List and value your assets

Your assets, sometimes called property, include your:

• home and any other real estate
• car
• personal items of value such as jewellery, or artwork
• household items such as furniture, appliances, and electronic equipment
• bank accounts, RRSPs, and any other financial investments
• insurance policies
• pensions
• businesses

You might be the only owner of some assets. For example, you own all the money in a bank account that is only in your name. And you own a car that is registered in only your name.

You might be a joint owner of other assets. For example, you only own half of the money in a joint bank account that is in your and your partner’s names. Your partner owns the other half. If you own a home jointly, you might own half or you might own a different proportion of the home. It depends on what the title to your home says.

You need to list all your assets and how much they were worth when your relationship ended. This is usually the day that you and your partner separated. You put the full value of assets you own yourself. For assets you jointly own, you only put the value for the part you own.

You should also list all your assets and how much they were worth on the day you got married. This is because when you decide if one partner has to pay the other and how much, the property and debts you brought into the marriage are considered in the calculation.

For example, if you had a car worth $1,000 when you got married, you have to list the car and its value on the day you got married. You have to do this even if you don’t have the car anymore.

If you had a pension, there are special rules on how to value your pension.