Meet Mary Salisbury

Certified Divorce Financial Analyst

I was divorced after 26 years of marriage. I understand how overwhelming it is to try to figure out your financial situation, and how scared and anxious you are about your post-divorce financial situation, and your life in general. I was knowledgeable and in charge of our marital finances which put me in a better position during my divorce. Post-divorce, when I became a financial advisor, I discovered that many of my divorced clients were not all that knowledgeable and hadn’t received the financial guidance they needed in their divorce. That’s a problem because divorce is mostly a financial settlement. People assume that they will get financial guidance in their divorce from an attorney and forget that attorneys are not financial experts.

I have since changed my practice to solely help people get through divorce a better way, the right way, and started The Right Divorce Solution. I’m here to help guide you through the process, avoiding financial pitfalls and taking advantage of opportunities to help secure your financial future. Call me so we can start talking about what is most important to you so we can work towards achieving as many of your financial goals as possible.

What is a CDFA?

A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst is a specialized financial planner that focuses on you and your family and the effects that a divorce will have now and in the future. As a CDFA, I can benefit you by:

  • Being an objective viewpoint during an emotional process.
  • Helping you understand the financial feasibility of a proposed settlement.
  • Helping you becoming better prepared to take charge of your financial future.
  • Helping you have a clearer understanding of financial considerations in order to make informed, educated decisions regarding issues such as: Can I/Should I keep the house? What are the pros and cons of exchanging certain assets (i.e., trading the pension for other types of retirements accounts)? Will I be able to support myself when spousal/child support ends?

Some of the work that I do includes (but is not limited to):

  • Educating you on financial matters relating to divorce.
  • Helping with determining the short and long-term financial impact of proposed settlements.
  • Creating personalized reports and graphs that illustrate various property division scenarios, cash flow projections, support amounts, etc.
  • Helping address specific challenges, such as loss of health, life or disability coverage and retirement plan benefits.
  • Evaluating complex assets (i.e., stock options, deferred compensation, pensions, etc.) to help you develop a better understanding of how they are factored into the divorce settlement.
  • Explaining divorce-related tax considerations and implications.
  • Offering valuable financial insight into the pro’s and con’s of different settlement proposals.

I can also help you understand the financial issues of…

  • Separate vs. marital property.
  • Retirement and pensions.
  • Splitting the house.
  • Valuing and dividing property.
  • Spousal support and child support.
  • Tax problems, tax solutions and avoiding tax pitfalls.