Morgan Mazor
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Morgan Mazor, a 37-year-old partner at Bender & Crane who practices matrimonial law. It’s been edited for length and clarity.
The thing that I’ve noticed the most with Gen Z is that the stigma around talking about money has really changed.
I’m a millennial. My parents always told me, “We don’t talk about money.” You’re not supposed to ask about how much money anybody makes. You don’t ask somebody how much they spent on their house or how much something costs. What are their spending habits? How much debt does somebody have?
Even when I was dating, it wasn’t a discussed factor. Gen Zers have opened up the door to talking about it.
There were also much more traditional trajectories. Somebody would eventually stay home and raise their children. Now I’m asking, “Are you going to have children?” That’s not automatic.
Whether or not someone will stop working is definitely on the back burner. Everyone is on board that we have to be a two-income household.
Gen Z is absolutely more open to prenups.
I can see the trend that prenups are not this, “Oh no, if we’re doing this, we’re going to get divorced.” It’s just another one of those check boxes of things that you do now for financial planning.
For millennials and older, prenups were more about families that had money pushing them. I see Gen Zers that realize their potential, that may not have the money already, but are thinking, “I’m a young professional. I have these career aspirations.” They’re coming to a prenup thinking things we never thought about before.
It’s about those young professionals on the cusp of their careers. I could even talk about Jeff Bezos. It was amicable, but it was likely one of the most expensive divorces ever. Things like that could have been worked out in a prenup.
What will be interesting about Gen Z is the digital entrepreneur. If these younger kids are focusing on making money through digital influencing, how do you capture that income? How do you value that? That’s something you may want to carve out in a prenup.
I’ve had clients come to me and be like, “We’ve already talked about it. This is what we want to do.” I’ll come in and draft it, then it gets sent to the other spouse’s lawyer, and there’s pushback. When I had older clients, they would want me to have the conversations with the lawyers and try to figure it out.
I see the younger generation sit down, go home, and have that conversation with their future spouse. They’re willing to do that face-to-face; they’re not hiding behind a lawyer or a parent.
I think that also creates healthier relationships because you have the same expectations financially. Besides infidelity, financial things are really what break marriages in the end.
The post I’m a family law attorney. I’ve found my Gen Z clients are more willing to talk openly about finances — and prenups appeared first on Business Insider.
