![]() An estate can include the following: bank accounts, investment accounts, stocks and bonds, patent and trademark rights, copyrights, business interest, automobiles, jewelry and clothing, household fixtures, and real estate. In layman’s terms, an estate is all the real and personal property owned by an individual. To better understand why this is the case, it’s important to understand the basics of estate planning. In reality, an estate plan is an important financial document that everyone should have, no matter how many assets they currently own. It’s not “unromantic” – it’s smart.If asked the question “ what is estate planning?”, many would struggle to answer confidently and correctly. Too many people mistakenly believe that estate planning is only for the wealthy. The Bottom Line? If you're lucky enough to have once again found love, congratulations! By all means, enjoy it! Just remember to do your due diligence before you walk down the aisle and take the steps necessary to protect everything you’ve worked for your entire life. The worse scenario would be for your spouse to die leaving you responsible for his or her debts and credit card balances while leaving all the assets to the children from another marriage. Too many times, divorced spouses forget to remove their former spouse as a beneficiary of their retirement plans, IRAs, and life insurance.Įspecially in second marriages, keep your debts and credit cards separate. In any event, getting remarried is a wonderful opportunity to make sure that the beneficiary of your retirement plans, IRAs, and life insurance is correct. You may need or want a waiver of Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) plans which has to be done after marriage. Here’s where it pays to have an estate planner who is comfortable working in partnership with the financial planning community. ![]() Often overlooked, if one or both spouses are getting a pension, then the new spouse may be entitled to a survivor pension. You could even create a trust for your spouse that will qualify for the unlimited marital deduction (and therefore defer estate taxes), while still making sure that any unused assets at your spouse’s death will be given to your children. ![]() ![]() For example, it’s possible to defer estate taxes when married due to the unlimited marital deduction. A good estate planning attorney should be able to guide you in understanding how the various local and federal estate tax laws may impact you after you remarry. This is particularly important to understand when it comes to estate tax laws. Of course, many tax laws have different provisions for married couples. Medicaid is one area where state laws differ widely and it is important to work with an experienced local lawyer. So, it is important to be sure that there are sufficient assets or long-term care insurance to care for an incapacitated spouse. If one spouse goes into a nursing home, then both spouses’ assets must be used. Should you move into your spouse’s house, and the unfortunate happens to them, how can you ensure that you won’t then be kicked out by your deceased spouse’s family? Likewise, if something were to happen to you, would your spouse, children and/or stepchildren be protected? With marriage, comes that little thing called logistics - such as where to live. Signing one is the difference between protecting your income and your children’s inheritance rights, and not. As you probably know, the reality is that relationships don’t always work out like we expect them too. ![]() No longer taboo, pre-marital agreements are becoming more and more mainstream - and with good reason. Two of the most common concerns are: How will you care for your children financially while providing for a new spouse, and, how can you leave assets fairly between children from your previous marriage and a new spouse? Sharing these and other concerns with your financial and estate planners is key when deciding on solutions that work for your new family dynamic. Naturally, remarrying is more complicated when children are involved. Therefore, there are several things for people to consider before remarrying. That said, the attorney and the realist in me knows that sometimes financial and estate issues can get in the way. As a romantic, I believe that marriage (even the second time around) is a wonderful thing. ![]()
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