Getting Your Finances Organised Before You Separate: What You Need to Know

By Molly Benjamin, Founder of Ladies Finance Club

Listen to the full podcast here.

Nobody walks down the aisle thinking about the exit. But if there is one thing the latest episode of Get Rich makes clear, it is that preparing financially for a separation is not pessimistic. It is one of the most loving and empowering things you can do for yourself and your future. Whether you are in the thick of it right now, quietly wondering what life could look like on the other side, or simply want to be ready for whatever comes, this conversation is for you.

I sat down with Lisa Bridget, a mortgage broker, Ladies Finance Club ambassador, and founder of Stellar Finance Group, for a candid and generous conversation about separation finances, the family home, superannuation, parenting plans, and the emotional realities that come with all of it. Lisa brings something rare to this conversation: she has lived it herself. And in the past year, she has faced something even bigger.

When Life Throws More Than One Curveball

Before diving into property settlements and borrowing capacity, there is something important to know about Lisa. In May last year, at 48 years old, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She underwent a double mastectomy, followed by chemotherapy from July through September, and was away from her business for around eight months.

What led her to seek help? It was actually her daughter who noticed she kept rubbing her breasts while reading to the kids at night. Lisa had not even registered it as a habit. But when she paid attention, she realised her breasts had been unusually sore for too long. After pressing firmly, she found a small, pea-sized lump sitting above her implant. From there, she moved quickly through diagnosis via fine needle biopsies, core needle biopsies, and ultrasounds, and never once needed a mammogram.

Her story is a reminder for every woman: know your body, be persistent with your doctors, and do not let anyone dismiss what you are feeling as just stress or just menopause. Early detection of breast cancer saves lives, and sometimes it is the smallest, most offhand moment that starts the chain of discovery.

The silver lining? Because Lisa had deliberately built Stellar Finance Group to function without her being present every day, the business kept running while she focused on her health. Coming back to work felt like coming home. Her energy is back, and her perspective has shifted. Less hyper-scheduling, more balance. More presence. More purpose.

Why Divorce Financial Planning Starts with a Mortgage Broker

When Lisa first started noticing how many women were arriving at her desk during and after the COVID separation surge, she realised there was a pattern. Women with incredible careers, with significant assets, with real financial power, showing up completely lost. Not because they were incapable, but because no one had ever sat down and shown them the actual numbers.

The most common and heartbreaking mistake Lisa sees? Women believing they can simply take over the existing mortgage to keep the family home. In reality, it is far more complicated than that. If a property is worth $5 million and the outstanding mortgage is $200,000, and the split is 50/50, the person keeping the home needs to raise $2.7 million to buy out their partner. The equity in that home belongs to both parties, regardless of who paid for what or whose name is on the title. That is a confronting number to hear, but knowing it early is everything.

Lisa advocates strongly for speaking with a mortgage broker before engaging a family lawyer, not instead of, but before. Understanding your borrowing capacity and what is actually achievable means you walk into legal negotiations with clarity rather than hope. It saves money, energy, and the kind of heartache that comes from fighting for an outcome that was never financially possible in the first place.

What Really Happens with the Family Home After Separation

The honest truth, from Lisa's experience across hundreds of clients? The majority end up selling. That is not a failure. Sometimes it is a financial necessity. Sometimes it is an emotional one. A house that holds a lot of painful memories is not always the home you actually want to keep.

For women who do out-earn their partners and have the income to support a mortgage alone, keeping the home is sometimes possible, but it also comes with gutters to clean, lawns to mow, and ongoing maintenance costs that add up quickly alongside the demands of raising children and working full-time. Downsizing to a manageable apartment or smaller home can be not just more practical, but genuinely liberating. Starting fresh in a space that belongs entirely to you and your children, with a mortgage you can comfortably carry, is a form of financial independence that many women do not realise is within their reach.

One of Lisa's favourite parts of her work is delivering the news that yes, you can buy something. It might not be the $5 million house, but it could be a beautiful two-bedroom apartment. A new chapter. A home that is completely yours.

Superannuation: The Asset Women Keep Leaving on the Table

This one deserves to be said loudly. If you spent years out of the workforce raising children while your partner advanced their career, you are entitled to a portion of their superannuation in a divorce property settlement. Superannuation in Australia is treated as an asset in separation proceedings, and it is something far too many women are willing to walk away from.

