Before walking down the aisle with the person you love, you should ask yourself this question – are you really ready for this big financial step?
Although money matters usually comes secondary to romantic pursuits in choosing a lifetime partner, it should still figure prominently in this momentous decision. The “who-gets-to-pay-for-what” discussions should not end after the wedding ceremony is over, because in reality, wedded financial life starts after this ceremony.
You may have heard of the quintessential money protector before marriage – the pre nuptial agreement. However unromantic it may sound, it is easily one of the smartest legal tools ever built to protect assets of each spouse before the wedding, and after a divorce. However it does not always have to end in divorce and whether you signed a pre-nup or not, there are still various ways to iron out financial kinks and protect the marriage and your personal finances.
• Establish shared financial goals.
This could be a bit uncomfortable considering that you might be in a dazed but wonderful state of engagement, or you could be in the middle of stressful wedding planning. Nonetheless, it is a necessary conversation that would save you from financial shouting matches later on.
Decide on things that will affect your financial health as a couple, like where you want to live (rental or home ownership status), how many children you want to have or can handle comfortably, who will take care of the children, where you will most likely send them to school, even when you see yourself retiring from active work.
Later on in the marriage, you can have financial assessments once in while, checking for goal related financial actions you each should take or are taking. These need not be formal meetings, talking about it over a cup of coffee after dinner or while drying up the dishes would be good times.
Talk about saving cash goals, maybe about credit card and cash expenditures too. You should always create a savings account, could be joint, could be personal but each partner should have the initiative to talk openly about money matters that concerns them both.
• Establish a budget together.
Since you are already married, budgets for the home and family should be decided upon by the two of you. Some may think that women control the household budget, but this is too risky. It is not uncommon for the women to get stressed and burnt out by this task. Meanwhile many arguments have initiated from queries from the men on where the money went.
To avoid this situation, some suggest that handling finances should be shared by both the husband and the wife. This creates a responsibility bond between the two, knowing that they both agreed on the financial steps they are to take, thus even if they are weathering financial storms, they can handle it better by not blaming one or the other.
Tags: Making your marriage A Financial Asset, Personal Finances