Starting your new life as newlyweds means blending your worlds, and that includes your finances. Talking about your finances may not be the most romantic topic of conversation, but it is an important one to have. That's why it's crucial to find the best advice for newlyweds that will help you manage your money the best way possible.
Even if you already lived together before getting married, managing your money will change after you become legal partners. These money matters may be awkward to talk about at first, but doing so will improve your communication skills and prevent any money misunderstandings in the future.
Also, working together as a team with your finances will strengthen your relationship and help you achieve your money goals together!
In order to help you out, we are finally announcing the pre-booking of our course- Honey & Money.
Financial Advice for Newlyweds
Don't let your money matters put a damper on your relationship. Here is some advice to newlyweds to keep their finances in order!
1. Discuss Financial Priorities
Talking about money can be stressful, but it’s important to talk about your financial priorities with your partner.
- Is saving and investment a major priority for you, or do you prefer to spend money at the moment?
- How much of your income are you willing to spend on luxuries versus necessities?
- If you plan to have children, how much do you want to support them financially?
- Will you pay for child care, or will one of you be a stay-at-home parent?
- Will you pay for the entirety of their college education?
- Do you expect your children to support you financially in your old age?
These questions don’t have a “correct” answer. Making sure that you and your partner have similar priorities, or can find a compromise somewhere in the middle, can help avoid financial arguments in the future.
2. Talk about your family financial history
Discussing your family financial history is one of the most critical newly married couple tips you can do. Talking about your family's history with money is a great way to open up the conversation about your marriage finances.
Revealing how your parents handled money, what you learned from their financial resume, and how they taught you to save or spend can be helpful information for couples.
This can also help you figure out if you've inherited financial insecurities or have any money blocks you need to work past. This way, you can tackle them as a team and work towards financial success!
3. When in Doubt, Spend Less on Your Honeymoon
Keep this in mind as you’re planning your honeymoon. Your memories won’t revolve around where you were cheap – you won’t even remember it at all. It can be memorable even if you stayed way out of the city center in a much less expensive hotel.
This is a prime opportunity to learn about one of the fundamental rules of personal finance together. Money spent on nonessential stuff that you won’t remember is money wasted. Remember what’s essential is you being with your partner. Don’t burn money on other stuff if you are out of budget. All you’ll do is hurt you and your partner in the future.
4. Don't hide your spending habits
A common issue that causes conflicts in marriage is problems with overspending. Overspending can rack up debt, cause mistrust between partners, and shows a lack of respect within the marriage.
Avoid these relationship issues by consulting your partner before making big purchases and being open and honest about your spending habits.
5. Open A Joint Account But Keep Existing Separate Accounts
Before it is even a question of making decisions about retirement planning in a partnership, couples often face a tense conflict in their relationships much earlier. The conflict regarding the allocation of financial resources comes almost unavoidably to all couples.
We advise that both partners should first keep their existing accounts and also open a joint account to which each partner makes a monthly deposit. This joint account will ensure that all your expenses are running from the common account. We have discussed it in detail in our session 1 of the course - Managing cash flows.
6. Start an emergency fund
You never know what the future holds for you, so it's always best to be prepared. You will never regret starting an emergency fund after marriage. For example: if you lose your job, if you are suddenly expecting a baby, if the roof leaks, the car breaks down, and the list goes on.
The size of the fund would depend on several factors such as your income, lifestyle, and number of dependents, existing debt, and so on. It is advisable to save for 3-4 months at least so that the amount should ideally cover your expenses.
Some of the options available to you are:
- Fixed Deposit (should be linked to your net-banking)
- Liquid Mutual Funds
- Cash at Home - Up to 1 month’s expenses (For super sudden need!)
It would be useful to keep reviewing your emergency fund requirements at least once a year, as there may be changes in your life like starting out a business, taking a sabbatical from work, the addition of a new family member, or a change in your lifestyle.
7. Create financial goals as newlyweds
Some of the best advice for newlyweds is to create financial goals together. Having goals set can help you achieve your big visions in life! It will be much easier to reach your goals if you can work toward them together, and it can help reduce tension if you make sure you don’t have goals that directly contradict one another’s.
- Do you want to live in a lavish house or a small one?
- Would you rather rent or own your home?
- Do you want to retire early or work full careers?
8. Discuss your finances with your spouse regularly
Your marriage finances should not be swept under the rug. Circumstances are bound to change at various points in your married life. So make it a habit to review your finances on a monthly or bi-monthly basis to ensure you are staying true to your household budget.
This is why it’s so important to have “money dates”. In simple terms, a "money date" is a regularly scheduled conversation between you and your partner where you discuss finances. They’re an opportunity to talk about your day-to-day finances, as well as prepare for any short or long-term financial plans in a fun manner.
While money dates can be enjoyed by couples at all stages of their relationship, we recommend you start as soon as you move in together and begin sharing large expenses together. This allows you to build the habit of talking about money together and makes the conversations easier over time. Best of all, you'll quickly start to feel like you're on the same team, working towards shared goals together.
Getting married is an exciting but potentially stressful time. These newly married couple suggestions can help you budget better, create goals, and most importantly find enjoyable things to do together too. Why not get started by taking our free financial courses together to work towards financial success!
Pre-book to our course- Honey & Money to get 70% discount now - click here.