If you’re going to get divorced, you have a lot of financial decisions to make. For most people, the first one is just whether or not they can afford to go through the divorce process itself. The second area to address is how to divide assets.

But it’s also important to think about your financial situation after the divorce is finalized. To do so, it’s beneficial to make a budget.

How should you do this?

The steps to take to make a budget are fairly simple. You just need to make a list of your major expenses that you cannot avoid and compare that with your income. This is much different now that you’re down to just one income, or maybe you’re re-entering the workforce. In any case, you start by ensuring that you can afford the things you must pay for, and then you branch out into the things that you want but do not necessarily need.

Making this budget even before your divorce is over can be very helpful. Not only does it help you plan for the future, but it can help you consider what you need to do while dividing your assets with your spouse. For instance, maybe you want to keep the house, but it turns out that maintenance and mortgage costs are going to be too high on one income. This lets you know that you don’t need to fight over who gets to take the house, but you need to consider options like selling the home and splitting all of the profit, which can give you a nice financial buffer as you begin your single life.

Regardless, take the time to carefully consider all of your legal options throughout the divorce and how they can be applied to your financial situation.