Communication Issues Related to Financial Planning

                                                   For Families and Couples

3 Areas Where Concerns Should Be Addressed:

Pre-Marriage – A few questions that should be answered before the festivities begin

 1.      Wedding Costs – How expensive and who foots the bill?

Parental Involvement – Size of Wedding List

                                   Wedding Location & Wedding Date

2.       Honeymoon – Time, Location, Length, Costs

3.      Work after tying the knot:  2 Job Searches or 1

      Search Area – Midwest; East Coast/West Coast / North/South

      Salary & Benefits

      Location Differences/ Cost of Living

      Emotional/Subjective Factors – Proximity to Family

      Which Family?  Travel home for the holidays?

            4.      Extent of Family Aid – Economic Outpatient Care

                  Help with major purchases

                  Are there strings attached?

                  Family Loans?

           5.      Children – Yes or No; If yes, who will be the primary care giver?

                 Shared responsibility?  How many?  Payment for Services Contract?

           6.      Pre-nuptial Agreement:  Division of Family Income not Assets;

Future Inheritance;  Trust Funds to have and to hold;

 Marriage – Working out the Details (in the middle years)

1.          Who handles the financial accounts? Is it one person or a shared duty?

Separate or joint accounts?

2.          What happens if someone dies?  What happens if both die?

Guardianship of children is just as important as insuring needs.

You need to select and seek agreement with your named guardian(s).

They should be familiar with your family and your desires about

raising your children.

3.          Educational Training and Parental Sabbaticals  (a primary care giver

who is a stay at home spouse loses employability over time – there

may be  a need to continue education and seek part-time work

 experiences leading to employment in the future.

4.          If there is a dissolution is there agreement as to who will continue to be

the primary care giver and the amount of continued support for the children (through

high school, through college?)

 Marriage -  Living through Retirement ( post children experiences)

1.        Have you adequately saved for retirement and do you have good

medical coverage? How about Long Term Care Insurance?

2.        Where do you want to live in retirement and what types of activities

do you want to engage in?  Close to children?  Away from children?

Children at home?  Grandchildren at home?

3.        Are you compatible traveling together?  RV vacations for 3 months?

Air travel + 2 weeks?  Tour group specials?

4.        Planning for retirement – what to do with the free time?  Development

of interests and hobbies -  part-time work?  Volunteer organizations?

Avoiding volunteer burn-out;

5.        Estate Planning and Funeral Arrangements – Do your children know

what you are thinking in this area?  How much should you leave your children?

Should you treat them all equally?  Can you treat all of your children

equally?   Who gets the grand piano – should I tell all my children

now or wait and have it be a surprise so that some can resent me when the

will is read?

6.        Medical Directives and Durable Power of Attorney – If I become so ill

that I require life support – should somebody pull the plug?  Who in

my family should make that decision – spouse, child, group decision

(best two out of three votes)?  Should I leave it up to my  family

 physician?

7.        Should I develop a trust – who should be the trustee?

If I have a business – what type of succession plan do I have in place?

Will all my children agree to my plan of succession?

Do any of my children want to succeed me in my business?

 ©  Dr. Andrew F. Thompson, All Rights Reserved,  8/2/2007