Here she tells ANNA PURSGLOVE how she succeeded …Last spring, I flew to New York for a date with a man I had not met before.

As I walked ­towards the arrivals lounge I frantically smoothed down my clothes, fretting that my carefully selected wardrobe (Moschino shirt, Mulberry holdall and fake-but-convincing diamond earrings) wouldn’t be showy enough to impress an American multi-millionaire.

(We’ve changed names to protect privacy.) In fact, her dating site hooked her up with someone who was only looking to scam her out of her life savings—and, sadly, he succeeded.A recent survey showed most women still dream of marrying a millionaire.A year ago Kim Perez, 43 and working in a chemist’s shop, set out to fulfil that ambition.What if you establish a common law marriage in a state that recognizes it and move to another state that doesn't?A state that doesn’t provide for common law marriages will still recognize one if it was properly formed in a state that does provide for them.Many people believe that if you live with a person for a long time you’re automatically married—that you have what is called a common law marriage, with the same rights and responsibilities of a couple who has been legally married. In these states, marriage requires a license and ceremony.Only a dozen or so states recognize common law marriage: In a few other states, common law marriages will be recognized if they were created before the date the practice was abolished.