'Kimye' will reportedly purchase a home together

If there's one thing that the Kardashians know how to do, it is making (and staying in the) headlines. In our last post, we reported on how Kim Kardashian and rapper Kanye West announced that they were expecting their first child in 2013. Now it appears that they will be moving in together.

This is not just another couple shacking up in a small apartment. West and Kardashian will reportedly purchase a 9,000 square foot home in Bel Air listed at $10.75 million. Sources close to the pair will do some remodeling to put their signature on the property before actually moving in.

The announcement is also intriguing given that celebrities commonly keep new home purchases private until they are completed. There's nothing more invasive than millions of fans knowing where you will live before you even move. Also intriguing is the characterization of ownership over the property, especially given that West and Kardashian are not married.

We can only assume how much each party is contributing to the purchase, but one thing is helpful for our readers to know. Without marriage, each party's contribution to real property purchases is presumed to be separate property. This could also be applied to improvements on the property that increase (or decrease) its value. When married couples purchase a property, it is presumed that their contributions are marital property, and the benefits (or increases to property values) are shared.

The underlying message is that unmarried parties can benefit from having a written agreement regarding how property decisions should be made should the relationship sour. If you have additional questions, an experienced family law attorney can help

Source: HuffingtonPost.com, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West househunting in L.A., January 9, 2013