ROCHESTER, N.Y. – When couples get engaged, they don’t think about the fact that they’re entering into a contract. And either you can set the terms of that contract, or the state can. Because without a pre-nup, the laws that guide dividing debts and assets will dictate what you get if you guys split up.

Deanna Dewberry: “There will be a lot of people watching this who will say, I don’t make enough money for a pre-nup. I thought pre-nups were just for rich people. You say what to that?”

Michael Liptrot, Tully Rinckey: “If maybe you’re going into a marriage and don’t have much now, that’s not to say what the future holds, right? so a pre-nup addresses not only what you currently have but also what you’re going to have in the future.”

That’s important to remember because according to the State of New York, everything you buy after you say I do is marital property. Got a savings account that only you contribute to? Marital property. What about your 401k at work? Marital property. If you contributed to it while you were married, you also share any debt acquired during the marriage.

But what about this scenario?

Deanna Dewberry: “So let’s say it’s secret debt. The husband has a credit card the wife doesn’t know about, and they get divorced, and he’s got $15,000 on that credit card. Is that also her debt?”

Michael Liptrot: “We have some clients come and they had no idea they were in such a financially precarious situation. It was hidden from them. The credit cards went to maybe like they were buying expensive clothes and living outside their means, in that situation that’s actually marital debt even though you weren’t honest with each other during the marriage.”

That’s why he says everyone should consider a pre-nup. But even if you decide against it, he says before you walk down the aisle you need to sit down at the table and be honest with each other about income and debt.

Happy almost Valentine’s Day!