Family & Life Events Terms
Family and life events vocabulary covers the financial side of life’s transitions — marriage, children, divorce, job changes, inheritance, and loss — where legal, tax, and planning rules intersect at exactly the moments people have the least bandwidth to learn them.
The pattern across these terms: transitions have deadlines and defaults, and the defaults are rarely optimized for you. Knowing the vocabulary before the event — or looking it up during — protects decisions that often can’t be undone.
3 terms published
- Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA)
A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA) is a financial professional certified by the Institute for Divorce Financial Analysts to analyze the financial side of divorce — dividing assets, valuing settlement options, and projecting each spouse's post-divorce finances.
- Money Date
A money date is a short, recurring, low-stakes conversation — usually between partners — held specifically to review finances together, so money talk happens on a schedule instead of only during conflict.
- Power of Attorney (POA)
A power of attorney is a legal document authorizing someone you choose (your agent) to act on your behalf in financial or medical matters. A durable POA keeps working through your incapacity, which is precisely when it's needed most, and every POA ends at your death.
The decisions behind these terms
Definitions get you oriented; an advice-only advisor helps you apply them to your situation — for a transparent flat fee, with no products, no commissions, and no asset management.
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