I want an increase in child support. Its been two years and I have never asked for an increase. My daughter is 8 and she needs this and that and she eats like a pig. THe extra money to cover expenses would be nice. I filled the forms but I need a reason why? A cost ofliving but also food and the new clothes I need to buy. What do I put on the form for my reason?

I would start with figuring out an itemized budget --bills, food, clothes, etc...
But the Judge can also say that some amounts are unreasonable like if you are spending
$600. A month on food for two.

You will need to show detailed documentation of yoiur expenses.

I'd be curious to know how much of your total income comes from child support. How much if any comes from the government? What percentage of the father's income does he pay in child support?

A lot of those things go into the factor. I believe that any reason you give will prompt the decision making process, but then all of the other factors will come into play.

How about the price of gasoline? Itemize the places your child has to be each week. Keep up with every penney you spend; and I'm not kidding. You can take your record of expenses to court and use it in your testimony. Also, an increase is justified by inflation; the value of our money in the U.S. goes down about 3% each year, so you should get a 6% increase just for showing up.

Please don't take my questions as being critical of you in any way, I am only trying to learn along with you. I don't know your situation, and was thinking along the lines that it might depend on if your income went up or down, as well as his, since the agreement went into place initially.

Huh, back when my parents were divorced as I remember it mom never got any more money for me in the 12 years she got child support from my father. If you truly need more money, you first should look at how much your X is making, what percentage of his gross income is going to your child including health insurance. Unethical lawyers can run to court and get way more than is reasonable in some cases. But do you want him as part of your child's life or do you want to stick it to him cause he left you?

In my state, the child support is refigured every 3 years, unless there is a "major change in circumstances" for the father- a new job with a big pay increase, a new job with a significant pay decrease. The mother has to request the child support be amended every 3 years.

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Originally Posted by bbower2005

I want an increase in child support. Its been two years and I have never asked for an increase. My daughter is 8 and she needs this and that and she eats like a pig. THe extra money to cover expenses would be nice. I filled the forms but I need a reason why? A cost ofliving but also food and the new clothes I need to buy. What do I put on the form for my reason??

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All kids eat parents out of House & Home, due to parents make it easy for them to do so. You need to look at, is your income after paying Expenses such as Rent, Utilities (does cable & that cellphone really need to be for more then pleasure does not count unless used for main communications and education purposes, not for babysitting), Medical expenses, school expenses, daycare, clothing & shoes. If it comes out upside down, then you may need to raise it.

Best thing to do, is track everything in Money or Quicken, and use a Spreadsheet for keeping tabs on everything else. Then, when you go to court, you have enough documentation to cover the basis for helping with the raise.