Real Estate for Recently Engaged and Newlywed Couples

A couple’s legal and financial connection takes on fresh meaning once married. One important component of estate planning to consider involves real estate. If either spouse owned a house or other real estate before the marriage, the couple should consider whether they want to jointly own said property and retitle it accordingly. These are the top three reasons to retitle real estate after marriage:

 

Property Inheritance

By retitling the real estate in both the original owner and new spouse’s names, both spouses will have rights to the property and the surviving spouse will automatically inherit the property without the need for probate, if the other should die.  

 

Property Protection

Retitling property that constitutes a couple’s primary residence affords couples asset protection against the creditors of one spouse, meaning that a creditor of an individual spouse cannot take the property to satisfy a debt.

 

Property Rights

Once a property has been retitled into joint ownership, one spouse cannot sell or transfer their interest in the property without the consent of the other spouse.  Additionally, it allows both spouses to deal with third parties with respect to the property. If one spouse becomes disabled and cannot deal with financial or legal matters, it will allow the remaining spouse to assert rights and defend claims with respect to the property.

 

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