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Married Ladies-Name change question

MaggieandJakeMaggieandJake member
First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment
in Minnesota-Minneapolis and St. Paul
For those of you who are already married and changed your name-how easy was it to do it?  I'm considering using a site that has all of the paperwork in one place and you pay $30 for it, but I'm not sure if it's worth it.  I'm considering it for the convenience of putting in my info and having it fill out all of my paperwork at once and also not having to hunt down all of the proper forms.

Any thoughts?
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Re: Married Ladies-Name change question

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    lboerner88lboerner88 member
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    edited December 2011
    Huh I didn't know sites like that existed! It really wasn't that bad. First you have to go down to the Social Security office in St. Paul. Depending on what day/time you go there, there could be a long wait. I only had to wait 30 minutes, in the middle of a Thursday. Then I went to the DMV and then did everything else either in person or via fax (credit cards, checking account, savings account, mortgage, utilities, memberships, etc.). I still don't have my new name on everything! 


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    wittyschaffywittyschaffy member
    Combo Breaker First Anniversary First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Don't spend the money!  I'm super protective of my personal information because my Dad's identity has been stolen before.  You'd be giving them all the tools they'd need to steal your identity if their security was ever breached or they had an unethical employee. 

    It really isn't that big of a deal.  DMV you  just go to the counter and tell them you're changing your name.  They get you a new DL and depending on how old your other one is, you may need a new photo. (I did)  SS takes a little bit of time on the waiting in line department but I basically decided to take an afternoon off and just do all of it at once.  You don't need one for the other (DL and SS card) so you can do them consecutively without issue. 
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    kaylas16kaylas16
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    edited December 2011
    Glad this topic was brought up again :) thanks for the info ladies!!  This week I realized that I need to do all this soon! CRAZY!
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    Steph0871Steph0871
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    edited December 2011
    Ditto what Witty said... you don't want to give an additional company all of your information, and you don't want to waste the money ;)

    It really wasn't that hard to do, promise!  I went to the SS office and DMV the day before Thanksgivign, and waited less than 5 minutes at each location. You do need to wait until your marriage license arrives in the mail before you can do either.

    After those, I had to wait for my new SS Card before I could change my name with HR at work.  Everything else (Credit Cards, utilities, student loans, credit bureaus), I sent an official letter to them, and included a copy (just a B/W copy) of the marriage license.  I figured this is the one time I can do the old-fashioned work to make sure they have everything they needed.  I used this (<link) letter form, and just changed the addresses as needed. I think I had to send out 12 of those? ha.

    BUT it was totally worth it. I had no issues two months ago when we went to apply for our mortgage. My name was accurately updated everywhere. (Well, except Comcast, but they suck anyway.)
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    kaylas16kaylas16
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    edited December 2011
    So Steph,  you just used that letter template and mailed it in to all of your different accounts and everything?  After you sent them that, the different companies just changed your info with no further correspondence?

    That seems so simple!  Ha, I was expecting to be making 8 million phone calls and everything to change stuff.
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    kaylas16kaylas16
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    edited December 2011
    For some reason I am really concerned about changing my name in the middle of the CPA exam process.  I just feel like things are going to get messed up and screw me over.  Yup, just me being overly paranoid.
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    Steph0871Steph0871
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    edited December 2011
    Kayla- you might want to check with someone in that field. I'd be worried about all the official documentation? But, yes, I just sent that letter to everyone.  Then there is written documentation. I know my student loans required something in writing anyway (I tried just calling.)  I just made sure to save a copy of each letter I sent, with the date on the letter, in case there were issues. But I never ran into problems. I made sure to send a copy of the marriage certificate, too, though as proof of my name change.

    I DID keep my maiden name as my middle name, though.  That was helpful for awhile, because I got my new driver's license before some of my CCs. (I have 'see ID' written on all cards, too.)
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    kaylas16kaylas16
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    edited December 2011
    Awesome, thanks for the info. 

    And yes, I'll def be calling the CPA folks :)
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    I Want CakeI Want Cake
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    edited December 2011
    I didn't have a problem doing it the old-fashioned way, either.  We went to the SSA office in Minneapolis first and it took us nearly an hour because they were kind of busy, but that was the longest it took me to do anything.  The DMV was pretty quick, but I had to get a new picture, too.  The only thing I needed to have for anything, including work, was a copy of the marriage certifiate.  I wouldn't pay anyone to do it, since you have to show up in person for a lot of this stuff anyway.
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    MaggieandJakeMaggieandJake member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment
    edited December 2011
    thanks for all of the advice ladies!  I will save my money and do it the old fashioned way ;)
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    graysquirrelgraysquirrel member
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    edited December 2011
    I was just wondering the same things-- thank you for posting this & for all the responses! I was getting nervous thinking about the whole process. 
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    kengirl16kengirl16 member
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    edited December 2011
    This is all really good advice! Question about passports and name changes though. If we're planning on honeymooning out of town a month after the wedding, should I wait to change my name until I get back so I can use my old passport? How do other brides handle this?
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    Steph0871Steph0871
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    edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_minnesota-minneapolis-st-paul_married-ladies-name-change-question?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:81Discussion:adef1627-c7f4-48bb-b3d7-527c1484d936Post:04ac28c3-8846-49ea-aeb9-e72c074d8fe5">Re: Married Ladies-Name change question</a>:
    [QUOTE]This is all really good advice! Question about passports and name changes though. If we're planning on honeymooning out of town a month after the wedding, should I wait to change my name until I get back so I can use my old passport? How do other brides handle this?
    Posted by kengirl16[/QUOTE]

    <div>YES. Book the tickets in your maiden name.  You can't apply for your passport until after you have the marriage license (takes like 3-5 business days? I can't remember. Around a week, I think.) And then the passport takes forever to get to you.  I'd play it safe and just travel in your maiden name.  </div>
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