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But a pre-nup is so expensive!

29/9/2015

 
Yes, a good contracting out agreement will cost you (probably over $1,000 each and maybe more) but this is not somewhere to skimp and save. Coming back to my insurance analogy from an earlier post – you probably pay in excess of $700 on house insurance each year. Not because you intend or know that your house will burn down this year, but just in case it does. And the chance of that happening in any one year is minuscule! Over 20 years of home ownership you may spend $14,000 on insurance and never make a claim.

Contrast that to the 100% likelihood that your relationship will eventually end (either by separation or death) and a one-off cost of, say, $3,000 suddenly doesn't seem so exorbitant. 

And be warned about looking for the cheapest pre-nup around: a poorly drafted agreement will cost you an awful lot more in the long-run. Unless the agreement is well drafted in accordance with the law, based on full disclosure and written specifically for your individual circumstances, it will be left wide open to challenge in the future. Not only will the agreement not be worth the paper it is written on, but you could be out of pocket by many thousands of dollars in legal fees before you realise it.

It’s so unromantic to talk about a pre-nup!

24/9/2015

 
Sure, it isn’t a discussion you probably want to have while on a special date night, but it is a conversation every couple should have at some time, and certainly within the first year or so of a relationship. 

Of course you don’t want or plan for your relationship to end, but hey, you don’t plan for your house to burn down or for your car to be stolen either, but you insure them, just in case. And in the same way you need to insure your precious and valuable assets against being halved when your relationship inevitably ends. 

Hang on? Inevitably!? That's a very unromantic attitude! Well, yes, but sorry, every relationship ends eventually – either by separation or by the death of one of you. And with a well-drafted pre-nuptial (aka contracting out) agreement (and of course a will), you can be confident that what you and your partner intend to happen to your assets, will happen. 

Having a pre-nup is especially important if you have children from an earlier relationship, or if you are bringing significantly more assets into the relationship than your partner is.

And don’t leave it too long – once you’ve been together for three years, the Property (Relationships) Act has taken hold, and the discussion will be a much more difficult one! Contact a specialist Family Lawyer now to discuss insuring your assets.

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