How to stop a divorce from ruining retirement

When Ms. Margye Solomon decided to end her 33-year marriage, she knew her finances would take a big hit.

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"I didn't have enough money to retire before I got divorced, and I have less now," said Ms. Solomon, who, at 71, still works full time as head of social enterprise and nonprofit partnerships at Ellevate, a global women's network.

Dividing assets evenly with her former spouse, a retired lawyer, left her with half as much in savings—but, she said, "my happiness was worth more to me than the money."

The 18 months since the split have been an exercise in frugality as Ms. Solomon rebuilds her life.

To cut expenses, she moved from New Jersey to lower-cost Nashville, Tennessee, where she rents a small apartment in a friend's home, bought a used Nissan to get around and watches her spending.

"When you divorce at this age, you can't be afraid to change your lifestyle," Ms. Solomon said. "In what could be a 100-year life, I figure I have 20 to 30 years left, and I want to make the most of them."

Ms. Solomon has plenty of company. While U.S. divorce rates have generally been falling, they have doubled for people over age 50 since the 1990s and tripled among those over 65, according to a 2022 study from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. Longer life expectancies and a rise in older women working, which makes divorce more feasible economically, are helping to drive the trend.