FAMILY LAW ARTICLES

Divorce and retirement savings concerns

Financial shocks can be very impactful. They are also something almost everyone experiences in their life. This is what a recent study points to. The study looked at data regarding millions of Americans covering the 2008-2012 time period. According to the study’s findings, experiencing at least four significant financial shocks (with major annual earnings drops) by age 70 is something that happens to around 96 percent of working Americans.

Among the effects a financial shock can have on a person is that it can affect their ability to save up for retirement. One of the things that can cause a person to experience an income shock is a divorce. The splitting of marital assets and other money-related matters in a divorce can have considerable impacts on where a person is sitting financially. So, among the worries a person may have as they are getting divorced are worries about what impacts the divorce will have on their ability to save for the type of retirement they want.

How big of an impact income shocks have on a person’s ability to save for retirement varies. It is affected by things such as the person’s circumstances and the circumstances of the shock. What actions a person takes in response to the shock could also be impactful.

So, how to keep themselves in a good position to keep saving for the retirement they want can be an important thing for a person to give thought and attention to when in a divorce. Divorce lawyers can advise individuals on what impacts money-related matters in their divorce, such as alimony, retirement asset division and the division or other assets could have for their various goals, including those related to saving for retirement. Such lawyers can also provide guidance on steps that can be taken when it comes to these divorce issues to try to help safeguard these goals.

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “Trouble saving for retirement? So do 96 percent of working Americans,” Tim Grant, Aug. 10, 2017