Financial Tips for Unmarried Couples

5. Get your health care papers in order. If you’re older, health care concerns loom larger. You’ll have no legal right to make medical decisions for a partner who becomes incapacitated. You may even be denied visitation rights at the hospital.

To avoid this situation, you can each sign a health medical release to allow the other to see medical information. A health-care proxy will allow you to make health care decisions on the other’s behalf.

6. Think power of attorney. If you’re certain you’ll be together till death do you part, you may want to sign durable power-of-attorney documents conferring rights to make one another’s financial decisions and to have access to bank accounts if necessary.

Keep in mind that you may want to limit some of your partner’s ability to manage your funds, especially regarding the possible transfer of your funds to his or her accounts.

7. Act quickly if things go sour. Finally, advises Timins, “If your predictions for the future don’t work out and you do part company, make haste to change all of the above!”