As a bride, you will be entering a new and exciting time of life. You will be joining with your husband to form a new union, a new family unit. I encourage women to be proactive about their financial and legal affairs as they enter into marriage. Your new husband may be a financial and legal wizard, but you still want to know and be involved in these important matters. I have counseled too many widows who knew nothing about their financial and legal affairs. Therefore, I have summarized below three key areas for brides to make sure they stay involved once they are married.
Know Your Advisors
I encourage people to always have a great team of advisors including an accountant, financial planner, attorney, and insurance agent. Life is hard enough, you need good people on your team to help plan for your future. These people should be trusted advisors that know you and your family circumstances. Since most marriages will end with one spouse preceding the other in death, it is important that both you and your spouse know and be comfortable with these relationships. I encourage both spouses to participate in periodic meetings with their advisors.
Know Your Data
Who do you have bank/investment accounts with? Where is your money? Many spouses keep separate checking accounts. That is Ok, but both spouses should have knowledge about their family’s financial status. Who do you owe money to? You should have a complete list of your debts and regular obligations. Even though one spouse may handle the bills and family bookkeeping, I recommend that both spouses are “cross-trained” on this just in case. Do you have insurance? How much? What kinds of policies? This information should be at your fingertips whenever you might need it.
Know Your Plan
We often plan better for our vacations than we do for our lives. If you don’t have a will or trust, then you need one. Otherwise, you will die “intestate” and your estate will be administered by state statute. You are never too young to have an estate plan – it is not just for your grandparents. If you are or become a parent, you will want to address guardianships, trusts for your minor children, and other legacy issues. This type of planning tends to fall into the important, but not urgent, bucket of tasks. The good news is that it is not a jinx to actually plan your life, and estate planning is easier and cheaper than your probably think.
Be prepared for life’s realities. Being proactive on these fronts will empower you to have comfort and peace to enjoy the joys of life as well as be prepared for the inevitable speed bumps along the way.
