Most people enter into marriage with a strong sense of commitment, expecting that their marriage will last “until death us do part”. Sometimes, however, despite their best intentions, a couple ends up in a separation or divorce. Financial disagreement is a source of many separations and divorces. One protection for the parties in a marriage is for each party to understand and know about the finances, keep their spending and debts under control, maximize their income, and plan for savings and investments. Stay informed about what income is being brought into the household, what expenses are being incurred and what is being saved. Communicate and try to reach a mutual understanding of your goals for today and tomorrow.
Good financial planning is the key to your financial future; nowadays there are many resources on financial planning from basic budgeting to saving for college and retirement. Too often we see financial planning that is reactionary, triggered by divorce, a job change, children approaching college age, or the approach of retirement. Don’t wait to do your planning until one of these events occurs if you want to be ahead of the game.
People who work from a budget are more likely to manage their finances well than people who just spend what they feel they need to without regard to where the money will come from to pay their bills. In separation and divorce, we frequently are faced with couples who were living beyond what their combined incomes could sustain during the marriage; and then they are overwhelmed by the reality of how that same income now must be used for two households
In one of our upcoming blogs, we will give you some tips on how to budget. Being knowledgeable about finances is important whether you are single, married, divorced or widowed.
