Common law couples or those who are married for the second time have more inherent estate planning issues than married couples. If one partner dies before the other, the survivor may end up owning property with the deceased’s children. Assets can be too little or too much when the deceased partner’s children are also beneficiaries. Retirement plans if left to the survivor could also be heavily taxed. It’s best to seek financial help to ensure that both the surviving partner is compensated while avoiding these common pitfalls.

Key Takeaways:

• Estate planning can be difficult as each partner may bring into the relationship different or uneven financial needs like own children’s needs, having their own property; past obligations.
• An advantage of common-law spouses and couples in second marriages holding real estate as tenants in common is that their ownership can be transferred to whomever they wish.
• Certain types of assets can pass more efficiently to a surviving spouse or common-law partner than to children.

“Talking about dying and proactively planning for it can be difficult, but it is easier for married couples who started with nothing and built their nest egg together. Common-law couples and those who remarry may [want to] manage their financial affairs separately.”

Read more: https://business.financialpost.com/personal-finance/for-common-law-couples-estate-planning-is-full-of-pitfalls-heres-how-to-avoid-some-of-them