Asset Protection For Young Professionals

Asset protection is a hot topic among young professionals. Let’s face it, we spent years in school and sacrificed a lot to get to this point so it’s only right to search for ways to protect what we’ve earned. Asset protection is a term used to describe the way we go about protecting our finances from those who see us as a target. These may be creditors, individuals looking to sue, etc. Everyone needs to give thought to this but there are some groups, namely physicians and dentists that are more vulnerable to legal action.

• Malpractice Insurance

  • Whether you’re a physician, dentist, or any other type of healthcare professional, having malpractice insurance is not only important but necessary. Approximately 34% of doctors will have a lawsuit or judgement against them in their lifetime, according to the American Medical Association. Be sure to purchase a malpractice insurance policy that provides the best coverage for your specialty.

• Retirement Accounts

  • Having retirement accounts are very important, but many of us are not aware how it provides asset protection benefits. All qualified retirement accounts provide complete protection from a broad array of creditor classes, including malpractice and bankruptcy creditors. Putting money away for retirement allows you to contribute to tax deductible and tax deferred accounts.

• Creating a Corporation

  • A Limited Liability company and a corporation are business entities that are separate from the owner of the business. You can create a corporation and become an employee of your own company. That way, if anyone should come after you personally or if a judgement was ruled against you it would only affect the income which you earned as an employee working for said cooperation.

• Pre-Nuptial Agreement

  • For some this can be a touchy subject but many couples are getting married at a later age and may have acquired assets prior to marriage. A prenup is a very good idea for a young doc. It gives you a chance to have control over how assets are divided in the event the marriage ends in divorce. You get to make these decisions while you still love each other without interference from the state. 

• If you get married, STAY Married

  • When discussing asset protection, we think about how to protect ourselves if we are sued. However, you are far more likely to lose assets to your spouse than to a disgruntled patient. Believe it or not, many times when a doctor or other young professional loses assets it’s through divorce. Come up with ways to stay connected with each other throughout the years and keep your marriage fresh! hint: Don’t stop dating each other.

Use the above bullet points as a place to begin and start protecting the assets you worked so very hard to acquire.