Buying a home before getting married? Here’s why you may want to consider a prenup.

More and more couples are purchasing homes together before getting married. Weddings can often take months (or years) to plan, and couples may want to go through the home-buying process first so it doesn’t interfere with wedding planning. Both buying a home and funding a wedding can have major impacts on a couple’s finances, so spacing out these large purchases can be beneficial.

The timing to buy a home may also be dictated by the real estate market. In a competitive market, couples may need to move quickly to purchase a house and don’t have the luxury of waiting until after their wedding

Whether it’s an intentional decision or simply the way the timing works out, purchasing a home with your spouse-to-be before marriage creates a legal and financial connection between you.

Buying a home is often one of the largest financial transactions you’ll make. It may require a large down payment, and couples may not be able to contribute equally due to factors like pre-existing debt, personal savings, or family gifts. This is a situation where a prenuptial agreement can be extremely beneficial.

Why prenuptial agreements are important. 

Prenuptial agreements protect assets and provide clarity. They allow couples to plan together how their assets would be divided if the marriage were to end, rather than leaving that decision for the future, in the hope that their marriage will be successful and the assets will never need to be divided.

But no one knows what the future may bring. If your marriage does break down and you and your spouse are unable to reach an agreement, the division of your assets will be determined by the court — which may not align with what you and your partner would choose for yourself. This is especially true if you’ve spent time building assets before marriage and use these premarital assets toward buying a home together.

Why a prenup is especially important if you’ve bought a home before marriage

Prenuptial agreements can be especially important when you’ve purchased a home with your partner prior to getting married.

Here’s why …

If you purchase a jointly titled home after you’re married, it’s considered marital property because it is purchased during the marriage, typically with income or assets earned during the marriage (known as marital funds).

But when you buy a jointly titled home before getting married, you’re putting your separate, premarital money, such as personal savings, family gifts or prior earnings, into what will become a marital asset after you are married. Your and your future spouse’s separate contributions may not be equal, but the law will treat them as commingled in the marital home upon marriage.

In circumstances like these, a prenuptial agreement can protect your premarital investment in the marital home if you were to divorce. A carefully crafted prenuptial can safeguard and prevent disputes over each person’s separate contributions to a jointly titled home purchased before marriage.

Through the prenup process, you and your partner can decide in advance how the marital home would be divided. The agreement can detail how each person should be credited for their separate investment, and how any additional equity from a future sale would be distributed (for example, in proportion to their initial contributions).

Reaching a shared agreement now about how to handle your property in a potential future separation is far better than leaving the decision up to the future in what could become a lengthy and expensive process.

Final thoughts

Prenuptial agreements are about providing protection and peace of mind. If you and your partner decide to purchase a home before marriage, you should also decide how to address dividing the property if you were to ever divorce.

Marina Barannik and Kelly Frye are family law attorneys at Tucker. If you’ve purchased or are planning to purchase a home before marriage or want clarity and control over how your assets would be divided if you were to divorce, our family law attorneys can help you put the right protections in place. We’ll work with you to create a prenuptial agreement that reflects your priorities, protects your investment, and supports your relationship for the long term.