If you live in one of the 9 states that have community property laws, it`s a good idea to know what the term means and how it applies to you. If you divorce, how your assets are divided will depend on whether or not you live in a state belonging to the community. Married couples and couples in domestic partnerships may enter into a joint property agreement under which all their property, separated and joint, becomes common property after the death of the first deceased spouse or partner.1 Such an agreement can also be used to immediately characterize all the couple`s current property and all property acquired in the future as community property. Sixth, even with a community property agreement, you need a will to appoint personal representatives, guardians of minor children and deviate from Washington legal norms (para. B example, by granting a non-intervention and non-binding status to a personal representative). A community ownership agreement is an agreement between spouses or domestic partners registered by the state to characterize their property as community property. Usually, each asset is characterized by married couples and domestic partners as community property or as separate property, depending on when and how the property was acquired. The characterization of property affects the legal rights and interests that each spouse or partner has in the property. A community ownership contract merely converts separate property into community ownership; the property does not “give” to anyone.
It is expected that all property in the community will be automatically transferred to the surviving spouse or life partner in accordance with the laws of filiation and distribution in intestate. Unlike a will, which is more flexible, a common property agreement cannot be used to make binding gifts to people other than the surviving spouse or life partner. Washington is a community-owned state, which means that all properties in Washington State are either community properties or separate properties. Separate property is what was owned before the marriage or received during the marriage as a gift or inheritance. All other property acquired during the marriage as a result of your work is community property. Third, an agreement on community ownership may result in involuntary disinheritance. A community ownership contract takes precedence over an inconsistent will dated before the community ownership contract. Domaine de Lyman, 7 Wash.
App. 945, 503 P.2d 1127 (1972), confirmed, 82 Wn.2d 693, 512 P.2d 1093 (1973). If a person`s will contains a gift of half of that spouse`s joint property to a person other than the spouse of the deceased, that gift is rejected by a common property agreement. Community property is a principle of law that applies to Washington and eight other states. In these states, a spouse or registered partner owns 50% of the total property acquired during the marriage or domestic partnership. Unless the couple has agreed otherwise in writing, this includes money earned during marriage or domestic partnership and anything that was purchased with that money. An exception to separate ownership is when you bring your separated belongings into a marriage and “mix” them with community property. This means that it can no longer be identified as your separate property and has effectively become common property – so your spouse is entitled to fifty percent.
Since Washington is a state of communal property, it is assumed that all property acquired during marriage is communities and therefore belongs to the husband and wife. It doesn`t matter if the spouses are not Washington residents, but as long as they acquire property during their marriage, it is considered community property. The spouses can enter into an agreement on their community property, including real estate in Washington, which will then be held or acquired in the future to take effect upon the death of both. The net effect is the transfer of U.S. real estate into Washington State when one of the spouses passes to the surviving spouse. Similarly, the agreement can achieve the same result for U.S. citizens, U.S. tax residents, and/or Canadian and non-U.S. citizens. Resident spouses who own “community real estate” in Washington State.
However, once a marriage takes place, the rules for future owners change. Every money earned and every item purchased from one of the spouses becomes “community property” and belongs to the marriage. That is, both partners have a fifty percent ownership claim. This can become especially important in estate planning – or during a divorce, when community property is usually divided equally between the couple. Second, the community property estate planning agreement creates a trap for the unwary. Community property is subject to different presumptions than separate property when it is divided between spouses by the divorce courts. .
