Insights from a Financial Advisor's Personal Journey through your MN Divorce
Aug 09, 2023
Oftentimes after the news of a MN divorce is accepted and couples are moving towards division of assets and deciding on co-parenting plans, the fear around finances starts to come up. How will you afford to keep the house? What will happen with the retirement accounts? Do you even know what all the bills and investments currently are? This can create a big sense of overwhelm, however if you have a financial advisor in your corner, you will feel a huge weight off your shoulders. On the podcast this week, I had the pleasure of speaking with divorce financial advisor, Jamie Lima. Below you’ll find some great tips and advice he gave to our listeners.
Jamie entered the divorce financial advisor role after many years in the investment field. As a child of divorce and then going through his own divorce, he wanted to shift to helping others understand finances during divorce and how to prepare them for what’s ahead. A financial advisor is a great asset and part of your divorce support team to help you feel confident while going through a difficult time like divorce. Some benefits of hiring a financial advisor are:
- They can help create clarity about the goals and trajectory of your finances
- It can keep costs down
- You can see the pros and cons of each decision you are looking to make
- They can prepare all the documents that your attorney or mediator may need to make clear decisions
The first step that Jamie recommends when someone is faced with divorce is go through the entire house and take inventory. Go room by room and write down what assets belong to you, what is shared, and what belongs to your spouse. Then start to organize other financial aspects such as 401Ks, retirement accounts, bank accounts, and really get clear on the current state of finances. Next, you need to look at your future budget. What is needed for child support, spousal support, along with the luxury things in life that you’ve become accustomed to like lawn care, self care, children’s sports costs, etc. Your life is going to shift now that a divorce is happening, so understanding the non-negotiables and what you’ll have to shift or give up will help you gain clarity. Create a rough draft of what you think you need to live on, not just for retirement planning, but also living! Creating a balance of saving and living is so important. We never know when life is going to come to an end, so make sure that you have finances planned for joy also!
Jamie said that he’s found that most people are in a much better position financially than they think. And they only recognize that when they start to go through the budget and see what they’ve saved so far, how much they continue to save, and what their planned projections look like. Once you have this knowledge you can feel more confident about the trajectory of your financial life.
If you are interested in working with Jamie either with divorce finances or just overall wealth management, reach out to him, he’d be happy to have a consultation. And if you find yourself or someone you love needing mediation support, I am always here to discuss options. Schedule a consultation today or check out my website which is full of amazing resources.
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