Getting Organized Checklist
If Divorce is coming, your goals for the immediate future are to:
- Gather facts, organize and understand all the financial aspects of your joint lives
- Decide what you want
- Plan how to live on your new income in a changed lifestyle
No matter what process you choose to negotiate your divorce, you will need to gather the following information:
- Three years of income tax returns including all attachments and notices of assessment and reassessment
- Most recent paycheck stubs for both parties
- Employee benefit/retirement/pension information
- Life, disability and critical illness insurance policies – group or individual
- List of all assets held personally & jointly
- Details regarding investments (recent statements for RRSP and non RRSP accounts)
- Information regarding your housing expenses including property tax and utility statements
- Mortgage details including rate, term, monthly payment and pre-payment penalties
- Information regarding all outstanding loans and debts, including rate, term, monthly payment and pre-payment penalties
- RESP and children's trust information
- Wills and powers of attorney
- Marriage contract
- Detailed list of your current personal and household expenses
- List of projected expenses in the future once you're on your own
- Any other documents that would have a bearing on your financial situation
Once you have all your data together, it needs to be organized in a manner that is clear and concise, creating your "personal financial statement" which forms the basis of your negotiations.
Make sure you're being realistic in how long it will take you to gather this information. It's not easy but you'll be grateful to have the complete picture and be ready when asked for this information.
If you can't do this yourself or don't know where to start or if you want a second opinion to be sure you have the correct complete information contact Eva at Women in Divorce Financial.
This article is made available to you from Women in Divorce Financial.
Eva Sachs is the founder of Women in Divorce Financial. She is a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA™), has her CFP™ designation and is a member of the Institute for Divorce Financial Analysts.
She can be reached at esachs@womenindivorcefinancial.ca or by visiting www.womenindivorcefinancial.ca.