Divorce can touch every aspect of your legal, financial and personal life. It is our goal at Breakwater Capital to add value and bring a sense of calm during a volatile time.
Questions You May Have
How do I secure my financial future?
- Can I stay in the family home and provide for my kids?
- How much should I be saving monthly?
- How do I get a mortgage in my name?
- Is my current lifestyle sustainable?
- What happens to our retirement account?
A CDFA professional is skilled at analyzing and providing expertise on the financial issues of divorce. When you partner with a CDFA professional, they become a part of your divorce team and provide litigation support for both you and your attorney on the following financial issues:
- Understanding the short-term and long-term effects of dividing property
- Understanding tax issues
- Analyzing pension and retirement plans
- Calculating the present value of a pension
- Determining the cost basis and capital gains on the sale of the marital home
- Determining if the client can afford the marital home, and if not, what he or she can afford
- Evaluating the insurance needs of the client and determining if the client qualified for COBRA
- Determining earning capabilities
- Establishing assumptions for projecting inflation and rates of return
- Providing data that shows the financial effect of any given divorce settlement
- Knowledgeable about specific tax laws that apply to divorcing couples
How We Work With Clients
- Collect income and expense data to help prepare financial affidavits
- Help identify clients' future financial goals
- Develop a budget
- Set retirement objectives
- Determine how much risk they are willing to take with their investments
- Identify their realistic desired lifestyle
- Determine what kind of education they want for their children
Engaging a CDFA® professional during the divorce process has five key benefits:
Empower
Conducting a financial analysis early in the divorce process can save time and empower clients to make educated decisions.
Clarity
Give clients a clearer view of their financial future and avoid spending unnecessary money floating back and forth between settlements with lawyers.
Educate
Explore potential long-term financial pitfalls related to separation agreements. Equal does not always mean equitable, especially when it comes to dividing tax liability.
Plan
Develop detailed household budgets when considering a financial settlement with expenses related to life insurance, taxes and cost of living increases.
Look Ahead
Reduce the false expectations surrounding divorce and help educate clients to ensure a stable economic future and make sound decisions during the process.
Madeline is a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst® with a steely demeanor and tenacious spirit, helping clients navigate through the various financial aspects of a divorce. Madeline works with clients to understand the long-term effects of decisions related to your assets. We will prepare a comprehensive financial plan that takes into account your cash flow, available assets, settlement amounts, and maintenance amounts. Investment growth, inflation, and expenses can also be included in a comprehensive financial projection after divorce.