Lisa sees it regularly: incredibly accomplished women, women she is in genuine awe of, who say they do not want to touch their ex-partner's super. But those years at home were years without super contributions. That is real money you did not accumulate because you were doing the unpaid work of raising a family. You are not being greedy by claiming it. You are simply accounting for what was taken from your financial future.

The Case for a Binding Financial Agreement (Yes, Even Now)

Think of a binding financial agreement as the Australian version of a prenup, only more flexible. You can put one in place before marriage, during a de facto relationship, or even after you have already married. They are not just for the wealthy, and they are not a sign that you expect things to go wrong. They are simply a clear, agreed record of what each person is bringing to the relationship and how things would be divided if life changes.

Lisa increasingly raises the idea of binding financial agreements with younger couples, particularly where one partner is coming to the relationship with existing assets like investment properties. The conversation does not have to be adversarial. If both people know what is mine, what is yours, and what we build together, the whole relationship can feel more secure.

And as I put it, if you do not decide, someone else will. That someone could be a court, a lawyer billing by the hour, or a legal system that does not know your family at all.

Parenting Plans: The Conversation Nobody Told You to Have

A parenting plan is a formal, written agreement about how you will raise your children, and it can cover everything from schooling and nutrition to financial responsibilities and exposure to risk. Relationships Australia offers a free template on their website, and Lisa wishes more couples created one not after separation, but before. Even before having children.

When separation does happen, a parenting plan provides a framework that keeps conflict low and the focus on the children. It changes. It evolves as the kids grow and circumstances shift. But having it in place from the beginning means you are not trying to negotiate major decisions about your children in the middle of the most emotionally charged period of your life.

Know What Your Name Is On

Financial empowerment, whether you are in a solid relationship or contemplating its end, starts with knowing exactly what you have signed. Lisa's advice is consistent and firm: never sign a document just because your partner has asked you to. Take your time, read it, ask questions, and understand it. Keep your own record of passwords, accounts, and logins. Know which liabilities are in your name.

That last point is crucial. One financial pattern Lisa sees often is credit cards or loans being put in a woman's name, sometimes without her fully understanding the implications. If your name is on a loan, you are liable for it. All of it, even if your partner stops paying their share. During a separation, if one partner stops contributing to the mortgage repayments, the bank will still expect the full amount every month. Falling into financial hardship, even for valid reasons, can affect your ability to borrow for years to come.

This is part of why having your own emergency fund, in your own name, accessible only by you, matters so much. It is not about distrust. It is about having a safety net that belongs entirely to you, regardless of what happens.

Building Your Team

Going through a separation alone is not something anyone should have to do. The right team makes an enormous difference. Lisa works closely with family lawyers, mediators, and forensic accountants who can help women understand exactly what trusts, entities, and assets exist in their financial landscape, especially when a partner has been managing the finances and things are not entirely transparent.

One of the quieter benefits of working with a mortgage broker early is exactly this: the connections. A good broker knows who to call. They can point you toward the right people at a time when you are overwhelmed and possibly unsure who to trust.

And if cost is a barrier, free resources exist. Relationships Australia, the National Debt Helpline, and many family lawyers offer a free initial consultation. You do not have to be wealthy to get good advice. You just have to reach out.

The Bigger Picture: Women's Financial Empowerment

What runs through this entire conversation is something Lisa and I both believe deeply: women deserve to know their numbers, claim what they are entitled to, and step into a new chapter with confidence rather than fear. Financial independence after separation is not a dream. For many women, it is entirely achievable. The key is getting honest information early, building the right support team, and releasing the emotional attachment to what was in favour of what could be.

Lisa went through her own separation, built a business that supported her through a breast cancer diagnosis and eight months of treatment, came back stronger and more certain of her purpose than ever. If that is not evidence that financial resilience and emotional resilience are deeply connected, nothing is.

Listen to the Full Episode

You can find this episode on the Get Rich podcast, wherever you listen to podcasts. If you would like to connect with Lisa Bridget directly, search her name or visit Stellar Finance Group online to book a confidential chat. And if you want to connect with an expert who gets it, head to ladiesfinanceclub.com to explore the LFC directory and find an ambassador who can help with whatever you need.