Marriage and Money are two words that can create a lot of conflict. When you were single, you only had to worry about handling your finances. But once you are in a life partnership, marriage and money is a very important part of the relationship. In fact, the way couples manage their marriage and money can make or break a relationship. Read this great article below on how to make marriage and money work!
Your Relationships and Money for Personal Finance
Relationships in many regards are a great deal like your own personal finances. Your relationships take a great deal of dedication, organization, communication, understanding, goal setting, deposits and withdrawals. Your finances require the exact same amount of work, organization, understanding, goal setting, deposits and withdrawals. both are inexplicably connected in many ways and if one encounters some sort of hurdle the other will likely be adversely affected. Here are several ways you can manage your money and your relationships and watch both grow amazingly together.
GOAL SETTING: Where will you be in 5 or ten years? This could be a wonderful conversation starter for you and your mate. The beauty of this topic is money management can easily be connected with relationship goals. Your mate might not be happy with his or her current occupation and has dreams of starting his or her own business or going back to university. The two of you can discuss what steps need to be taken to accommodate each of your unique goals and not sink the financial boat. If you maintain this line of discussion open you can set realistic goals in money and in life.
COMMUNICATION: This is probably the most fundamental requirement for any great relationship. Because most fights are about money it is wise to maintain an open line of communication in everything else so that talking about money comes naturally. That means that any major purchase should be thoroughly discussed. Imagine how upset you might be if your spouse came home one day with a $1500 plasma T.V. or a fifteen hundred dollar dress or fifteen hundred dollars in penny stocks. If you can talk about finances, that would be one less topic that could result in a fight. Communication is key in relationships and in financial planning as well.
JOINT ACCOUNT: The age old question. Plenty feel that having a joint savings account is important because it shows a big degree of trust. Others feel that it is wise to keep the personal finances apart from the relationship due to the freedom it creates. The problem is it can cause disruptions in your relationship. Why not have both? First you must discover what your expenses are and what is left over at the end of the month. {In my opinion|I think a simple formula to use is both of you takes twenty percent from your paycheck each week to deposit into a personal account. That money is yours and yours alone. You could use it to buy a nice pair of shoes, football tickets or whatever you want. The remaining eighty percent is placed into a joint account that covers living expenses such as food, mortgage, retirement planning, car payments etc.. This way if you want to treat yourself, you are using your cash to do so.
STAY ON THE SAME PAGE: This is very important. Know what’s going on. One of you could know a little more about personal finances. There is nothing more enjoyable in a relationship then learning with each other and knowing the same things. If you both know where the cash is going, how it is being invested and what investments you could make there should always be an understanding. There is nothing more heartbreaking than when one partner makes a solo decision and loses out. If you continually inform each other about financial opportunities and financial decisions it will be harder to make silly errors. As the saying goes, two minds are better than one.
Relationships are a continual work in progress. It is unavoidable that you are going to run into problems and not see eye to eye with your partner about everything. Finances are one issue that should easily be avoided with an open line of communication, goal setting, planning and understanding. If you and your mate can communicate honestly about finances and have the right plan in place, your relationship with each other and with money will grow better and better every day.
Article written by Brandon Schmid http://howtomanagemoneytips.com
I hope this article helps you manage your marriage and money. They are basic tips but can make a big difference in your relationship. If you can keep your communication open and not be afraid to discuss financial matters, you have a big chance of having success when it comes to marriage and money.
Since finances can be such a serious matter to most couples, it is important to keep a sense of humor even around this subject. If you want a few laughs, check out this funny video about a couple discussing their finances.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUoojyOgkL8
2 Comments
Barbara Tapella
June 2, 2013Hey Girl! This looks awesome. I didn’t realize you were giving conflict resolution stuff…Great Job. I like the looks of your website, too. I know…it’s a lot of work!
Cathy Morrey
June 2, 2013Barbara, thanks for your comments about my site. I look forward to talking to you again about your great adventures. Cathy
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