Your health is the most important asset you have, and health insurance coverage is a close second. If your health insurance is through your spouse’s employer, once the divorce is final you will need to obtain health insurance for yourself. It is very important that there is no gap in coverage, so you must deal with the issue early in divorce negotiations. COBRA – It’s a Federal Law, Not a Snake While your spouse may be required by the court to keep the health insurance for th

When couples divorce, mistrust abounds. One of the first things people think of when their spouse asks them for divorce is, he must have been stashing away money. You know more about your financial situation than any stranger could, so before you hire a private eye to look for hidden funds, think carefully about your circumstances and how your spouse could have squirreled money away. 1. Was his paycheck automatically deposited to your joint bank account? If so, look through t

We’d like to believe that when it comes to life, work, and family that men and women have reached something nearing equality. Not so. According to the Pew Research Center, in 2012, 84% of stay-at-home parents were women. Likewise, women are far more likely not to work or to work part-time than men even if the couple doesn’t have children. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a woman choosing not to work in order to raise her children or to pursue other passions, except when

Not every marriage ends with an epic fight and an eternal hatred for one another that can never be quenched. In certain cases, a marriage can just quietly wither until one spouse (usually the woman) simply decides that she would be happier on her own. This is especially true of “gray divorces,” divorces that take place among couples 50 and older. In 2014, sociologists Susan L. Brown and I-Fen Lin from Bowling Green State University released a report that showed that one in fo

As soon as you begin divorce proceedings, things can move quickly, and you won’t always be able to predict how your spouse will react. If your spouse is in charge of your family’s finances or even has access to joint accounts, you could find yourself suddenly cut off from your money! Do not put yourself in a position where you will need to rely on your spurned spouse for money or where your spouse could use the threat of turning off the money tap as a negotiation tactic. Empo

My purpose, each time I sit down with an individual facing divorce, is to make the financial planning process more accessible. This is an emotionally difficult and yet financially critical time in your life. My role is to provide clarity during the process, and put you in control of your future. The divorce process presents an ideal time to organize your financial life. There are two reasons. First, you’ll need to disclose all assets, incomes and expenses to your spouse, and

A divorce is one of the most traumatic events in a person’s life, ranking right up there with the death of a loved one. A divorce is also one of the few times – and maybe the only time – a person has to deal with the court system. Ending a disintegrating marriage is made more difficult by the complexity of the divorce process and the emotional stress of dealing with the issues of child custody and support and division of assets. Understanding the legal process is as baffling

Divorce can be emotionally freeing for women, but it can also be financially devastating. Women, far more than men, face a stark plummet in their standard of living after divorce. That is why, if you are considering divorce, you must start planning right now for your post-divorce life. One of the most important questions you’ll need to answer is how much money will you need to survive and thrive. Get Ready for the Transition Not all women face a lower of standard of living as

Your “I do” has turned into “I don’t.” When you walked down the aisle, you envisioned a life of permanent marital bliss, but reality has not been so kind. It is now time to end your marriage. You want a divorce, but how do you go about actually preparing for this huge life change? In this article, we’ve pulled together some of our best pre-divorce prep articles. With this divorce preparation guide in hand, you’ll know what to expect so you can power through your divorce and c

Trusts are often associated with end-of-life planning to ensure assets are managed and held for another person’s benefit. They’re used to ensure assets are distributed exactly the way you want. They can help avoid the headache and expense of probate court, provide protection from lawsuits and creditors, and solve other financial challenges. But trusts can be useful in other types of financial situations as well. There are basically two types of trusts. Revocable trusts can be