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Newly single age 50 or older? – financial planning issues

By Roger Wohlner TheStreet

Updated May 25, 2026 8:59 AM

A divorce or the loss of a spouse in your 50s or older is a traumatic experience on its own. When you factor in the potential financial impact, it can become even more devastating. Regardless of the reason that you become single at this stage of life, there are some key financial planning issues to address and steps to take to help ensure your financial security.

Do a financial inventory

A key first step is to take a financial inventory. This includes any and all financial accounts including:

Taxable investment accounts
IRAs, both traditional and Roth
Employer retirement accounts such as 401(k)s, 403 (b)s and others. Look at accounts with a current employer and any that might still be active with a former employer.
Self-employed retirement accounts, if applicable, such as a solo 401(k), SEP-IRA and others.
Any bank accounts, such as checking, savings as well as CDs and others
Health Savings Accounts (HSA)
Any accounts inherited from the death of your spouse or that were part of a divorce settlement.

All sources of income

Another key step is to look at all current and future sources of income. These could include:

Compensation from current employment or self-employment
Social Security based on your own earnings record or that of an ex-spouse or a deceased spouse
Any pension you might be eligible for, or any pension that you are a beneficiary of
Life insurance death benefits
Alimony from a divorce settlement
An annuity

Expenses

It's also important to review your expenses. These might include rent or mortgage payments, property taxes, a car payment, and college costs for children, as well ongoing costs of living. The key thing here is, does your new status as a single person allow you to continue to cover these expenses with your current income level?

Retirement planning

It is important to relook at your retirement planning as a newly single person. You may have had a plan in place as a married couple, but your newly single status could change things. You will want to review your plan and make any changes that might be needed.

Social Security

Your Social Security benefits will change under your newly single status if for no other reason than that you will only receive one monthly benefit versus two if you were still married.

You will need to review your own benefit based on your earnings record versus that of your ex-spouse. You can claim the higher of your own benefit, or a spousal or survivor's benefit if that is higher.

Survivor benefits

According to AARP, survivor benefits are based on the earnings record of the late spouse. You are usually eligible for survivor's benefits from a late spouse if:

You are at least age 60, or 50-59 with a disability
You were married to your late spouse for at least nine months before his or her death

Exceptions to these requirements include:

Your late spouse's death was accidental or occurred while serving in the U.S. military.
If you have a disability that occurred within seven years of your spouse's death
If you are caring for children from your marriage to your deceased spouse who are under 16 or who have a disability at any age.

Spousal benefits

According to AARP, more than 40% of people nearing retirement are not aware that divorced people can claim Social Security benefits based on an ex-spouse's earnings record. In order to qualify you must:

Be at least 62 years of age.
You were married to your ex for at least 10 years.
You have not remarried.
Your own benefit must be lower than what you'd receive based on your ex-spouse's earnings record.

Filing at age 62 will result in your receiving 32.5% of your ex-spouse's benefit; waiting until your full retirement age boosts that to 50%.

Your ex-spouse's own benefits will not be impacted by your filing for spousal benefits under their earnings record; in fact they will not be notified.

If you remarry you will generally lose the ability to claim benefits on your ex's record.

Estate planning

A divorce or the death of a spouse should spur you to review your own estate planning. Do beneficiary designations on IRAs, employer retirement plans such as 401(k)s, life insurance policies, annuities or other financial accounts need to be adjusted? Do you need to update your will or the ownership of real estate or bank accounts? All of this is important and should be tackled as soon as possible.

Taxes

Tax planning is also important for the newly single. Tax brackets are different for single filers versus married filers. In the case of a widow or widower, they may be eligible to file as married and joint for up to two additional years in some cases.

Factors such as the standard deduction may also change based on a change in filing status.

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This story was originally published May 25, 2026 at 8:33 AM.