Prenups and Retirement Planning: Saying “I Do” In Later Life
Prenups and retirement planning don’t sound like a match made in heaven — but there’s a growing need for them to go hand in hand. Around 11,400 U.S. adults will celebrate their 65th birthday in 2025, and an increasing number of them will be celebrating a new marriage in their senior years — or experiencing the end of one.
According to a 2024 Bowling Green University study, over-65s are the only age group in the U.S. who’ve experienced an increase in remarriage rates. A different study noted that this is the only age group with an increasing divorce rate, and around one in three adults getting divorced (36%) is aged 50 or older.
While finding love later in life is something to be celebrated, the unique nature of a retiree’s assets can become a problem for older spouses if the marriage doesn’t last. And that’s where a prenup comes in.
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“For individuals entering marriage during retirement, a prenuptial agreement is an essential component of sound financial and estate planning,” says Amy Zamikovsky, a senior financial adviser and attorney at Transform Wealth in Houston, Texas.
“Unlike younger couples who typically build wealth jointly, retirees often bring established assets, income streams, and various family expectations and obligations into the marriage,” she said.
An older couple contemplating marriage is likely to face the following issues:
- Fixed incomes usually remain fixed. The higher earner in retirement typically has a fixed set of assets, including pensions, retirement accounts, real estate or business holdings. “These assets will not significantly grow or be replenished,” says Kimberly Miller, founder and chief divorce educator at PartWise, in St. Paul, Minnesota. “This creates a heightened need to preserve wealth intended for their own security and possibly for heirs.”
- Income limitations. Retirees often live on a predictable stream of income, such as Social Security and annuities. “That makes asset protection critical,” Miller says.
- Legacy concerns. There’s usually a strong desire to protect inheritances for adult children or grandchildren from a prior relationship.
- Health care and long-term care costs. “Potential obligations for a new spouse’s care can threaten a retiree’s financial stability if not clearly addressed,” Miller warns.
- Complicated Social Security benefits. A remarriage can also affect spousal or survivor benefits from previous marriages. “That makes clarity on financial dependency essential,” she adds.
Protecting retirement income with a prenup
Considering that family finances may be a touchy subject, if not completely taboo, it’s best to proceed with a prenuptial plan carefully and thoroughly. These action steps can help you complete that journey and, more importantly, set the stage for a healthy marriage.
Be realistic. For retirees (and everyone else, for that matter), a prenup should be viewed as a financial planning tool, not a sign of lack of trust or as a prediction of relationship breakdown.
“Couples should discuss how they want to handle property division, spousal support, and inheritances, especially if either partner has children from a previous marriage,” says Amanda Baron, co-founder of Jointly, a Vancouver, Canada-based legal technology company specializing in family law. “Working with professionals who understand both family law and financial planning ensures the agreement meets their unique needs.”
Document everything. Retirees should begin by listing all assets, including pensions, real estate, investments, debts and anticipated inheritances.
“The goal is to clarify what each partner is bringing into the marriage and decide what should be kept separate,” Baron says. “For the higher earner, protecting retirement income, real estate and estate plans is often the priority.”
A prenup should especially be coordinated with existing wills and trusts to avoid accidental conflicts. “Consulting a lawyer is essential to ensure both partners fully understand their rights and obligations,” Baron adds.
Additionally, focus on protecting what really matters to a retiree likely living on a fixed income. “That includes retirement savings and income streams, real estate owned before the marriage, inheritance plans for children and grandchildren, and freedom from responsibility for a new spouse’s pre-existing debts and any other needs, such as health care,” Miller explains.
Define property-related expectations. “Generally, assets acquired before marriage can remain individual property, but it’s best to clearly outline all of this and then determine what will happen to assets created together during the marriage,” Miller says.
Define spousal support expectations. If there’s been a candid conversation about spousal support already, now’s the time to clarify it. “This is important for budgeting and preventing future disputes,” Miller notes. “Also include health-care and end-of-life directives or reference existing documents to avoid confusion later.”
The primary residence matters a great deal. The marital residence is often one of the most significant assets retirees bring into a new marriage, both financially and emotionally.
“A prenuptial agreement should address ownership, ongoing expenses (including taxes, insurance, and maintenance), and the non-owning spouse’s rights, if any, to continue living in the home upon the other’s death or in the event of divorce,” Zamikovsky says.
Provisions such as a life estate or buyout terms can prevent future disputes and protect the interests of both parties and their respective heirs. “Ensuring alignment on this issue is especially important when the home is already owned by one party or if adult children are involved in future inheritance plans,” she adds.
Consider a mediator. In many prenuptial cases, it’s better to go through mediation rather than individual attorneys.
“This keeps costs and conflict lower, as they are in the same room having these difficult conversations rather than going through litigious attorneys,” says Kristyn Carmichael, family attorney and divorce financial analyst at Couples Solutions Center, in Phoenix, Arizona.
“Most prenuptial agreements will have an attorney review during the process, but having a mediator shortens their timeline and helps them work together to find solutions,” she said.
A good mediator will keep the focus on these key issues, Carmichael says:
- How to keep all assets and debts separate
- Inheritance for children or other relatives (these will be covered in a will and trust, but can be a good discussion for a prenup)
- How spouses will share everyday expenses
- What happens if either spouse becomes ill or incapacitated, and how long-term care or other medical bills would be handled
How much does it cost to have an attorney draft a prenuptial agreement?
The average cost for an attorney-drafted prenuptial agreement can range from $5,000 to $8,000 per couple, according to a 2024 survey of attorneys by HelloPrenup. If the process isn’t complicated, that price can fall to $2,000.
On an hourly rate, expect nuptial process work to cost between $250 and $500 per hour for attorneys, and between $100 and $350 per hour for a mediator.
“For retirees, this investment is modest compared to the financial and emotional costs of a contested divorce,” Baron says. “Prenups for later-in-life couples are often more complex, requiring careful consideration of pensions, inheritances and existing property.”
Marrying in retirement without a prenup
Combining assets can be risky, but the stakes can become higher if you enter into a marriage near or in retirement without asset protection in place.
“Without a prenup, retirees expose themselves to standard family law rules, which vary by location, and are not typically designed for couples with blended families or established estates in mind,” Baron says.
For instance, a new spouse may be entitled to a share of retirement savings, property or support payments, even if those assets were meant for adult children or other heirs.
“This can lead to unintended disinheritance and family conflict,” Baron adds. “A prenup prevents these issues by making clear how property and finances will be handled.”
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