Information for Women
Divorcing women often feel that they are struggling with the situation more than their spouse, emotionally and financially. Even if the wife was the higher earner, women still feel overwhelmed and uncertain on how to pull everything together for the future. Many women are frustrated and bitter that they forfeited their own career to better take care of the home and family. The US Census reports that 75% of 2 income families depend more on the husband’s salary. Without this income, how is the wife supposed to keep the home and family intact? How is the wife supposed to get back on her feet, especially if she still needs to take care of the children? This section is targeted to not just the divorcing woman, but also to the spouse who has dedicated her/his marriage to physically taking care of the home and family. It may also be beneficial for you to review the section for divorcing men, as some issues there may also be applicable to you.
Divorce for this spouse will trigger many financial uncertainties such as:
 | How much will my income flow and standard of living drop after the divorce?
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| Am I getting a fair settlement? Should I be receiving more alimony and child support? What am I entitled to?
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| How can I be guaranteed that alimony and child support payments will not just stop if the ex-spouse cannot or does not want to pay it?
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| What if I need to go back to school, so that I can earn a higher salary? How will I financially manage during those first years?
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| Should we sell the house? Or should we sell the house after the kids move out?
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| What are the tax-implications associated with the alimony and child support I am receiving? How much will I be taxed if I sell the house now, or later?
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| Can I stay on my spouse’s medical insurance policy? Should I self insure or apply for COBRA?
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| How much of my spouse’s pension, 401k and social security should I be entitled to? Should we split the retirement funds now, or at retirement?
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| How will this affect my future? Will I ever be able to feel financially secure? When can I expect to be financially healthy?
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| After splitting our assets, how much can I expect to retire with?
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These are just many of the common uncertainties that each spouse will feel, especially if she/he is the one who had forfeited more of her/his career to care for the family and home. There are even more factors that need to be considered, and most spouses do not fully understand these financial issues. A divorce financial analyst will take into consideration your situation, the length of your marriage, both partners’ earning potential, the children and assets involved, and come up with a divorce settlement that will be financially fair. Review the general divorce information and case study sections on this website for more information on divorce financial planning.
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