Should you keep the house in your divorce — or sell it? Your realtor can give you an answer. But excellent real estate advice can still be a costly divorce mistake.

In this episode of Divorce Explored, Karen Chellew and Catherine Shanahan use the marital home — one of the most common and emotional decisions in divorce — to expose a bigger problem they call "professional silos": your realtor, accountant, attorney, financial planner, and mortgage professional each giving you sound advice that doesn't coordinate with the rest of your settlement.

A realtor can't tell you how much equity actually remains after the mortgage and selling costs, what assets you'd give up to keep the house, or whether you can refinance and maintain it on your own income. The same siloed thinking shows up in tax advice, support orders, bifurcated divorces, and forensic accounting referrals — leaving you, the client, as the unpaid translator between five different professionals.

In this episode, Karen and Catherine cover:

The answer isn't fewer professionals — it's making sure they're all solving the same problem using the same financial facts. That's what the MDS Financial Portrait™ was built to do.

Learn more at MyDivorceSolution.com.

The We Chat Divorce Podcast is hosted by Karen Chellew and Catherine Shanahan, co-founders of My Divorce Solution.

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Divorce can make even the most confident person question every decision. When fear, conflicting advice, and financial uncertainty take over, how do you determine what is truly right for you?

When your decisions align with verified information, your priorities, and what is true for you, you can move through divorce with greater clarity and confidence.

Amy Armstrong, LISW-S, is a nationally recognized leader in conflict resolution, coach education, and program design. With expertise in mediation, parenting coordination, and parent coaching, she has spent 15 years helping families and professionals replace emotional reactivity with greater clarity, confidence, and personal authority.

Amy is the founder of the Center for Family Resolution and the Center for Coach Development. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Parents Magazine, and USA Today, as well as on CBS, ABC, NBC, and Fox News. She is the author of Real-Time Parenting: Choose Your Action Steps for the Present Moment and the forthcoming Boundary Basics: Simple Steps to Resolve Conflict.

Connect with Amy:

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One missing financial document could change the outcome of a divorce—but spending thousands tracing an account that once held only a few hundred dollars may not. So how do you know when you have enough reliable information to mediate, negotiate, or sign a settlement agreement?

In this Divorce Explored episode, Karen Chellew and Catherine Shanahan explain how to build a clear picture of your marital estate without getting trapped in costly financial rabbit holes. They discuss why organization should come before investigation, how key documents differ from supporting records, and how to distinguish a material gap—such as a substantial investment account missing from current disclosures—from an unanswered question that may never change the outcome.

You’ll learn four questions to ask before requesting years of financial history, what may happen when a spouse refuses to provide records, why subpoenas sometimes come back “no records found,” and what a focused deficiency list should accomplish. Karen and Catherine also explain why mediation requires a reliable financial foundation—not absolute perfection. Financial clarity means having enough verified information to understand the risks, evaluate your options, and make informed decisions with confidence.

Key takeaways

Learn more at MyDivorceSolution.com

This conversation is educational and is not legal, tax, or investment advice.

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Most people assume divorce means everything splits 50/50. In most of the country, that's not how the law works — and learning it mid-process can cost you dearly.

Get financially clear before you negotiate. Learn about the MDS Financial Portrait™ and join the free MDS Community at https://MyDivorceSolution.com

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Plus: why giving your spouse a heads-up before a necessary financial move can protect your credibility, your negotiation, and your long-term outcome.

4 TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

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In this episode of We Chat Divorce, Karen Chellew and Catherine Shanahan sit down with Chicago family law attorney Jessica Marshall for a candid conversation about what really protects you during divorce — and where people often put themselves at risk without realizing it.

Jessica shares an attorney’s perspective on why clients sometimes leave good lawyers, how poor communication can derail trust, and why financial preparation can completely change the attorney-client relationship. Together, Karen, Catherine, and Jessica explore what happens when clients walk into divorce without understanding their documents, assets, compensation, or long-term financial consequences — and why attorneys are not always the right professionals to explain the full financial picture.

The conversation also dives into the growing use of AI in divorce. Jessica explains the risks of relying on AI-generated legal documents, inaccurate case law, unsupported conclusions, and AI-driven “diagnoses” around narcissism or coercive control. While AI can be a useful tool for education and question-building, this episode makes one thing clear: it should never replace professional legal or financial guidance.

You’ll also hear an honest discussion about attorney hopping, when switching lawyers may make sense, when it may raise red flags, and why the duration of the case, the number of attorneys, and the reason for the switch all matter.

This episode is a powerful reminder that divorce cannot be navigated passively. The more financially clear, organized, and prepared you are, the better equipped you are to communicate with your attorney, understand your options, and make informed decisions about your future.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

Guest:

Jessica Marshall is a family law attorney based in Chicago, Illinois, known for her strong advocacy, courtroom confidence, and commitment to protecting clients and their children through complex divorce and family law matters.

Connect with Jessica:
Website: IllinoisLawForYou.com

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Is inherited money really "yours" in a divorce? Not necessarily — and the details of how that money was handled can make or break your case. In this episode of We Chat Divorce, Karen Chellew and Catherine Shanahan tackle one of the most misunderstood topics in later-in-life divorce: inheritance.

Sparked by a recent Business Insider article on how baby boomer divorce is "rerouting inheritance" and reshaping retirement, Karen and Catherine break down why common assumptions — "it came from my parents, so it's mine" — often don't hold up once documentation, commingling, and state law enter the picture.

They cover:

Why inherited property isn't automatically protected, and how commingling and transmutation can change everything

The three categories of documents you need: source documents (wills, trusts, probate records), path documents (account statements, deeds, business records), and forward-looking documents (tax returns, beneficiary designations, prenups/postnups)

Why "spreadsheets are not source documents" — and what actually holds up in a settlement

The unique financial stakes of gray divorce, where inheritance and retirement often overlap and there's less time to rebuild

The emotional side of inheritance disputes — caregiving, expectation, and adult children's role (or lack thereof) in a parent's divorce

How one inherited asset can ripple through an entire settlement: affecting home division, equalization payments, cash flow, support, and taxes

Why estate planning — beneficiary designations, retirement accounts, life insurance, powers of attorney — needs review after divorce, especially when generational wealth is involved

Karen and Catherine's bottom line: inheritance in divorce isn't just about where the money came from — it's about documentation, title, use, tax consequences, and long-term stability. Before you agree to divide or waive anything tied to an inheritance, get the full financial picture first.

This conversation is for educational purposes only and is not legal, financial, or tax advice. Every state handles divorce and inheritance differently. Please consult your attorney, financial advisor, or other divorce professional before making decisions.

Learn more at MyDivorceSolution.com

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Is what you’re experiencing actually gaslighting? In this episode of We Chat Divorce, Karen Chellew and Catherine Shanahan sit down with narcissistic abuse expert Tracy Malone — author of Divorcing Your Narcissist — to answer that question with real examples, practical tools, and language you can use right now.

FREE COMPANION RESOURCE

➡️ MyDivorceSolution.com/gaslighting-guide

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After 200 episodes and a decade of helping thousands of individuals navigate one of life’s most difficult transitions, Karen Chellew and Catherine Shanahan step back from the typical divorce topic to explore the deeper patterns they have witnessed over the last 10 years.

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When people think about divorce, they often assume they can just "choose" an uncontested process. But what most people don't realize is that uncontested divorce requires more than goodwill — it requires preparation, financial transparency, and a clear understanding of your legal rights. Without that foundation, the most well-intentioned divorces can quickly become expensive, adversarial, and emotionally devastating.

Question everything. Ask for clarity. Take the time you need.

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