• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Mendel Law Firm, L.P.

Attorneys & Counselors

Call Now: (281) 759-3213

  • FB
  • TW
  • IN
  • RSS
LP Payment button
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • About The American Academy
    • Advantages of Working With Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • Mission Statement
    • Multimedia
    • Published Books
    • The Academy Fellow Designation
  • Services
    • Asset Protection & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
      • Are You A Caregiver
      • Coping With Alzheimer’s
      • Guardianship & Conservatorship
      • Hospice Care
      • Emergency Medicaid & Nursing Home Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Veteran’s Benefits
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • Incapacity Planning
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration & Probate
  • Seminars
  • Testimonials
    • Client Testimonials
    • Representative Clients
    • Review Us
  • Resources
    • Areas We Serve
      • Baytown
      • Conroe
      • Galveston
      • Houston
      • Pasadena
      • Woodlands
      • West University Place
    • Elder Law Reports
    • Elder Law Resources
      • Galveston Elder Law
      • Houston Elder Law
      • Sugar Land Elder Law
      • West University Place Elder Law
      • Woodlands Elder Law
    • Estate Planning Resources
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top Estate Planning Techniques
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Avoidance Tax Planning
      • Avoiding Probate
      • Business Succession Planning
      • Charitable Gifting
      • Elder Law
      • Estate Planning
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • IRA and Retirement Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Living Trusts
      • Medicaid
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Nursing Home Planning
      • Pet Planning
      • Power of Attorney
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Trusts
      • Veterans Benefits
      • Wills
    • LGBTQ Resources
    • Probate Resources
      • Houston Probate
      • Sugarland Probate
      • Woodlands Probate
      • West University Place Probate
    • Probate & Trust Administration Resources
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Special Needs Resources
    • Newsletters
  • Contact Us
  • BLOG
Home » Estate Planning Articles » Look After Your Spouse Even After You’re Gone

Look After Your Spouse Even After You’re Gone

June 30, 2011 by Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney

Compliments of Our Law Firm,
By: The American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

You and your spouse have worked hard to save for your golden years. But have you planned for a long, secure retirement if one of you outlives the other? Study after study shows that women tend to fall behind men when it comes to planning for retirement, and there are myriad reasons for this situation.

During their pre-retirement years, women traditionally have not earned as much as men, and mothers have often curtailed their career plans in order to raise children. This translates to less opportunity to save for retirement needs. Just as significantly, women statistically live longer than men, meaning that retirement tends to last longer for women. Further, women are more likely to need long-term care and other services as they join the ranks of the very elderly.

As a married couple, it’s essential to approach retirement planning with the goal of ensuring that the spouse with greater longevity, usually the wife, is set up to enjoy a secure, worry-free retirement. This goal can be accomplished by paying special attention to certain key financial areas.

  • Social Security.  Did you know that when you choose to start receiving Social Security benefits can make quite a difference in your retirement income? Delaying retirement can increase your Social Security benefit by as much as 8% per year. This is especially significant when one spouse was the higher wage earner. If, for example, the husband earned more during his working years, his widow could claim his higher Social Security payment when he passes away instead of relying on her own lower monthly benefit. So, the longer the higher wage earner waits to retire (ideally until age 70), the more retirement income the surviving spouse will have ultimately.
  • Life Insurance.  Life insurance isn’t just for families with young children. If you qualify for a policy, the death benefit can be a lifesaver to your surviving spouse, who will be free to put the funds toward household expenses, medical costs, or reducing debt.
  • Annuities.  If you are considering purchasing an annuity to provide an additional income stream during retirement, you may want to look into one that carries a “joint life” benefit. Under this arrangement, annuity payouts continue as long as either one of you is living.
  • Long-Term Care Coverage. Not only do women tend to outlive their husbands, their longevity means that they are also more likely to need long-term care at some point during their retirement years. Whether it’s a nursing home, an assisted living facility, or a home health care arrangement, long-term care is expensive. If you qualify, a well-chosen policy of long-term care insurance can help protect your family’s assets and pay for care.

Aside from seeking reliable advice from a qualified professional advisor, perhaps the most effective way to make sure both you and your spouse have the best possible retirement plan in place is to make planning a joint effort. Both of you should have a good grasp of your family’s finances and you should work together to make the major decisions that will affect both of your lives during retirement.

About Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney

Mr. Stephen Mendel is an attorney who focuses a substantial part of his practice on estate planning. Mr. Mendel’s guiding principle is to provide his clients with quality legal services tailored to each client’s specific needs and goals.

Primary Sidebar

The Mendel Law Firm

Follow Us

  • FB
  • TW
  • IN
  • RSS

Plan For Your Future and Protect Your Legacy

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

HOUSTON

The Mendel Law Firm, L.P.
1155 Dairy Ashford, Suite 104
Houston 77079
United States (US)
Phone: (281) 759-3213
Fax: 281-759-3214

Map

map

Office Hours

Monday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Footer

The Mendel Law Firm

The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an
attorney-client relationship.

© 2023 Mendel Law Firm, All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys