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Divorce is a challenging life transition that is rarely straightforward. Whether this is a positive step or a change that will take some adjusting to, it’s likely to bring about emotional, legal, and financial complexities. Our role during this process is to help you feel financially empowered and clear on the road ahead. We are also here to support you with making important financial decisions and removing some of those financial complexities.
To help you with providing a clear road map ahead, we will need to understand your current and future financial landscape. By gaining a deep understanding in this area, we can help you to understand your current financial position and how this will change following divorce – this may be something that you have never thought about before, however, do not worry, we have all the necessary tools to help you in this area. You can take this at your own pace, and we will ensure you have the necessary support along the way.
Once we have a firm understanding of your future financial landscape and your future needs for you and your family, we can help to devise a plan that will support you in the short, medium, and long term – fine-tuning along the way. We can provide detailed financial modelling that forecasts how your future may look based on the outcome you are hoping for. However, can adjust this to demonstrate your post-divorce outcome, and how sustainable your assets and income will be. This information can help to remove much uncertainty, instilling confidence as you begin this new chapter in life.
In most cases, we often work alongside our clients’ divorce lawyers and legal teams. However, if this is an area you have not considered, you might want to. Having the right team around your during this process can help to provide the necessary expert advice and support, at a challenging time. We would be happy to introduce you to our trusted professionals that we work with – both lawyers and tax experts.
Here are some of the areas we will look at together to ensure you have the right financial planning in place.
Understanding the Financial Landscape
Gaining a deep understanding of your financial situation will be crucial to determining what advice and planning may be required for your future. This includes reviewing your existing assets, liabilities, income, and expenses. Understanding your complete financial picture allows for informed decision-making during your divorce process.
Budgeting & Cash Flow Management
You may find that you will be transitioning from a dual-income household to a single-income one. We are here to support and assist in creating a realistic budget plan that aligns with your new financial future. This involves identifying essential expenses, setting priorities, and establishing a sustainable cashflow plan. Cashflow forecasting can help to illustrate this.
Asset Division Strategies
Asset division can sometimes be a critical component of settlements. We often work closely with individuals and their legal teams to analyse the implications of different asset distribution scenarios. This can help clients make informed decisions that align with both their short-term needs and long-term financial goals.
Estate Planning Adjustments
It may be necessary to make adjustments to estate plans, beneficiary designations, and other legal documents. We are happy to assist and collaborate with legal professionals to ensure that these crucial aspects are updated to reflect your post-divorce wishes and financial circumstances.
Pensions & Retirement Planning
Impacts to existing retirement planning will need to be comprehensively reviewed, especially when considering the division of pensions. In some cases, a Pension on Divorce Expert (PODE) will be instructed to provide a Single Joint Expert report on how to fairly share pensions on divorce. This is achieved by either ‘offsetting’ or ‘pension sharing’. A Pension on Divorce Expert is normally recommended when there is more than one pension, and the total value is above a certain value – divorce lawyers will often recommend this to their clients and are well versed in this area. We are experienced at working in collaboration with PODEs and factoring in their analysis when making financial recommendations. Our clients often find that having their wealth adviser on hand to discuss these reports can be helpful in breaking down jargon and speaking plain English.
Pensions can often seem complex, however regardless of your experience, we will provide the necessary support to help you understand what you already have by way of pension savings and how this will change following divorce. When you begin this new chapter in life, you may require access to your pensions to support your standard of living – we can help you to achieve this and provide forecasts to help you understand how sustainable this income will be, whether income is taken now, or in the future. We achieve this by producing cashflow forecasts and financial projections – providing financial clarity.
Getting the right advice
Please feel free to contact us if you are going through, or have recently gone through a divorce, and would like help from a wealth planner in any of these areas. We would be more than happy to assist and advise if we believe we can add value.
Divorce settlements and Estate Planning is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority
