How To Talk Money and Marriage With Your Better Half

Managing your finances can be a daunting task. When you, and you alone, are managing your money you are the sole decision maker. Simple. Then, in walks the love of your life, your partner and soulmate. Things just got complicated, right? Not necessarily. In order to make any relationship work, there needs to be a level of comfort, trust, and an open line of communication especially when it comes to having those tough conversations around money, debt, credit, and financial goals.

We are a generation of couples pioneering new ways of how we do things with an emphasis on bearing the burden of financial responsibility equally. Millennials, a.k.a. Digital Natives, are shaking up the financial world and gravitating towards new modern solutions when it comes to finances. New platforms like mobile banking and social payment apps are shifting social norms including how we think and interact with money today. No matter how you and your partner chose to set up your finances, here are some key things to remember in order to make it work.

The Foundation of Every Relationship is Communication

Communication is an essential part of any relationship and talking about finances is no different. Before you walk down the aisle you and your partner should discuss what your financial goals are – how will you invest, how will you save, and how will you spend? Asking specific questions about your individual financial standings help paint a clearer picture for what the future together holds. It’s important to be up-front about your finances and goals before you tie the knot, not after.
Before the Honeymoon, Think Emergency Fund

There may be nothing more important than creating a nest egg; an emergency fund. And if you can do this before you get married, you are guaranteed to start out on the right track. Anything can happen and at any time. Having that emergency fund in place ensures that you are both covered. Less financial stress means less stress on your brand new marriage too. Now, here is something to think about. According to The Knot, the average cost of a wedding today is $32,641. You may have always dreamed about a big wedding, but is the cost of the wedding going to put you and your partner in debt or in MORE debt and is it worth it? Instead of having a huge wedding right away, a popular option is to have a more intimate cost effective celebration and use the gift money and or potential money your parents were going to provide for the party to start your nest egg. That decision is a personal one that only you and your fiancé can decide.

Marriage is a Financial Union and Education

If either of you have an understanding of finances, use that to your advantage. Talk about different ways you each want to invest your money — and come to a mutual decision about what will be the best decisions for each of you. You may want to invest your money together, separate, or a mix of both. If you find yourself scratching your head, seek a financial advisor who can help you create a plan especially if you have debt. Because when you marry someone with debt, it officially becomes “Yours, Mine, and Ours.”

Combining Lives and Finances, Do it YOUR Way

There are many different ways that you can manage your money once you are married. There is nothing written that says you and your partner have to do it one way or another. SmartMoney magazine’s survey found that the majority of couples (64%) put all of their money in joint accounts, while 14% kept everything in separate accounts, and 18% had both. Though, you may even have to try it different ways to figure out what makes you both comfortable.

The majority of couples take the route of combining finances completely. Meaning they combined all of their assets once they got married. They open a joint account for savings, investment, and spending. Each person has equal access to the assets in these accounts whether it is for spending, paying bills, or paying down debt.

Get Tech Savvy with Your Finances

Mobile banking apps allow both partners to be aware of their financial standing anytime anywhere, but splitting the rent, utility bills, grocery bills, travel, and even social outing costs can get confusing between partners. Using social payment apps like Circle, can help simplify combined financial spending.

Circle makes it super easy to send and receive funds between you and your partner for daily expenses and those special occasions. Not to mention, they make it fun too with GIFs and emojis. All you need to do is download the app, create an account adding your name, email and password, verify your phone number and look for an email from us to confirm your account. And yes, any form of payment works.

You and your partner can then send money back and forth to each other with a few simple clicks for free, privately, and even directly within via iMessage if you have the iOS10 update. Plus if you’re traveling abroad for your honeymoon, Circle works internationally and has no fee conversions for UK Pound Sterling and the Euro! My fiancé and I use Circle to split our monthly expenses and it really came in handy for our recent Bachelor and Bachelorette trips.

Combining finances should not be taken lightly. It requires honesty, transparency, and a willingness to compromise from both partners. Thankfully, there are resources available to couples today that can help them get organized and better manage their finances between themselves and others. If you are currently in the process or planning on having the, “money talk” with your significant other, lean on good advice and the many tech tools available to simplify your financial journey together.