July is in the middle of wedding season in the USA. Couples everywhere are making one of the most significant commitments of their lives. Whether this is your first marriage or you are entering this chapter with the wisdom that only lived experience can provide, this season invites a deeper pause and an opportunity to appreciate not only the love story that got you here, but also the financial partnership that will carry you forward.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, most U.S. marriages each year are first marriages, with the average age being 30 for women and 32 for men. Another interesting statistic: 64% of divorced adults ultimately remarry, showing that commitment and partnership continue to be highly valued even after loss or hardship.
Love has a way of finding us again. And whether you’re walking down the aisle for the first time or the fourth, the financial conversations you have now will shape the stability you build together. This is precisely why more and more couples are thinking about which tools, such as prenuptial agreements, can provide clarity right from the start.
For years, many people believed that marriage was only for famous people on their third marriage and only a way for the super-rich to protect their wealth. Nowadays, the theory of relativity is widespread and it is more about thoughtful financial planning. It’s about two people who say: “Let’s decide together how we really want to shape our financial lives before the law decides for us.”
Without an agreement, state laws determine how assets, income and debts are divided. And these laws can be very different. Community property states (including Nevada, California, and Arizona) generally require a 50/50 division of assets, income, and debts acquired during the marriage. A prenuptial agreement allows you to define what “fair” means for your relationship.
And for many couples, the idea of talking about marriage can seem pessimistic when planning a wedding and dreaming of eternity. A prenuptial agreement is not about planning for a divorce. You may want to keep what you brought into the marriage. Maybe you want to protect your family’s money or a business you built long before you met.
You may want to avoid the uncertainty of alimony. Or maybe you just want to outline how you’re growing together financially. A prenuptial agreement is not about mistrust. It’s about transparency, communication and sharing expectations – three pillars of a healthy financial relationship.
The most successful relationships start early with a focus on partnership conversations. Instead of “protecting what’s mine,” shift the frame to: “How are we going to build, protect, and grow what’s ours?”
This opens the door to deeper conversations about what financial security means to each of you, how your childhood memories of money have shaped your relationship with money as an adult, what you want your future to look and feel like, and how you deal with conflict, stress, and big decisions.
Jennifer Markwell
Steps to Talk About Before Marriage
• Estate planning: Speak with an attorney about a possible prenuptial agreement, will, power of attorney and/or instructions
• Combine finances: Decide how you will manage cash flow individually or as a team
• Debt transparency: student loans, credit cards, business debt
• Tax changes: filing status, deductions, credits
• Insurance needs: What is present or must be present for protection
• Retirement Planning: Bringing Schedules, Contributions, and Expectations Together
• Money Conversations: Establish a monthly or quarterly rhythm for financial intimacy
Essential steps for the first weeks or months after saying yes
• Update Beneficiaries: Retirement accounts, life insurance, and any transfer-on-death accounts.
• Check insurance: health, life, disability, home/car, umbrella
• Adjust withholding taxes: Talk to your accountant, as marriage can significantly change your tax situation
• Create a shared budget: shared, separate or hybrid; Choose the system that supports your values
• Reconsider financial goals: home, travel, children, career changes, retirement timelines
If this is your first marriage, everything is new: roles, expectations, habits and dreams. They’re building from scratch, and it’s beautiful. When you remarry, you bring with you wisdom and lived experience. You know what’s important. You know what you want to protect. You know what you want to build differently this time.
Both paths deserve a strong financial foundation. Money is simply the tool that helps you build the life you imagine together.
Jennifer Rogers Markwell is President/CEO of Platinum Wealth Management and host of the Platinum Talks Wealth podcast.
https://www.nnbw.com/news/2026/jul/23/smart-money-the-heart-of-wedding-season/
