Financial Planning is Not a One Person Job

In today’s society, it has become a social norm for many marriages to have specific roles or duties for each partner to complete. One may pick the kids up from baseball practice, while the other cooks dinner. One may do the laundry while the other washes the dishes. Having these roles and responsibilities can help spouses get a solid routine put together to make their marriage and life simpler. In many cases, the task of managing the family’s finances and financial goals is thrown on to one individual as well. This can cause the opposite partner to become completely oblivious to their financial world and situation.

By putting the financial baggage on one spouse, the other partner will never be able to understand what is happening with his or her accounts or the financial plan. The couple will also not be able to partake in long term goals together. Communicating about what your family wants to achieve financially can help avoid arguments and bumpy roads later on in life. In addition, it has the benefit of encouraging one another to reach short term goals of saving for a needed vacation or new family car.

One thing we shy away from thinking about but definitely deserves a discussion is a situation where one spouse, who’s job wasn’t to manage the family finances, now has to. If your partner unexpectedly passes away or a decision is made to get a divorce, what are the steps that need to be taken to handle your finances and continue to stay on track with your financial goals. Questions will start to arise that have never been thought of, such as “Do I have a will?”, and “What credit cards do I have under my name?”. Each spouse does not have to become a financial expert but being aware of what’s going on in different accounts, maintaining a budget, setting financial goals, and other financial areas can be extremely beneficial to a marriage and create a more open relationship.