Securing Your Joint Financial Future

The lead up to the wedding, the wedding day and the first few months of married life are such an exciting time in everyone’s life and you should absolutely enjoy every step of the way. However, once the dust settles, it’s time to tackle the more practical aspects of married life, like figuring out and setting aside money.

The benefits of addressing money issues early in your marriage are numerous. First, it helps prevent problems down the line. After all, money is the biggest cause of problems. Quarrel between husband and wifeSecondly, the earlier you start, the more likely you are to have a rosy and happy financial future. Small positive steps can have a big impact over decades.

In this post, we’ll share some key tips for working together to secure your financial future. Let’s get started.

Find your ideal bank account situation
There are multiple ways to deal with the issue of bank accounts. Do you have a joint account, where both partners have equal access to all the money? Or do you opt for individual accounts? Or do you have a joint account but also keep individual accounts?

There’s no perfect answer to this question, so it’s important to choose what works best for you. Most couples find that it works best to have a joint expense account, but also have their own personal accounts.

Pay off your marriage debts
Your goal is to work towards a healthy financial future. But before that can happen, you need to work on getting rid of debt. Since you just had a big wedding, you probably have some wedding debt. Make a solid plan to pay off all of your debt as soon as possible. Once you do that, you can start investing your funds in areas that will strengthen your financial resources.

Obtaining proper insurance
We’re not talking about home insurance here (although you should have that too). We’re talking about life insurance. You likely plan to spend a long and happy life together, but you never know what’s going to happen. Taking the time to update your insurance and ensure all parties are fully protected will give you peace of mind knowing that your loved ones will be protected no matter what happens.

Set goals
Setting financial goals may not seem like the most fun thing to do during the first few months of your marriage, but they’re what will enable you to buy a house, have a great retirement, and take that once-in-a-lifetime trip just for two. Setting some goals and clearly outlining how you’ll get there will also help set the tone for the next few years.

Building your financial future
Investing in your financial future is important for anyone, married or unmarried, but it’s even more important for married couples, who are likely to face larger financial burdens in the future (like paying for their children’s college education).

There are many different ways to build your financial future. At the very least, you should have a high interest savings account. If you have extra funds, consider investing in the stock market or the real estate market; the latter in particular is a great way to boost your financial future. If you and your partner don’t have the funds (or time/energy) to invest in real estate, consider becoming a real estate agent. Real Estate SyndicatorIt offers an efficient way to invest in real estate without most of the hassle of personal investing.

Recognize your weaknesses
It’s good to take proactive and positive steps to build your financial future. But in addition to doing all that, it’s also important to realize that no one is perfect. That goes for money, too. Most people can manage their weaknesses well when they’re on their own, but when money is intertwined with others and you’re working towards a common goal, it can be a problem. For example, some people are impulse buyers, while others spend a lot of money on hobbies. It’s important to understand how these weaknesses affect your long-term financial goals. While you’re a team in the pursuit of the same thing, you may also need to make an effort to say goodbye to your own bad spending habits.

Tackling financial communications
As mentioned above, money is the number one cause of arguments between couples. Even if you communicate well about most aspects of your life, it’s worth taking an extra step to be able to talk openly and honestly about money issues. Otherwise, conversations about money can quickly veer into argument territory — or, even worse, it could mean one of you has to hide your spending. Most long-term money issues can be addressed head-on if you discuss them openly.

Plan regular check-ins
It would be nice if money was something you could just leave alone, but unfortunately, that’s not the case. Achieving financial goals is harder than ever, so your money situation requires careful planning. Set aside time to sit down together and review how you’re progressing toward your financial goals and make adjustments. I also recommend finding a good financial planner to work with as soon as possible. If you find the right planner, they’ll be with you for life.

Money matters. There’s no other way to say it. Once the joy of your wedding is over, it’s essential that you get together and think about your financial future. Once you do that, it will be much easier to achieve your married life goals, like buying a house, having children, or simply living a happy life.