Marriage offers many benefits for those who choose to embark on the lifelong journey of matrimonial bliss. These advantages apply in estate planning and property law as well. One of the most notable estate planning benefits gained through marriage is the shared capacity of spouses to own property as a tenancy by the entirety (TBE). This form of property ownership serves to protect property owned by the couple from creditors’ claims against a single spouse’s property. TBE property also avoids probate on the death of the first spouse and neutralizes the loss of the estate tax exemption resulting from the marital deduction. There are a number of methods to take full advantage of TBE.
See George Karibjanian, The “Extra” Marital Benefits Gained Through Tenancy by the Entirety, Wealth Management.com, November 2, 2017.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.) for bringing this article to my attention.
