There’s no ruling out money financial problems, especially in a relationship. Whether you’re married or still down to the fifth date, there’s bound to be a couple of financial spats between the both. A study conducted in 2011 found that married couples who disagreed about money once a week were twice as likely to divorce as those who quarreled less than once a month. This is possibly because of money arguments go way beyond finances.
Authors of “First Comes Love, Then Comes Money: A Couple’s Guide to Financial Communication”, say that money decisions are such personal decisions, which is why they can lead to nasty fights. Communicating with your partner is key when it comes to resolving money issues with your partner, if not to help understand your partner’s financial habits. Here are a few tips to help you both manage your finances as a married couple, while working on your marriage.
Be Honest About Your Expenses
There’s no denying just how much we’d love to splurge, even when your partner does approve of it, but being financially transparent is the foundation of good financial health in a marriage. Just as you would want your partner to tell you what he’s been doing in his spare time, you’d want him to tell you what he’s been spending on so that you both can work on your finances properly.
Share Information About Credit Scores
If you’re not married but plan to move in together or settle down, you both may want to share everything about your financial past, especially if it has to do with credit card debt, student and bank loans. Share your credit reports and tax returns so that before you take the leap into something more serious, you’ll know how to manage each other’s finances.
Devise An Effective Budget
Create an effective budget plan for both you and your partner. A budget list provides factual information about what you should spend on, and with numbers in black and white, you can both have a discussion without any disagreements. And even if one of you goes out of the budget, just be realistic that people do want to spend on things, so be as flexible as you can with the budget to keep any arguments at bay.
Understand Your Money Personality
People come with different spending styles, and it’s not as simple as someone who is thrifty or just a big spender. Some people are bad with money in general, but there are some who are smart with the purchases. Once you learn about each other’s money personalities, you can both work out a way for a compromise. If one’s a spender and the other’s a saver, it’s no denying just how many arguments there’d be at home.
