When you are married to someone who is significantly older or younger than you, planning for the future can be different for each of you. To make sure you and your loved ones are protected, it’s important to have a detailed financial and estate plan. To make sure your plan works as intended, you should have an open and honest conversation with your spouse about important financial and estate planning topics.
About Employment
It is important to discuss your employment plans with your spouse. Your job may provide you and your spouse with health insurance and income, but it can also take up a significant amount of your time.
If you or your spouse are currently working, it’s important to talk about what you both want to do in the future. If one or both of you plan to retire or stop working soon, you need to consider how it will affect your lifestyle and future plans. Additionally, if you both have different aspirations for retirement, it’s important to discuss how you can compromise and find activities that you can enjoy together.
About Financial Management
When discussing retirement, it’s important to consider when you plan to retire and whether you can afford to stop receiving a paycheck. If you are unsure, meeting with a financial planner can help ensure your finances are in order. Additionally, you should consider whether there will be a period of time when both of you will be retired or not working, and whether you will have enough money from other sources to support your lifestyle during this time.
Another important topic to discuss is when you plan to withdraw the required minimum distributions from your retirement accounts. A financial advisor can help you determine the best strategy given your current account balances and your desires for the future. Finally, if there is a significant age difference between you and your spouse, it’s important to discuss whether the younger spouse is anticipating using the retirement funds from the older spouse for their lifetime as well, and whether there will be enough money to support both of you.
About Estate Planning
Creating an estate plan is important because it ensures that your loved ones are taken care of when you die. Without an estate plan, your state’s laws will determine how your money and property will be distributed, and who will make decisions for you if you are unable to make them for yourself. When reviewing or creating your estate plan, there are several important things to consider.
Firstly, you need to decide who will serve as your trusted decision-makers, such as your executor, successor trustee, agent under a financial power of attorney, and agent under a medical power of attorney. Because of the age difference between you and your spouse, it is advisable to name alternates to these positions in case your first choice is unable to act on your behalf. If you have children from a previous relationship, you should also consider if and in what order you want to name them to one of these important decision-making roles.
Secondly, you need to decide who you want to receive your property and money after you die. If your spouse is your beneficiary, you need to consider whether you want them to receive the inheritance outright or in trust. If you plan to leave an inheritance to your children, you need to decide whether they will receive it immediately after your death or after your surviving spouse’s death.
Lastly, if you have children from your current marriage and previous relationships, you need to consider if you want them to be treated the same when it comes to inheritance or if you want to give preferential treatment to one group. These are some of the important issues to think about when creating your estate plan.
