The Truth About Protecting Your IRAs and 401(k)s

Truth 42 Divorce and your IRA or 401(k)

In many divorces, the most significant assets are the retirement accounts, particularly IRAs and 401(k)s. Avoiding the pitfalls when dividing 401(k) accounts and IRAs is an important part of the financial planning that should go into any divorce.

IRA

It is common for someone to be ordered to give a portion of her IRA to her soon-to-be-former spouse as a part of the divorce judgment. Often the IRA is divided equally. The laws present an opportunity for avoiding unnecessary income taxes when dividing an IRA.

A divorce can be bad enough. There’s no need to make it an even more taxing event by failing to follow a few simple steps when splitting up IRA or 401(k) assets.

To avoid ...