Avoid Money Meltdown in Your Relationship: Financial Tips for Couples

For better or for worse. That's what you promised. That can also be hard to remember when money comes between you and your spouse and starts taking a major toll on your relationship.

When you were dating you might have noticed that your future husband or wife was a little careless with spending. You might have realized that bills got paid late, or even not at all (remember that time when the electric company cut off your power - and it wasn't a mistake?) Well, back then it wasn't your problem. It's an entirely different ball game after you've said "I do."

Are You or Your Significant Other Dishonest About Your Finances?

Communication about finances is key in any marriage, but won't solve all money woes, particularly if one spouse is a little less than honest with spending habits. It is, after all, hard to adjust to sharing financial responsibility when just recently what you earned was yours and what you spent was nobody else's business.

You and your spouse might have different ideas about saving and different priorities when it comes to spending.

If this is the case, it's not unreasonable to suggest maintaining separate bank accounts until you get the hang of joint finances. Instead of pooling your income, you could put it in separate "piles" and take equal amounts from each to pay for living costs and an agreed-upon amount for savings. What you do with the rest is up to you. . . though this strategy runs the risk of building resentment if one person earns significantly more than the other.

How to Keep Your Credit History Separate

If one of you has worked hard to build and maintain a good credit score, you might want to split up the bills. This doesn't mean just dividing the work when it comes to writing checks and mailing payments, but entails setting up different accounts (utilities, for example) under your respective names. If one spouse fails to make timely payments, it won't affect the credit score of the other. It leaves responsibility - and accountability - up to each person individually.

Of course, if you apply for joint credit, then both partners' credit scores will be taken into consideration. This is why it's important to know your spouse's credit history and, if necessary, take steps to fix it before getting married.

Marriage doesn't merge credit histories, but your spouse's bad credit could keep you from making your most important purchases as a couple: your first house, a new car, or anything else you can't pay for in cash.

If any of this sounds familiar, your marriage could probably benefit from credit help. Lexington Law understands how bad credit can affect your life, and can help you legally remove negative items from your credit report.

They even offer a "Couples Discount" that gives you more than half off the initial fee for your spouse when you sign up for their service together. Why not "take the plunge" today?

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Ben_Casey@creditforcouples.com