Engaged couples around Texas and the rest of the United State are writing prenuptial agreements that address more than money. Now, they are including clauses that address things such as their partner’s weight, infidelity and work habits, and even the couple’s sex life.
This is all in an effort to eliminate fears about what might happen to a spouse down the road.
The prenups look at issues such as how much time a spouse watches television, who will do the housework and how many times each week the couple will have sexual relations. The agreement can go so far as to set figures about a maximum number of hours for TV viewing and a minimum number of times the couple will have sex.
One expert said the agreements with such lifestyle clauses included can serve as a road map for what the couple hopes the relationship will be like in the future, calling it a “mission statement.”
One man in his 50s who has never been married said that after a decade with his girlfriend, he wants her to have legal rights afforded to a spouse. The lifestyle clauses convinced him to marry.
A fitness fanatic, the man said he works out and maintains a healthy diet. His girlfriend is less rigid, and he is afraid she could gain weight, which could affect their future sex life. He wants to include a clause that sets a weight target for both.
On the flip side, his girlfriend worries that he will spend more time at work than with her. She said she is alright with the weight clause and has insisted on a clause to address his workaholic habits.
There are some detractors from this trend, saying that if issues such as this need to be worked out then the marriage never will last. The topic is a discussion point for engaged couples, who might find that if they need this sort of micromanagement before the wedding that maybe they aren’t meant for each other.
Source: Staten Island Advance, “Staten Island experts say prenuptial agreements address more than finances,” Elise G. McIntosh, Dec. 4, 2012