It’s natural to have a lot of questions about your finances when going through a divorce in Illinois. There’s a lot of uncertainty and expenses that go into separating your finances, not to mention planning for life after the divorce.
Some Illinois residents employ a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst to help them navigate their finances through the divorce. A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst – also known as a CDFA – is specially trained and licensed to give financial advice to a person going through a divorce.
What does a CDFA do?
A CDFA will help you navigate splitting assets and property, telling you what to ask for in court. This includes more complicated assets like retirement accounts and pensions, as well as any stock portfolios.
A huge benefit of CDFAs is their ability to help individuals plan for their life after divorce. It’s a huge adjustment going from two incomes to one, not to mention the cost of the divorce itself.
While you could try to budget, CDFAs have training and tools to help plan for things like inflation, cost of living, and other things that are harder to plan around. This helps you ask for the right assets or the right amount in alimony payments.
Who needs a CDFA?
Any individual going through a divorce could benefit from having a CDFA. That doesn’t necessarily mean you need one though.
Many people choose instead to use their own, personal financial advisors or accountants during the divorce process. However, a CDFA’s specialized training could give individuals peace of mind.
A CDFA might be useful for any individual who is worried about securing their financial future in a divorce, or who might be unsure of what’s all available to them. In addition, anyone who knows they have complicated assets might also benefit from a CDFA.
How expensive is a CDFA?
CDFAs are pretty expensive, as they charge hourly based on how complex the accounts are. They’ll also work with your lawyers, potentially adding to legal fees.
The actual cost of CDFAs is a huge reason people skip hiring them. For some people though, securing your financial future during a divorce is worth the upfront cost of a CDFA.
