Discomaster. Decimeter. Dicomater. No, its… Dis-SO-Master!

If you pay or receive child or spousal support, you should be familiar with Dissomaster. It’s the software program California judges and attorneys use to calculate child support and temporary spousal support. Using this program is great, provided garbage data isn’t used. A current Income and Expense declaration from BOTH parties and their last 2 months paystubs are required to do an accurate calculation. If you are the payor, anything that takes away from your income will likely decrease your support payment and anything that increases your income will likely increase your support payment. Here are some examples:
(1) Health insurance. If you are the payor, and you pay for your spouse and children’s health insurance premiums at an added cost to you (thereby lowering your paycheck), inputting the amount you pay per month will generally lower your support payment. (2) Property Taxes and Mortgage Deductions. If you are the payor, and you are claiming these deductions, you will be able to get more money in your pocket from the government in the form of tax write offs. This means if you input the deductible mortgage expense, you will generally increase your support payment. If you are the recipient of support and claiming these deductions, you will decrease the amount you receive. You can thank the government for this bone.(3) Hardships.
This applies to children from other relationships that you are required to support via court order. If you are paying child/spousal support on another case, you’ll want to make sure you input this as the payor, as it will generally reduce your child support payment.(4) New Mate Income
This one is tricky! Typically, it cannot be considered. However, when entering new mate income on the Dissomaster, you’ll notice the OPPOSITE of what you may expect, eg, if you are the recipient of support, and you enter the new mate income on the PAYOR’s side, your child support goes DOWN! Why? Good ole tax brackets. Entering new mate income usually pushes them into a new, higher tax brackets. Increased taxes means less money available for child support.(5) Dissomaster B Key. Don’t let the attorneys use the “B” key to calculate permanent spousal support. CA Family Code 4320 factors must be analyzed.
For more information on modifying your spousal or child support due to lost wages or reduced hours, call Certified Family Law Specialist Denise Lite at 877-317-8080 for a consultation. You and your children deserve the very best.