Home Ownership Conundrums For Couples Who Marry Late In Life
A popular saying among estate planning lawyers is that everyone who gets married after age 50 needs a prenuptial agreement. Even if you can’t get past the association of prenuptial agreements with greedy, distrustful people whose marriages are doomed from the start, you and your new spouse need a plan for how to merge your finances and how to keep them separate, and this plan must be in writing, or else it will all fall apart when one of you dies. Spoken agreements are not enforceable in probate court. If you procrastinate updating your will, this only means that you are human, although, as you age, the reminders of the importance of an airtight estate plan will become more frequent; you will see your friends suffer the consequences of preventable mistakes in their family members’ estate plans. The area where you cannot afford to procrastinate is the legal status of the house where you and your new partner live. Even if you don’t want to sign a prenup and cannot yet face the task of updating your will, you should update your housing-related documents with the help of a Tampa estate planning lawyer.
When the Law Considers You a Tenant in Your own House
You might feel like you are getting a sweet deal if, when you get married, you move into your spouse’s house, sell your house, and keep the money in your own separate bank account; the money is likely to last a long time, since expenses are low for two retired spouses in a paid off house. It might seem like a perfect plan in the short term, but if you do not add your name to the title of your spouse’s house, you do not have any of the inheritance rights of married couples who own their houses jointly. You will have life estate in the house, but you will not have ownership rights. This means that, when your spouse dies, the beneficiaries listed in the will inherit the house, but you have the right to live there as a tenant for the rest of your life. The solution to this problem is for your spouse to add you to the title or bequeath the house to you in his or her will.
When the Law Says You’re Just a Friend
Things are equally complicated for unmarried couples. If you live in your partner’s house, you need documents to make the house belong to you after your partner is gone. Unlike spouses, unmarried domestic partners do not automatically get life estate. Your partner can amend his or her will so that you inherit the house. You can also modify the title so that you and your partner own the house jointly. The law lets you enter financial agreements with anyone or leave property to anyone in your will, regardless of whether they are your family members.
Contact David Toback About Avoiding Home Ownership Drama
A Central Florida estate planning lawyer can help you update your estate planning documents to match your living situation. Contact David Toback in Tampa, Florida to set up a consultation.
Source:
getthecoast.com/attorney-whitney-smith-warns-against-poor-mans-estate-planning-strategies/
