4 Wholesome Reasons to Sign a Postnuptial Agreement

If you tell parties outside the relationship that you and your spouse signed a financial agreement with each other to resolve a conflict, they will probably think that your relationship is in trouble.  To people who did not draft it, a postnuptial agreement sounds like an ultimatum; people who have not lived through the problems that led to the signing of the postnup cannot imagine how drawing a line in the sand by means of a legally binding document can lead to peace.  Some couples who sign postnuptial agreements eventually get divorced.  In most instances, their divorce cases have less conflict than those of couples who must start from scratch deciding, once they get to divorce court, which assets and debts are marital and how to divide them.  Postnuptial agreements are about respecting your spouse enough to be honest about money.  For help deciding how to word a postnuptial agreement so that it solves or prevents the problems that are worrying you, contact a Boca Raton prenuptial and postnuptial agreement lawyer.

You Want Your Relationship to Be About Love, Not Money

If disagreements about money are casting a dark shadow over your relationship with your spouse, a postnup could be the solution.  Perhaps your spouse never looked at you the same way after you borrowed a student loan to pursue a master’s degree, you can solve the problem by signing a postnup saying that your student loan is a nonmarital debt.  Even if you quickly pay it off, the postnup means you no longer have to worry about your spouse constantly resenting you for it.

Protecting Your Ex From the Pettiness or Greed of Your Family Members

The key to a happy marriage is telling your family members to butt out, and the key to a peaceful relationship with your family of origin is making your family members butt out without telling them to in so many words.  Let’s say your parents give you money, and you buy a house that you live in with your spouse.  You sign a postnup saying that the house is your separate property, just to stop your parents from telling all their friends and the whole Internet that your spouse is a gold digger.

The Prenuptial Agreement Equivalent of Renewing Your Vows

Another purpose of a postnuptial agreement can be to amend a prenuptial agreement.  It is possible simply to revoke a prenup, but if you do that, then the court will classify your assets and debts as separate or marital according to state law, not according to how you categorize them.

Ensuring Your Spouse’s Eligibility for Public Benefits

Strategic divorce is a heartbreaking choice, where one spouse is chronically ill but just barely misses eligibility for public benefits like Medicaid.  If you might need to get a strategic divorce in the future because of your health or your spouse’s, a postnup can make things go more smoothly.

Contact Schwartz | White About Postnuptial Agreements

A South Florida family law attorney can help you keep the peace in your marriage by signing a postnuptial agreement.  Contact Schwartz | White in Boca Raton, Florida about your case.

Source:

kiplinger.com/personal-finance/601896/thinking-of-divorce-before-you-split-you-could-try-this-1-thing-instead