Wealth with Intention

What should you do with a divorce settlement?

Park the money somewhere safe, wait 60 to 90 days before making any permanent decisions, and then invest it according to when you will actually need it. A settlement is not one pot of money. It is several different kinds of money with different tax rules, and treating it as a single number is the most expensive mistake women make in the first year after a divorce.

This article is about what happens after the decree is signed. If you are still negotiating, still waiting on a QDRO, or still deciding which assets to ask for, that is a different set of questions. Intentional Divorce Solutions covers that ground in detail, starting with how to divide assets in a divorce.

The first 90 days: do less than you think you should

There is enormous pressure to act quickly. Your attorney is done. The accounts have transferred. Everyone around you has an opinion about what you should do with the money.

Do less.

The only urgent items in the first 90 ...

The most common types of inherited assets are cash and bank accounts, taxable brokerage accounts, retirement accounts like IRAs and 401(k)s, real estate, life insurance proceeds, business interests, and personal property. Each one comes with different tax treatment, different rules, and different decisions for you to make. Understanding what you have is the first step toward handling it well.

Why This Matters More Than Most People Realize

When people think about inheritance, they often picture a check. The reality is usually more complicated.

Most estates are a mix of assets, and each type works differently. The mistake that costs people the most is treating everything the same, making decisions quickly without understanding that an inherited IRA and an inherited brokerage account, for example, have almost nothing in common from a tax perspective.

This post walks through the most common types of inherited assets, what each one means for you, and what to watch out for. If you are ju...