3 Shocking Reasons Why Prenups Are Actually a Good Idea

Okay, to be honest, discussing the idea of getting a prenup isn’t exactly the most romantic situation in the world. In fact, as you probably have already guessed, many people see it as a lack of trust or other kind of strange intentions.

A prenuptial agreement is made before getting married to establish who gets what in case you will ever divorce. Of course, it isn’t required, but specialists do recommend it for a couple of benefits you get, so let’s dig in.

Community propery laws aren’t applied to divide your assets/debt

Couples who don’t have a prenup will have both their assets and debts divided if you divorce – and there’s nothing you can do about it. In this case, every state has different laws on how these aspects will be treated, but either way, neither you nor your spouse have the right to decide.

On the other hand, if you do have a prenup, you and your spouse can agree on your own on how you are going to handle this. If you live in a state with community property laws, such as California, every single dime you’ve earned during your marriage will be split in half. If you don’t feel like that’s right for you, get a prenup.

Your own property won’t be given to your spouse after divorce

If you live in an equitable division state, the law says that any property each of the spouses owns will be divided in divorce. While community property states divide community property equally, equitable division states divide every property equitably.

In other words, if you bought a home before getting married or you own a property left from your parents, they can be divided during divorce. It’s all up to the judge and, again, there’s not much you can do about it. If you live in an equitable division state, getting a prenup may actually sound like a good deal.

You’re sure that you keep ownership of a business

In general terms, if you own a business before marriage (or a share of your family business), it still belongs to you even after getting married. However, things may get a little complicated along the way.

If you own a retail store before marriage, for example, you’re likely to manage or work at the store while you’re married as well. If you live in a community property state, the law will treat the income your business generates as community property. And, like all community property, it will also end up being divided between you and your spouse.