For people in San Antonio, Texas, one of the surest ways to stir up conflict and create legal battles that go on long after you die, is to get married later in life and skip discussions such as, “Should we have a Pre-Nup?” and “How will getting married affect my estate?”
1. I was working with Elaine a few years ago. Elaine decided to get married again at the age of 60. Elaine had three children and her “husband to be” had two children of his own. Elaine did what most people do and named her husband as the beneficiary of her IRA’s, which is where most of her money was. When she died at age 70, all of her IRA’s went into her husband’s IRA. Then later when her husband died, ALL of the funds went to the husband’s children. Elaine’s children got nothing…nada…zip.
2. I also worked with a guy named Luther, who felt it was unnecessary to have a Pre-Nup when he married at the age of 72. He kept his money in separate accounts from his new wife, so that when he died, it would be easy to determine what his children would inherit. But, what Luther didn’t realize, is that when he died, the stepmother of Luther’s children would have a claim to a portion of Luther’s accounts.
3. Lita and Vernon found love last year. Lita resisted getting married because she wanted her estate to go to her children when she died. She signed a Pre-Nup and new estate planning legal documents, and was confident she was protecting her estate for her children. Six months after marriage, Vernon had a stroke and wound up in a nursing home. Even though Lita’s accounts were “Lita’s and Lita’s only” she was forced by Medicaid to deplete all of her accounts to cover Vernon’s nursing home expenses.
It’s critical that at least several weeks BEFORE you put on your tuxedo or wedding dress, you get advised about how to handle a marriage contract and arrange your estate, so that those closest to you don’t get into a big squabble when you’re gone. If you are approaching this new stage in your life, call me at (210) 202-1141 to discuss your concerns.
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