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Three settlement offers can each hand both spouses exactly $1,750,000 on paper and still differ by more than $150,000 in real, after-tax value — before considering liquidity or risk. On a $3.5 million marital estate, the difference comes down to three things: where each dollar lives (pre-tax, taxable, or home equity), which specific stock lots each spouse takes, and when the house is sold. Below is the full math on a realistic Florida estate.

If you’re keeping the house after a divorce in 2026, the single most important number is the interest rate on your existing mortgage. With 30-year rates averaging 6.65% (Freddie Mac, August 20, 2026), refinancing away from a pandemic-era 3% loan can add hundreds of dollars a month in interest cost. That’s why loan assumption and recasting — two tools that preserve your current rate — deserve equal billing with the traditional refinance.

In a Florida divorce, RSUs granted for work performed during the marriage are generally marital property subject to equitable distribution, even if they vest later. They are taxed as ordinary W-2 income when they vest, and in 2026 employers withhold only a flat 22% federal — often far less than what is actually owed. Valuing, dividing, and tax-adjusting RSUs correctly can change a settlement by tens of thousands of dollars.

The overall U.S. divorce rate just hit a 50-year low. And yet, among women over 50, divorce is more common than it has ever been. If you are ending a long marriage and a quiet voice keeps asking whether you've left this too late, I want to be the one to tell you: you haven't, and you are not alone.