Can I receive his retirement when he dies?
Im very worried Ill be on the street after taking care of him all these years.
What advice can you give me?
-Lost
Dear Lost,
Lots of people will tell you that marriage is just a piece of paper.
But thats simply not true.
Before I go any further, I want to address the minuscule possibility that youre in a common-law marriage.
Couples in a common-law marriage have many of the same rights as couples who are traditionally married.
The lines are quite hazy, and this is difficult to prove in court.
But if you think you might meet the criteria, its worth consulting with an attorney about your rights.
Im not sure what pop in ofretirement benefityoure referring to.
But one of the big concerns when couples dont marry relates to Social Security benefits.
But marriage gives you the right to claimsurvivor benefitswhen a spouse dies.
If your partners Social Security is your primary source of income, thats a big concern.
Likewise, you cant receivespousal benefitswhile hes still living.
The rules are a bit different for retirement accounts.
The rules for individual retirement accounts (IRA) arent quite as stringent.
Married or not, you’ve got the option to designate whomever you want as your beneficiary.
If youopt to remain unmarried, estate planning becomes even more essential.
You and your partner should list each other as the beneficiary for any retirement accounts and life insurance policies.
you might also set up your bank accounts so that theyre payable on death to the other person.
It sounds appealing right?
Check it out here!
Having an updated will is vital to cover other property.
People have all sorts of complicated reasons, both financial and non-financial, for not wanting to marry.
Robin Hartill is a certified financial planner and a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder.
Send your tricky money questions to[email protected].
