance, if your joint income is $200,000 per year but bills are going unpaid and there is no savings, money is likely going somewhere else. You may notice large transactions or even many small ones on your joint account that your spouse can’t easily explain.

Additional red flags that indicate financial infidelity, if your spouse:

• becomes very controlling about money
• blames you for spending that you aren’t doing
• tells you he or she got a salary decrease or didn’t get an expected bonus
•  reports making bad investments that have lost money
• complains that the financial documents or financial program on your computer crashed and erased all the household financial records
• wants you to sign a financial document but you don’t understand what it’s for
• becomes emotionally or physically abusive if you bring up divorce 

Where assets may be hiding

Some hiding places are quite simple while others are very sophisticated. If I suspect more shrewd hiding methods are going on, I may recommend a forensic accountant and/or private investigator. But first, we can look at some common methods of hiding money or assets:

• Getting a raise or bonus and not telling you
• Getting cash back when making purchases and socking it away in a safe deposit box
• Paying back a “loan” to a friend or family member with no evidence that a loan was transacted
• Collecting pre-paid gift cards
• Not informing you of a pension or other retirement account
• Buying assets to leave with family or friends that your spouse will resell for cash later
•  If your spouse owns a business, paying checks to a new “employee” who doesn’t actually exist or using other financial means to hide company assets to devalue the company in a divorce 

Unfortunately, hiding assets is not uncommon in troubled marriages, but the money is not worth the legal penalties. 

There has to be complete disclosure and transparency in mediation and collaborative divorce. If there is not, then litigation may be the only way to proceed. The Law Office & Mediation Services of Elissa C. Goldberg, LLC can assist you through this process. We have the knowledge and expertise to navigate these waters. Contact us today at our Bucks County office at (215) 345-5259 for a complimentary consultation.