why you may want to talk to a CDFA
Feb 26, 2018 14:46:24 GMT -5
DryCreek, bballgirl, and 8 more like this
Post by Dan on Feb 26, 2018 14:46:24 GMT -5
What is a CDFA? A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst.
See this website, and consider looking for one near you.
If you are contemplating divorce, you are often given the advice here "go see a lawyer to know your rights, and how a divorce might play out for you." OK, not knocking that advice, BUT....
A divorce mediator I was talking with explained it this way: A divorce agreement is mostly about two things: 1) dividing up the assets, and 2) making custody/visitation arrangements.
The most expensive way to divide everything up is FIGHT over everything as you hammer out this agreement; get his lawyer and her lawyer involved for every step. Many trips to court, until the judge gets mad at one or both of you and starts pushing one or both parties to get their act together.
A slightly less expensive way is to agree on most things, but still have the lawyers do all the talking, negotiating, AND BILLING DOUBLE for any issue. (Two lawyers talking for a an hour means you are getting billed for two hours in all...)
But at the end of the day, the divorce decree is:
1) A bunch of boilerplate legal stuff stuff.
2) The agreement for how you are dividing the assets.
3) The agreement on child custody.
Yes, you each need a lawyer to do "part 1".
But -- for "part 2" and "part 3" -- if you can get someone who is A) better trained and B) cheaper... why wouldn't you want to do THAT?
"Part 2" is where a CDFA comes in. A CDFA can look at your financial situation, and consider assets, pension, retirement funds, future living needs, future childcare needs (including college), and concoct a plan given your actual situation.
Like lawyers, most CDFAs offer free consultations. In fact, one I'm talking with is willing to do a entire review of my potential retirement plans and funding for free... which will be VERY helpful, because it will help me see options for how to split that in a divorce.
There are creative things that CDFAs may be more familiar with than your lawyer, for example: exchanging alimony for retirement money, or the projected impact of new alimony tax situations.
Who could benefit from seeing a CDFA?
1) If you are just contemplating a divorce, and "not ready" to see a lawyer (for whatever reasons), but still want to know how the finances may shake out.
2) If you are about to see a lawyer or have already had that first consult, no matter if the lawyer seems pretty financial-savvy or not, you may want a second financial opinion from a CDFA.
3) If you are proceeding with a divorce, and your spouse is open to a "low-contention" divorce, then, that brings us to the cheapest way to do a divorce:
- jointly hire a CDFA, he/she works out agreeable financial split
- jointly hire a divorce mediator, he/she works out custody and other emotional issues
- finally, have your [separate] lawyers give it all a looking over, and insert the boilerplate stuff.
Yes: MORE professional are involved, but at WAY LESS overall cost. (Or: so I'm told by the divorce mediator I've been talking to!) In fact, many CDFAs have mediators they work with (and vice versa), so you can get a "team" that knows the path better than you do.
4) If you are in a contentious divorce, and you just can't get your head around or agree to your spouses financial proposal. If you are not satisfied with your lawyers advice, ask a CDFA for his/her input on "is this reasonable" and "will it cover my needs". It might not be as much as you'd like, but if it covers your needs (as reassured by a financial professional)... then, well, that's something, right?
Look, there is only so much "there" there: your assets and estimated future earning. Every time you fight over it (and get lawyers involved), the pot of money shrinks. This is one way to spend less of that joint money before you split.
See this website, and consider looking for one near you.
If you are contemplating divorce, you are often given the advice here "go see a lawyer to know your rights, and how a divorce might play out for you." OK, not knocking that advice, BUT....
A divorce mediator I was talking with explained it this way: A divorce agreement is mostly about two things: 1) dividing up the assets, and 2) making custody/visitation arrangements.
The most expensive way to divide everything up is FIGHT over everything as you hammer out this agreement; get his lawyer and her lawyer involved for every step. Many trips to court, until the judge gets mad at one or both of you and starts pushing one or both parties to get their act together.
A slightly less expensive way is to agree on most things, but still have the lawyers do all the talking, negotiating, AND BILLING DOUBLE for any issue. (Two lawyers talking for a an hour means you are getting billed for two hours in all...)
But at the end of the day, the divorce decree is:
1) A bunch of boilerplate legal stuff stuff.
2) The agreement for how you are dividing the assets.
3) The agreement on child custody.
Yes, you each need a lawyer to do "part 1".
But -- for "part 2" and "part 3" -- if you can get someone who is A) better trained and B) cheaper... why wouldn't you want to do THAT?
"Part 2" is where a CDFA comes in. A CDFA can look at your financial situation, and consider assets, pension, retirement funds, future living needs, future childcare needs (including college), and concoct a plan given your actual situation.
Like lawyers, most CDFAs offer free consultations. In fact, one I'm talking with is willing to do a entire review of my potential retirement plans and funding for free... which will be VERY helpful, because it will help me see options for how to split that in a divorce.
There are creative things that CDFAs may be more familiar with than your lawyer, for example: exchanging alimony for retirement money, or the projected impact of new alimony tax situations.
Who could benefit from seeing a CDFA?
1) If you are just contemplating a divorce, and "not ready" to see a lawyer (for whatever reasons), but still want to know how the finances may shake out.
2) If you are about to see a lawyer or have already had that first consult, no matter if the lawyer seems pretty financial-savvy or not, you may want a second financial opinion from a CDFA.
3) If you are proceeding with a divorce, and your spouse is open to a "low-contention" divorce, then, that brings us to the cheapest way to do a divorce:
- jointly hire a CDFA, he/she works out agreeable financial split
- jointly hire a divorce mediator, he/she works out custody and other emotional issues
- finally, have your [separate] lawyers give it all a looking over, and insert the boilerplate stuff.
Yes: MORE professional are involved, but at WAY LESS overall cost. (Or: so I'm told by the divorce mediator I've been talking to!) In fact, many CDFAs have mediators they work with (and vice versa), so you can get a "team" that knows the path better than you do.
4) If you are in a contentious divorce, and you just can't get your head around or agree to your spouses financial proposal. If you are not satisfied with your lawyers advice, ask a CDFA for his/her input on "is this reasonable" and "will it cover my needs". It might not be as much as you'd like, but if it covers your needs (as reassured by a financial professional)... then, well, that's something, right?
Look, there is only so much "there" there: your assets and estimated future earning. Every time you fight over it (and get lawyers involved), the pot of money shrinks. This is one way to spend less of that joint money before you split.
