Going Through Late Life Divorce? Take These Special Precautions To Protect Your Finances

When you divorce late in life, you face different financial challenges than couples divorcing at a younger age. For example, if you don't have a profession, then you may find it more difficult to get one as compared to a younger person who can even go back to school and get a degree. For this reason, you need to take some considerations to protect your finances, such as:

Taking Steps to Secure Retirement Benefits

You may be entitled to your partner's retirement benefits, but this isn't a straightforward issue as the division of other family assets. In many cases, you need a special court order for this to happen. This is a pretty complicated process that requires the input of your lawyer. For example, you need to know how to deal with:

• Possible tax penalties
• Any loans that your spouse might have taken with his or her 401(k) plan as collateral
• Chances of getting a hardship withdrawal should you need one

Talk to your lawyer so that you can come up with a solid plan for dealing with retirement benefits.

Reevaluate Your Estate Plan

Chances are high that you have gathered many assets, and you have a substantial estate. You probably have a will detailing how to pass it on to your children and grandchildren.  Even if you have a modest estate, you may have put plans in place to pass them over to your loved ones upon your demise. 

However, asset division during a divorce will mess up your existing estate plan. You need to sit down with your spouse and mitigate the effect this will have on your children. If you still support some adult children, then you need to prepare them for a reduced support after the divorce. You may not have the funds to continue with the same level of support.

Health Care Costs

With old age comes a host of health issues, and the best way to manage them is to have a reliable medical insurance plan. If you are divorcing, and you were reliant on your spouse's health care plan, then you may also have to "divorce" from his or her plan. To make matters worse, you may have a hard time finding a good insurance plan due to your existing medical conditions and age.

Therefore, it might be a good idea to factor in the costs of health care plans during asset division. In some cases, it might even be best to continue using your partner's coverage even after the divorce, especially if your state allows it.

These are just three examples of complications that may arise if you divorce later in life. It just goes to show that you need to evaluate your situation, consider all options and cover all angles pertaining to your financial security.

Contact a family law expert like Woehrle Franklin Dahlberg Jones PLLC to learn more.