Quote:
Originally Posted by ceejay74
Really, my situation makes a lot of sense, but it would take too much explaining here. I've got it figured out.
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CJ sounds very savvy, and I'm sure s/he is aware of the legal and financial and tax implications of being in an unmarried partnership.
It's tough, but not impossible, for unmarried partners to navigate a system that only understands a very few kinds of domestic relationships--single, single parent, married with no kids, married with kids. It's ludicrous that legally I'm single, and my partner is single, and yet we live in the same house.
My partner and I sprang for a lawyer who specialized in unmarried family law when we had our wills and powers of attorney done. But you don't have to do anything too special. You name each other in your wills. You give each other powers of attorney. You put some stuff in each person's name. Maybe you get a little extra life insurance because you may have to pay inheritance taxes where married folks wouldn't, and because you won't get your dead partner's social security. Other than that, you just work hard on your relationship like anybody else and have faith that you won't break up.
I do think unmarried partners, if they have combined their finances, should definitely look at their net worth as a joint thing. Why wouldn't they?