There’s a lot of planning that comes after a proposal. With marriage on the horizon, excitement is in the air, with two soon-to-be spouses dreaming of a life together. So, bringing up a prenuptial agreement probably feels like a mood killer, right? It’s following up a promise of happily ever after with a “but what if?”
It’s a big reason why people shy away from getting a prenuptial agreement. This is unfortunate, because, in truth, they can provide enormous benefits.
Prenups Help Protect Assets
Divorce can raise anxieties about where a couple’s assets will go to, especially when those assets enter the court system. A prenuptial agreement lets a couple work with an attorney to examine their assets and come up with a game plan, deciding where and who to assets will go. If at any point in a marriage, the “divorce” conversation comes into play, couples will at least know that they have a plan in place, taking away some of the stress of separation. It could be harder to do so during the raw emotional time of divorce.
And while the common stereotype of divorce includes a spouse “taking half” of one’s assets, a prenuptial can make sure to provide documentation for specific special assets. This can include items like family heirlooms, or assets like a business. They’ll have to make sure that they discuss this matter with their attorney to get this in writing.
Prenups Can Strengthen a Marriage
Another benefit of having the above conversations and creating the game plan is that a couple gets to know each other very well. Maybe there are certain financial issues that they’ve been avoiding talking about. Sometimes the end of a marriage comes from the built-up stress over those issues. While some unresolved differences are difficult to broach, a prenuptial agreement gives a couple the chance to have early conversations before the stress of time turns them into arguments. These conversations provide clarity in the present, and if documented, provide security for the future.
Trust and honesty are the building blocks of relationships. And while it can feel like a prenuptial discussion interrupts any sense of “till death do us part,” it can in fact fortify a relationship. The agreement allows two spouses to look at what they own and what’s important to them. Even if divorce does go from a possibility to a certainty, they will both have a much better idea of where they both are and where the procedure will take them.