While it might never happen to you, it's probably worth knowing how a divorce might affect your credit. Consider this an intellectual exercise, or useful information that you can pass on to your friends.

Just as marriage is a merging of two lives, divorce is where you separate your two lives. This is no small task. Depending on how long you have been together, you might have to unwind a really messy ball of twine. If you find yourself faced with this task, one of the things you need to remember is your credit. Divorce and credit don't mix well. The most important thing you can do is try to keep the lines of communication open. Both of you could suffer if things go awry. While you may not want to talk to each other, you owe it to yourselves to clear things up correctly.

Some people think that getting a divorce means that everything automatically gets split up: the assets, the debts, everything. This is not the case. In fact, a divorce only splits up the marriage, and everything else has to be done manually. If you have a joint credit card account, for example, you still have a joint credit card account after a divorce. You might not be married anymore, but the account hasn't changed. Therefore, you need to get rid of the joint account so that you can continue toward closure of your marriage.