Strategic Divorce Solutions | Brian Wong, CDFA®
Our Why? After years of helping our wealth management and financial planning clients, we started receiving referrals for people going through divorce. We felt compelled to better equip ourselves with another skillset to better serve these referrals. Brian became a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst ® and started Strategic Divorce Solutions to service people preparing for or going through divorce.
Brian is committed to providing counsel, information, knowledge, and support during this difficult time. It is his goal to equip you with facts and knowledge of California divorce laws to help you make confident decisions. Brian wants to help you make informed choices between today’s decisions and tomorrow’s desires
Our knowledge
Besides being a CDFA®, he is also a Certified Financial Planner practitioner (CFP®), Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®), Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU®), and Retirement Income Certified Professional (RICP®). With this extensive toolbox of financial planning skills, he can provide clients with financial analysis that can help with divorce settlement negotiations but also projects the financial impact of proposed asset divisions. This is important when determining if you can afford to stay in the marital home, retire on time, pay for your children’s college, and meet your other financial goals.
Our Services
Brian will work closely with your attorney, mediator, tax preparer, and other professionals who you consult with during your divorce. As a CDFA®, he is specially trained to help couples or individuals with the preparation of financial information. Additionally, he can provide an analysis of settlement alternatives in connection with the dissolution of a marriage or domestic partnership.
Why hire a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst® during the divorce process?
The average length of the U.S. divorce process is one year. In the beginning stages of the process, both parties spend a great deal of time trying to get a clear understanding of the financial aspects and terminology of the separation. A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst® (CDFA®) professional can explain all financial aspects of the pending decisions and help empower their client to make educated decisions throughout the proceedings.
By using a CDFA® professional, you can have a clearer view of your financial future. Only then can you approach a legal settlement that fully addresses your financial needs and capabilities. A legal settlement that floats back and forth between attorneys, without the client having a clear understanding of all financial ramifications, can be detrimental, time consuming, and expensive. To ensure clients go through a smart and collaborative divorce, CDFA® professionals can educate involved parties by providing a thorough knowledge and understanding of the complicated financial decisions.
Working with a client and their attorney, a CDFA® professional can forecast the long-term effects of the divorce settlement. This includes details of all tax liabilities and benefits. Developing a long-term forecast for their financial situation is far better than a short-term snapshot. Financial decisions must be made that not only take care of immediate family needs, but retirement, support, and housing needs as well.
A CDFA® professional can help clients think through what the divorce will really cost in the long run and develop a realistic monthly budget during the financial analysis process. Expenses such as life insurance, health insurance, and cost of living increases must be taken into consideration when agreeing on a final financial settlement.
Misinformation and misconceptions about the divorce process can be detrimental. Many have false expectations that they will be able to secure a strategic divorce settlement allowing them to continue with their accustomed style of living. Financial divorce analysis helps to ensure a good, stable economic future and prevent long-term regret with financial decisions made during the divorce process.
