High-Quality Legal Representation In Kentucky And Indiana

Why prenups are becoming more common

On Behalf of | Aug 21, 2017 | Divorce

Kentucky residents might like to know about why the once taboo topic of prenuptial agreements is now becoming more commonplace. Since millennials are now more likely to marry older, they are also more likely to have careers, property and other assets when they finally decide to tie the knot. The desire to protect what one has built has led to couples to have frank discussions about prenups.

Prenuptial agreements are sometimes seen as a bad omen that signal a lack of trust or show someone wants an exit strategy. However, a prenup can be a way for one partner to protect the other. If one spouse has more debt than the other, keeping assets separate helps ensure that the other person will not become responsible for what one partner owes.

In a 2016 American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers survey, 62 percent of attorneys saw more couples who wanted prenups in the past three years. Just over half of the attorneys said that millennials were asking for prenups more often.

In the past, prenups were used for estate planning and when one partner had much more money than the other. Prenuptial agreements are now used by anyone who wants to safeguard future income and current assets in the event of a divorce. They can also be used to separate debt such as student loans.

As stories like this show, prenuptial agreements offer couples a way to protect separate property. Without a clear division of assets, joint and separate property sometimes becomes muddled. For example, one person’s money can become joint property if put into a joint account. This could also happen with other assets, including a family home. A lawyer could help a couple set up a prenuptial agreement.

Archives