If you and your spouse are able to agree about the division of your property, then your arrangement will be documented with a separation agreement. If you are unable to agree, it will be necessary for you to go to court. The court will not decide your property distribution case for a period of time as the litigation process moves forward. During that time, the individual with possession of the property will have the use of that property unless a judge issues an order directing otherwise.

In North Carolina the process of dividing the property and debts of a marriage is called Equitable Distribution. Equitable Distribution is a three step process conducted by the court when spouses are unable to divide property on their own. The first step in the process is "identification". The court must determine which property is marital and which is separate. Separate property is property owned before marriage, inherited property and gifts. Separate property used to purchase jointly held real estate becomes marital property. Most of the remaining property is designated as marital property. The second step is "valuation". This is the assignment of a fair market value to each piece of marital property. Frequently, appraisers and other experts assist in this step of the process. The fair market value is the amount that would be paid by a willing buyer to a willing seller. The final step is "distribution". The court will distribute the property equally unless there are factors present in your case which indicate that an equal division would not be equitable.

Among the factors considered are: