For physical therapists
Do physical therapists need a prenup?
For many, the reason is debt, not assets. Most PTs finish a doctorate with six figures of student loans, and many marry as the lower earner in a two-income household. A prenup lets you both agree in advance how that debt and income gap are handled. Neptune is the lawyer-led online prenup service: both partners get their own lawyer for one flat fee.
Flat fee of $5,000 per couple. No payment to get started.
The debt math
The DPT changed the equation
The move to a clinical doctorate raised the cost of becoming a physical therapist faster than PT salaries rose. The result is a familiar pattern: a strong, steady income that starts out running behind a large education debt. That gap is the reason many PTs think about a prenup.
About 9 in 10
Early-career PTs carrying debt
Most physical therapists start their careers with student loans still on the books.
Six figures
Typical DPT education debt
The doctorate in physical therapy commonly leaves graduates with over $100,000 in education loans.
Around $100K
Median full-time PT income
A meaningful salary, but one that often trails the debt load in the first years out of school.
A prenup does not erase debt, but it lets the two of you decide clearly how it is treated: whose it is, how it is repaid, and what happens if shared income goes toward it. That is protection for both partners.
Where the income comes from
Insurance-based, cash-based, or a mix
How you practice shapes both how much you earn and how steady it is. A prenup can reflect that, whether you are salaried in a busy clinic or building something of your own.
Insurance-based clinics
Most PTs work in insurance-driven settings, where reimbursement rates shape a high-volume, salaried model. Income is steadier but tends to sit lower, and private outpatient practice is often the lowest-paying setting.
Cash-based and hybrid practice
A growing number of PTs build or join cash-pay clinics, or add self-employment on top of a salary. That mix can raise income, but it also adds business ownership and variable cash flow to the picture.
The two-income dynamic
Being the lower earner is a reason to want a prenup, not to avoid one
Physical therapists frequently marry partners who earn more, sometimes far more. It is easy to assume a prenup only helps the higher earner. In practice, an agreement can protect the PT too: it can keep each partner’s separate debt separate, set mutual expectations about savings and support, and replace default rules a court would otherwise apply with terms the two of you actually chose. Clarity tends to protect the partner with less financial cushion the most.
What a prenup can address
Six areas that matter for a physical therapist
DPT student debt in the marriage
Loans for your physical therapy doctorate usually start as separate debt when you marry. But if shared income goes toward repayment, the picture can blur. A prenup can describe how your DPT debt and its repayment are handled.
An income gap between partners
PTs are frequently the lower earner in a two-income household. A prenup can set clear, mutual expectations about property, savings, and support so a gap in income does not become a source of uncertainty later.
A cash-based practice you build
If you open or buy into a cash-pay clinic, you create a business with its own value. A prenup can address how a practice built during the marriage, and the income it produces, is characterized.
Your license and earning capacity
Your DPT, board certification, and any specialty credentials represent years of investment. A prenup can address how the earning capacity these credentials enable is considered.
Retirement contributions
Whether you save through an employer plan or a self-employed retirement account, a prenup can address how contributions made before versus during the marriage are treated.
Debt each partner brings in
A prenup is not only about protecting assets. It can also protect each of you from the other partner’s separate debts, which matters when one of you carries a large education balance.
How Neptune works
Three steps, both partners represented
Guided intake for clinicians
Answer questions about your DPT debt, your work setting, whether you are salaried or building a practice, and how your income compares with your partner’s. Plain language throughout.
Your own attorney, free consultation
Each partner is connected with a separate, licensed attorney who can review how student debt, an income gap, and any practice ownership fit into your agreement.
A finished agreement
Your attorneys draft an agreement that reflects a physical therapist’s finances. Turnaround is typically around 3 to 4 weeks when both partners use Neptune attorneys.
Transparent pricing
One flat fee. Two independent attorneys.
Each partner gets their own licensed attorney. One drafts the agreement; the other reviews it on behalf of the second partner.
$5,000
per couple, total
Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days. No payment required to get started.
Guides for you
Guides on assets, debt, and equity
Start with the guides other couples read before they begin, then take the next step when you are ready.
Common questions from physical therapists
Should a physical therapist get a prenup even without big assets?
Often the reason a physical therapist considers a prenup is not assets at all, it is debt. Most PTs finish a doctorate with six figures of student loans, and many are the lower earner in a two-income marriage. A prenup lets you and your partner agree in advance how that debt and any income gap are handled, which can protect both of you. It is a planning tool, not a sign of doubt about the relationship.
How is my DPT student debt treated if we divorce?
Student loans you took on before marriage generally begin as your separate debt. But if marital income is used to pay them down, the picture can get more complicated. Rules for dividing property and debt differ from state to state, and your attorney can review what applies where you live. A prenup can make clear how your DPT debt and its repayment are treated so nothing is left ambiguous.
I earn less than my partner. What does a prenup do for me?
A prenup protects both partners, including the one who earns less. It can set mutual expectations about how property and savings are shared, how each partner’s separate debt is handled, and what support looks like, rather than leaving those questions to a court applying default rules. Being the lower earner is often a reason to want a prenup, not a reason to avoid one.
What if I want to open a cash-based clinic?
A cash-pay practice is a business with real value, and building one during the marriage raises how that value is characterized. A prenup can describe how a practice you start or buy into, and the income it generates, is treated. Your attorney can review how to structure the agreement around a practice you plan to build.
What does it cost and how long does it take?
Neptune charges a flat fee of $5,000 per couple, which covers two independent attorneys, one for each partner. No payment is required to get started. Turnaround is typically around 3 to 4 weeks when both partners use Neptune attorneys. Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days.