Viking Magazine - June 2011 - 29

and create a plan together, she
said. Discuss the importance of
charitable giving-how much
and to what organizations-
particularly if one partner has
strong feelings about donating.
9^hXjhh i]Z É dl d[ È cVcXZh
If each spouse is earning money,
they may want to maintain
separate accounts and have
some pooled money for shared
expenses. Couples should not
assume that marriage means everything
is joint, said McCants.
Lauber adds that after being
on their own, it can be diffi cult
for some partners to give up
that freedom. " Now someone
is questioning their purchases, "
said Lauber. " It can be a cause
of confl ict. "
8dch^YZg V egZcjei^Va
V\gZZbZci
" The process of doing a prenuptial
is a healthy one. It encourages
a couple to discuss expectations,
bring to the surface any assumptions
they might have about
what this merger means, " advises
McCants. While most think of it
as a contract used in divorce, the
document can also address estate
planning
issues, asset
management
during the
marriage and
responsibility
for debt.
JeYViZ
aZ\Va YdXjbZcih
Update your respective powers
of attorney, benefi ciaries, retirement
accounts, life insurance
policies, investment funds and
other fi nancial accounts. Contact
the Social Security Administration
to declare any name change
or to report your remarriage if
you are receiving widows' or
widowers' benefi ts.
8gV[i V k^h^dc [dg
gZi^gZbZci
Marrying later in life puts
many couples in the " retirement
red zone " when they
need to buckle down their savings,
said Lauber. Each spouse
may have a picture of when,
how and where they want to
retire, and it might not be the
same as their partner's vision.
If travel is a shared goal, the
couple would want to save for
that. If one spouse wants to
retire before the other or work
part-time, that should also be
discussed when doing retirement
planning, said Lauber.
HZ^oZ i]Z VYkVciV\Zh
Getting married can present
a tax advantage to dualwage
earners who can now
fi le jointly, noted McCants.
With an estate, a spouse can
leave an unlimited amount to
the surviving spouse without
paying estate
taxes. Lauber
adds that the
couple who
marries later
may have
student loans
paid off or
be well into
owning their own home, putting
them at a point where they
are more fi nancially stable.
Combining their lives may
increase wealth.
8Vga >c\kdaYhiVY
;^cVcX^Va 7ZcZÈ ih 8djchZadg
© BVgg^ZY &* nZVgh id BVgn
7Zi] >c\kdaYhiVY! egZh^YZci
d[ K^`^c\h d[ AV`Z + " &++ ^c
AV`Z 8djcin! 8Va^[#
© :c_dnh VccjVa ¼ig^eh d[ V
a^[Zi^bZ½ id eaVXZh hjX]
Vh i]Z haVcYh
VcY Xgdhh " Xdjcign h`^^c\
8djeaZh h]djaY Yd V
È cVcX^Va VcVanh^h VcY
WZ igji][ja# :heZX^Vaan
[dg i]dhZ l]d bVggn aViZg
^c a^[Z! ^i¿h ^bedgiVci i]Zn
eji Vaa i]Z^g ^c[dgbVi^dc
dc i]Z iVWaZ# I]ZgZ ^h
cd ]^Y^c\ [gdb XgZY^i
XVgY YZWi# I]Z lVn ndj
hiVgi dji l^aa YZiZgb^cZ
l]Zi]Zg ndj bV`Z ^i Vh V
XdjeaZ aViZg ^c a^[Z#
Ndj ]VkZ id a^hiZc id
i]Z di]Zg¿h eZgheZXi^kZ#
L]Zc BVgn 7Zi] VcY >
\di id\Zi]Zg! lZ Wdi]
]VY djg dlc XVgh! djg
dlc idlc]dbZh VcY djg
dlc [jgc^ijgZ# LZ ]VY
Y^[[ZgZci eZgheZXi^kZh dc
^ckZhi^c\ VcY WjY\Zi^c\
i]Vi lZ ]VY id bViX] je#
>c hdbZ ^chiVcXZh ndj
]VkZ id Yd l]Vi¿h WZhi [dg
i]Z ild d[ ndj# LZ Wj^ai
V cZl ]djhZ VcY Wdj\]i
HXVcY^cVk^Vc [jgc^ijgZ!
Wji hi^aa ]VkZ V b^m d[ djg
ZXaZXi^X [jgc^ijgZ#
Ndj bVn lVci id
X]Vc\Z ndjg WZcZÈ X^Vgn
dc ndjg ^chjgVcXZ eda^X^Zh
id ndjg cZl hedjhZ# I]^h
XVc \Zi V a^iiaZ ig^X`n!
ZheZX^Vaan l]Zc ndj VgZ
YZVa^c\ l^i] ndjg cZl
eVgicZgh¿ [Vb^an VcY
eZg]Veh VYjai X]^aYgZc#
H^cXZ ndj bVn WZ Vh "
hjb^c\ gZhedch^W^a^in [dg
ZVX] di]Zgh¿ ]ZVai] XVgZ
ZmeZchZh VcY di]Zg È cVc "
X^Va gZhedch^W^a^i^Zh! bV`Z
hjgZ ndj ]VkZ V eda^Xn VcY
Zcdj\] XdkZgV\Z# I]Z
idj\]Zhi hVaZ > ZkZg bVYZ
lVh id hZaa bn cZl l^[Z
a^[Z ^chjgVcXZ# H]Z lVhc¿i
V WZa^ZkZg! Wji > `cZl i]Z
^bedgiVcXZ d[ ^i#
hdchd[cdglVn#Xdb K>@>C< ?JC: '%&& 29
ask an expert
Viking Magazine - June 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Viking Magazine - June 2011
