When you have gotten married for a second time, it is important that you consider making changes to your estate plan to include your new spouse and any children currently involved. It is also important to keep in mind the fairness factor and how it affects your new marriage and all kids involved. It is important to understand the issues involving finances and the second marriage and when they are understood, your estate plan can be reshaped. Below are a few reasons why you should create an estate plan for the second marriage.
Keep All Children In Mind
When you have children from a previous marriage and plan to have children with your second spouse, it is important that your estate plan reflects that. This needs to be made clear regardless of what a spouse thinks because the children from a previous marriage don’t go away after divorce.
Having children listed in an estate plan also means there should be provisions already in place. When you plan to have more children with your second wife, another trust may need to be made so that your current spouse is able to obtain their fair share of marital assets while allowing the children to receive theirs.
To Include New Beneficiaries
Having new beneficiaries means your old beneficiaries will need updating after you have remarried. This means you will need to name your second spouse as your beneficiary or open a trust so that only your current spouse has access to your assets.
You also should include your new spouse in all titled assets such as real estate. In order to keep things simple, you should have your spouse added as a joint tenant with the right of survivorship for any home you own. If you do though, this allows your spouse to become the owner if you die. This allows them to do whatever they wish with the home and property no matter what your will had previously stated.
It Can Fill in the Gaps
When it comes to being fair, you need to be able to have gaps filled so that assets do not become jeopardized. A good example is not having a will. In this case, the laws governing inheritance would be in effect and the assets will be distributed in accordance to the law and not how you intended.
Having a trust as part of the estate plan can be useful when assets need to be passed on as well as taxes and the estate being managed. When there is a considerable amount of assets involved, the trust will be able to maintain control of the assets.
Get Your Second Marriage Estate Plan Created
Having an estate plan created for your second marriage is an important step to take when you have a current one in place. You only need to have it updated to reflect your new spouse and any children and you are set. So if you need any further clarification about the process, get in touch with Kanzer Law today.