Court Opinion

ID: 9768837
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 13:52:33.548445+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:30:47.293005
License: Public Domain

ON MOTION FOR REHEARING
PER CURIAM.
Richard has filed a motion for rehearing contending that this court should have undertaken a complete re-examination of the question of imputing income to persons who take early retirement. Richard particularly attacks the holding in Hughes v. Hughes, 761 S.W.2d 274 (Mo.App.1988), which held that income may be imputed to a person who has taken early retirement.
Richard took early retirement at age 55. Prior to retirement Richard’s net take home pay was $2,550.82 per month. After retirement he purchased a gift shop in Estes Park, Colorado with the expectation that it would produce $16,000 to $18,000 per year in income. Instead it produced $382 per month during the first year. During the summer of 1987 he employed two part-time ladies to run the shop who closed *72at 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. each day when it should have been kept open until 9:00 p.m. In addition, Richard said that 1987 was a down year in Estes Park for business. The next year he planned to operate the business himself and keep the shop open longer hours.
Richard stated that after purchasing the gift shop he had income of $828 from his pension, $391 from investments and $348 from the gift shop which accounted for his total gross monthly income of $1567. He contends that $750 in maintenance is still excessive because it takes almost half of his monthly income. The difficulty with Richard’s argument, and the reason this case does not present a factual situation which calls for a re-examination of the early retirement question, is the lack of evidence that Richard’s income from the gift shop will continue at the low level existing at the time of the hearing on the motion. The prospect which he has is that the income should increase because of his personal attention and longer operating hours. Thus, the income from the gift shop of $382 per month was shown to be a temporary condition and for that reason this court will not consider that his total income is only $1567 per month. In that situation this court will not impute income but considers the proof insufficient to demonstrate that the income from the gift shop is only $382 per month.
Marlene has also filed a motion for rehearing contending that her living expense was stated to be $1607 when in fact it was $1765.55. Marlene overlooks the fact that she testified she no longer made a car payment of $158 per month which reduced her monthly expenses to the $1607 figure. She also contends that her monthly take home pay is $770.16 and not $855.00 as stated in the opinion. Omitted from her figure is $85 per month which she receives in a tax shelter.
The motions for rehearing are overruled.