my wife left, but still lives with me

[FloydMan]

Of course she is pissed....you are limiting her ability to use joint funds (50% yours) for herself. You will not see this money back. Trust me. 2 weeks before my exW called it off, she spent $4000 on a trip to Vegas. 6 weeks before $10,000 on a down payment for BMW along with thousands more in the previous months. She was planning the exit. That money is gone. No recourse. The post separation spend she owes me back, but not the money before the separation....it is marital debt.You need a separation (valuation) date and all funds/assets accounted for at date of separation and date of marriage. You are in a sense paying for her to set up her own life without you. This will not stop...she has a sense of entitlement. She cares about herself right now...not you or the kids.

"Dissipation of marital property occurs when one spouse uses marital property, frivolously and without justification, for a purpose unrelated to the marriage and at a time when the marriage is breaking down. . . . Dissipation involves intentional or purposeful conduct . . . that has the effect of reducing the funds available for equitable distribution."