With Christmas cheer still in the air, you may be one of many couples happily celebrating a holiday engagement. December is the most popular month for couples in the United States to pop the question. 14% of engagements happen in December while 40% of engagements each year occur between Thanksgiving and Valentine’s Day.
If this is your second marriage, you have probably thought through a lot of the issues involved in joining your households. Yet there is one aspect of a wedding that you may not have considered. More and more couples explore their options for a prenuptial agreement, especially before a second marriage.
Signing a prenuptial agreement does not mean assuming that your marriage will end in divorce. Other reasons prenuptial agreements could add practical value for you and your new partner include:
- You or your partner have children from a previous marriage. If you have kids, a prenuptial agreement can clarify your inheritance plans. In the event of a death or separation in the family, these documents make it easier to tell how you wanted to handle your pre-marital assets.
- You or your partner have significant debt. With the continued rise of student loan debt or medical debt among Americans, many couples get married while one partner carries this obligation. Depending on your case, a prenuptial agreement may also cover that financial situation.
- You or your partner owns a business. After a marriage, business assets can present a lot of difficulty. Teasing apart personal property from marital property in a business gives many couples trouble. Outlining your plan for business assets in advance through a prenuptial agreement makes this much less tense in an emotional situation down the line.
In a second marriage, most couples have significantly more financial assets or more complicated concerns about the future. Talking through these questions with your fiancé can both safeguard your finances while strengthening your communication skills with your partner.
