Marrying for money; it happens a lot. Gold diggers!
If my parent is wealthy, I want to keep gold diggers away. I know that if my parent marries that gold digger will have legal rights (a right to my parent’s assets, i.e. they can legally steal my inheritance). Is there any way to keep gold diggers away?
Keeping people away is hard. Isolation is elder abuse. The best way to beat a gold digger is to make sure that you visit your parent daily and ensure that your parent doesn’t get lonely. If they are falling in love, there is not much you can do except make sure that your parent insists on a prenup and updates their Will and Trust right after they are married.
If your parent has any form of dementia, you want to make sure that as soon as they are widowed that you update all their legal documents so that a child is co-trustee and has power of attorney (this will help prevent them from mortgaging their home or giving away assets).
I am encouraging all my over 60-year-old clients to update their Trust and add a child as Co-Trustee. With this arrangement, they will have someone to act if one day they can’t sign a check. Their child can watch over them and help them if they start making bad decisions.
Be careful and think before getting married.
