Divorce can be a lengthy process that may strain your finances and leave you feeling out of control. But with the right preparation, you can protect your interests, take charge of your future, and save yourself time and money.
A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA®) is a financial professional who can assist you in navigating the financial issues of divorce. The role of the CDFA® professional is to help you and your attorney understand how the decisions you make today will impact your financial future.
At Common Cents Planning, we provide financial guidance during each stage of your divorce to help you make more informed decisions. If you are considering divorce, going through a divorce, or would like more information regarding planning for your future post-divorce, we can help during each of the following stages:
Stage 1: Preparation
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Each spouse's date of birth
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Names and birthdates of children, if you have any
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Date and place of marriage and length of time in present state
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Existence of prenuptial agreement
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Information about parties' prior marriages, children, etc.
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Date of separation and grounds for divorce
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Current occupation and name and address of employer for each spouse
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Social Security number for each spouse
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Income of each spouse
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Education, degrees, and training of each spouse
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Extent of employee benefits for each spouse
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Details of retirement plans for each spouse
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Joint assets of the parties
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Liabilities and debts of each spouse
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Life (and other) insurance of each spouse
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Separate or personal assets of each spouse, including trust funds and inheritances
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Financial records
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Family business records
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Collections, artwork, and antiques
In addition to gathering all of your pertinent information, you might want to think about the following questions:
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If you have children, what are your wishes regarding custody, visitation, and child support?
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Whose health insurance plan should cover the children?
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Do you earn enough money to adequately support yourself, or should alimony be considered?
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Which assets do you really want, and which are you willing to let your spouse keep?
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How do you feel about the family home? Do you feel strongly about living there, or should it be sold or allotted to your spouse?
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Will you have enough money to pay the outstanding debt on whatever assets you keep?
Stage 2: Settlement Negotiation
Decisions that you make during the divorce settlement process will impact your financial stability for the rest of your life. We can help you in the following areas during the divorce settlement process:
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Analyze different settlement proposals with specialized software and prepare scenarios showing cash flow, net worth, and the tax implication of support and sale of assets over the next 20-30 years.
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Discuss the long-term economic and tax consequences of each settlement option.
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Help you answer questions such as:
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Should I keep or sell the house? Can I afford to keep it?
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Should I ask for more after-tax assets or retirement assets?
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Should I ask for alimony as a lump sum or in monthly payments? How do I account for something happening to my ex-spouse?
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Am I going to be ok? Do I have enough money to live on?
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Determine whether an equal settlement today is an equitable settlement in the future before you enter into an agreement.
Stage 3: Post-Divorce Planning
After the divorce is final, you need to make sure that your finances are on the right track. You will then be able to put the past behind you and set in place the building blocks that can be the foundation for your new financial future.
We can help you develop a financial strategy to fit your new lifestyle in the following areas:
- Establish a budget
- Reevaluate/ reprioritize your financial goals
- Take control of your debt
- Protect/establish credit
- Review your insurance needs
- Change your beneficiary designations
- Work with your estate planning attorney to update your legal documents
- Tax planning
