A prenup, or prenuptial agreement, is a contract between two people before marriage that outlines how your assets, income, and debts will be divided if you get divorced. Without it, you leave your future in the hands of the court, which may not favor you.

Ideally, you should complete your prenup a month or two before your wedding. However, even a week or two before is better than waiting until it’s too late. The earlier, the better!

Without a prenup, you’re at the mercy of the court. If you get divorced, you could lose half of your assets, income, and even things you brought into the marriage. A judge could decide to split everything down the middle, including your retirement and savings.

I had a client with $20 million in assets who didn’t get a prenup. He married and put his spouse’s name on everything, including a house and car. When they divorced, he lost half of what he worked hard to build. With a prenup, he could have protected his assets and kept what was his.