How to Marry Your Finances After Getting Married

Getting married is an amazing new chapter of your life, but it also brings new responsibilities like having to manage your finances as a couple. Combining your money and bank accounts can be stressful, but with some planning and cooperation, you can navigate this journey smoothly and set up your future for achieving financial freedom.

Communication is Key

The foundation of combining finances with your partner is open and honest communication. Before making any financial decisions, sit down together and discuss your goals, priorities, and concerns. Be sure to go over:

Your Individual Financial Situation

Talk about your debt, savings, investments, and your income. Discussing these topics will give you a head start in making your budget together.

Your Goals

Are you looking to buy your first house? Save for retirement? Thinking about going back to school? Agreeing on these goals together can help you create a plan to work towards save up for larger expenses like a new home or tuition rather than going into debt.

Your Money Personality

Are you a saver or a spender? How much do you typically spend or save in a month? Being transparent in your spending habits can help prevent conflict around finances and understand what the other person prioritizes.

Being honest about these topics help to help make sure you’re both on the same page. Just because one person is a spender, and one is a saver doesn’t mean there will always be conflict about how to manage your money. As long as you are both open, have a plan to set goals, and maintain and stick to a budget, you’ll have everything you need for a successful financial future together.

Plan for Your (Financial) Future

You’ve probably already dreamt about all the things you are going to do in the future together — having children, buying your first house, plans for retirement — but have you thought about what that means for your finances?

Discuss and set mutually agreed-upon short- and long-term goals for retirement savings and major life events like children’s education or buying a home. You can even meet with a financial advisor to help create a comprehensive plan.

Short-Term Goals

Emergency Fund

Now that you’re married, it’s essential to be prepared for anything that comes your way without going into debt, like if you get a flat tire or your air conditioner breaks. Also, in case one of you unexpectedly loses their job, discuss how much you would potentially need to cover three to six months of expenses.

Debt Repayment

If you have debt from credit cards, student loans, or a car that you are bringing into your marriage, create a plan to pay down that debt as quickly as possible with the Debt Snowball Method.

Saving for a Vacation

Will you be taking a honeymoon or a big anniversary trip in the future? Start thinking about these expenses early so you can easily save up for your dream trip without charging it to your credit card.

Long-Term Goals

Buying a Home

If you live in an apartment, discuss when you would like to buy your first home together. Is it right after you get married or five years down the road? Either way, create a plan for you to start saving for a down payment. Research down payment assistance programs and first home savings accounts to help you reach your goal.

Having Children

Whether you have children or are planning to in the future, it’s never too early to start planning. A 529 plan is a tax-advantage savings plan used for future education costs and are sponsored by states or educational institutions. You can open a 529 plan through your state online or with the help of a financial advisor. That way, you can start saving smaller amounts over time to be prepared for when your child goes to college. Withdrawing from a 529 plan is tax-free and the earlier you start saving, the less you need to put way each month!

Retirement Savings

Discuss if your jobs offer a 401(k) or 403(b) to start saving for retirement. Meet with a financial advisor to create a plan that works for you or use our Retirement Savings Calculator to see how much you should save.

Create a Budget That Will Last

Like mentioned earlier, creating a budget is a critical part of managing your money together as a team. Here are a few ways to get started:

List Both Incomes

Does one person get paid monthly while the other gets paid biweekly? Include this information in your budget so you can have money in the right accounts at the right time when you need it.

List Fixed Expenses

This includes rent, utilities, insurance, and loan payments. If you both have different incomes, determine if you will split these costs 50/50 or if you will each pay for different expenses based on your salary.

Calculate Variable Expenses

Like how much you currently spend on groceries, cleaning supplies, entertainment like streaming services, and dining out.

Leave Room for Spending Money

Creating a budget doesn’t mean you can’t still have fun! Set aside a smaller reasonable amount each month for “fun money” you can use for hanging out with friends, golfing, buying a new pair of shoes, or treating yourself to coffee on the weekends. If your budget is too strict, you aren’t as likely to stick to it in the first place.

Once you have an idea of how much you spend each month, decide where you’d like to cut back or need to move more money and use this to build your budget. When you first make your budget, you’ll likely need to review it each week or month to see how you’re doing and where to adjust course. Don’t be afraid to make changes as needed!

To Join Accounts or Not to Join Accounts

One of the biggest decisions when it comes to managing finances together as a team is whether to combine your bank accounts or keep them separate. Ultimately, it’s up to your personal values and preferences, but here is a breakdown of each approach to see which works best for you:

Joint Accounts

Simplifies managing your shared expenses, you can easily see what each person spends to stick to your budget, and this can create a sense of unity as a team rather than individuals. If you choose joint accounts, create a plan and budget for how you will keep track of your individual spending.

Separate Accounts

Makes it easier to manage your personal expenses and spending money. If you choose separate accounts, create a plan for how you will divide up or split shared expenses between accounts.

Combination of Both

Allows for shared management of joint expenses while helping you keep track of personal expenses in separate accounts.

Keep in mind that if you have separate accounts already established, you can always add your spouse as a joint owner to all your bank accounts for transparency.

Finances are not one-size-fits-all, so it might be easier to have more than one checking or savings account if that’s what keeps you organized! For example, you could have one checking account for joint expenses, and one spending account for each of you. This could help you keep track of your own purchases and visualize how much you have left in your budget. You can also open multiple savings accounts and rename them to help you easily see progress toward your goals!

Combining finances when you get married requires thoughtful planning, communication, and cooperation. By following these tips and committing to your financial goals, you can pave the way for a financially free and secure future together. Remember, the key is to work as a team and support each other in achieving your financial aspirations. You got this!