Tips for Women Over Fifty Getting a Divorce

Different decades have their unique concerns when it comes to divorce. Women over fifty are caught between wanting liquid assets that will help them start their new life, yet receiving enough in retirement funds. Consider consulting with your own financial advisor who will look over all that is on the financial table. They will assist in determining what is the most advantageous split for you or come up with several options. They can meet with your solicitor to ensure you three are on the same page. A house may look like a £400, 000 asset, but in reality be worth half of that, if there is still a mortgage on it. I opted for cash in order to pay down the mortgage on my new house. Now that retirement is looming closer on the horizon, that may not have been the best decision.

In divorce, a tax expert may be brought on board to assess what the tax consequences are for various investments and pension plans. Some are taxed upon withdrawing funds and others are not. If two accounts are valued at £ 20,000 and one will have a tax to be paid, then dividing these between spouses is not an even distribution.

Now days, the trend is to have maintenance paid for a shorter period of time, perhaps a few years. Or there may be a clean break where assets are split and both walk away from the marriage without any future payments. If one spouse owns a business, then an expert may be brought in to value it. This is trickier when it is service related and there is not much inventory. The other spouse would receive less compensation than if there was pricey equipment or stock.

During the chaos of divorce proceedings, one may be in survival mode and not thinking of what is around the corner. Will your last child be leaving home soon after divorce? In this case, consider selling the marital home during divorce and downsizing. My older son was starting university in less than two years, with his younger brother following behind him post-divorce. It made sense to buy a small house during divorce which accommodated us three, yet would be perfect for a single person with cats.

Think about your situation and what lies ahead. Baby Boomers are the sandwich generation with kids at home and also being responsible for elder care. If your parents or another family member are requiring your attention, will you be relocating near them at some point? That is another reason to sell the marital home, splitting the proceeds so that you are not tied down to a specific location. It was nice being in a new place with my sons. There are many choices to make during divorce and a life coach can help you sort through them when feeling overwhelmed.

A woman in her fifties has accumulated much stuff. De-cluttering before moving or even if staying in the marital home is beneficial. This is a good time to keep just what you truly like and get rid of the excess. Purge your closet and take clothes to a consignment shop. I worked for a company that sold clients’ items online and took boxes of china, stemware and other personal possessions to them. The extra money was much appreciated. I had several huge yard sales and a friend was most helpful in sourcing buyers for furniture. Make sure you have divided personal property first or have checked in with your solicitor before selling anything. I got rid of unwanted gifts, some of which were from my soon-to-be-ex. Some items will no longer be needed with your new lifestyle. An example is, if you lavishly entertained your spouse’s business colleagues and clients, those platters, and so forth can be sold.  Please read more … https://www.thedivorcemagazine.co.uk/divorce-for-women-fifty/