Are we in this together, or is it a 1-person show?

 

Jeff Martin is a financial advisor at Cornerstone based in Reno, NV. Jeff has earned the Life and Health Insurance Licensure and has passed the Series 65 examination. He enjoys being able to help clients create customized strategies for their portfolios based on their unique financial goals.

 

ARE WE IN THIS TOGETHER, OR IS IT A 1-PERSON SHOW?

Since becoming a father of two, I have learned the importance/need to divide and conquer. I have been blessed to share and tackle the duties of parenting with my wife, and while everyone probably has their own unique approach, we have largely adopted the divide and conquer strategy. 

 

To elaborate, on any given day, my duties may include yard work, making dinner, dishes and entering the nightly cage match routine of getting our son ready for bed where anything less than a title belt victory just won’t cut it. My wife may take on the never-ending laundry, the grocery store, and just the small item of making sure everyone in our family stays alive and well. Point being, that by splitting the to-do’s, we can make our best attempt of keeping things on track. 

I am confident that you are not reading this to get clearer insight into how my family tackles the chaos that is life with kids, despite its riveting context, but I bring this up for a purpose. While this strategy may be effective (for us) in running our day to day lives, I wouldn’t recommend it when it comes to your financial planning

In my experience, more than not, one spouse is charged with spearheading the financial planning. Granted this may be appropriate to the degree that one spouse has a clearer understanding/appeal to financial planning, but if that’s where the buck stops, you could be setting your surviving spouse up for a disaster.

I, unfortunately, have seen many situations when dealing with a surviving spouse, where that individual says something along the lines: “my wife made all of the financial decisions”, or “that was something my husband handled” when it comes time to transition a plan from a couple, to an individual. As you can likely imagine, if nothing else, this can be a very stressful and overwhelming experience. In fact, I recently had a scenario come up almost identical to what I just described, and despite substantial effort (both before and after the individual’s passing), the surviving spouse is absolutely dealing with feelings of being behind the eight-ball, all at a time that should be focused on grieving the loss of a loved one.

I do not mean to be mistaken in that one spouse may be more suited than the other to take on developing and managing their financial plan, but what I just described above can easily be avoided by the inclusion of all relevant parties. One spouse may not have the need or desire to explore portfolio analysis, or different Social Security strategies, but so long as both parties at least have a basic understanding of the “plan,” what’s where, what for, and who to contact, a lot of the unnecessary stress can be alleviated. 

The name naturally has a bit of a morbid ring to it, but some of my clients have shared they created a “death book.” While it may have a grim tune, I have seen how useful it can be. Simply having one place to look for all financial-related matters is a step in the right direction. Including the name(s) of necessary professionals to reach out to is also helpful, in addition to a “road map” that outlines the list of tasks that need to be completed (extra points if these are rated from high to low priority). The benefit of this book is only improved if the contents were shared and discussed prior to needing it.

I completely understand the lack of excitement when thinking about creating your very own “death book,” and while helpful, you may find that you don’t need one. I would encourage you to at least share “the plan” with your spouse, or any other relevant party so that your loved ones are not burdened with stress during what will already be a very difficult time.  

If you would like to learn more about this Surviving Spouse concept, you can watch our Redefining Retirement Episode “The IRS and Your Surviving Spouse” on our YouTube channel.


Based in Reno, NV, Cornerstone is for individuals and families looking to grow wealth, protect and preserve their life savings, and plan for the distribution of their estate in a tax-efficient manner through a tailored strategy. Schedule a time to discuss your financial goals with us.