Money is a leading cause of fights and divorce in marriage. It can be a difficult subject to negotiate. Many times couples will harbor resentments and blame over the years. It is important to work on your finances as a team. It is also important to have equal accountability and responsibility when it comes to finances. If you and your spouse fight constantly about money here are a few easy steps to help things run smoother.
1) First you both need to come clean and share any past financial mistakes or purchases that you are hiding from each other. This relationship will not work if you are not forthright when it comes to your finances. It is important that if you agree to do this, that you are both willing to forgive and forget and move forward from this point.
2) You may want to consider going to a financial counselor or taking a family finances class together. This will give you a starting point for discussion. It will also help you to assess where you really are and how much you have to spend each month. If you can not afford to do this, you may want to spend time together reading a book on basic family finances.
3) You should sit down and plan the budget together. It is important that you both agree on wants versus needs. It is also important to allow each of you individual money to spend in anyway that you want to. This should be an equal amount of money. It really helps to stop resentment from building up and allows you each to spend money where you want to.
4) You should take time each month to pay the bills, and balance the checkbook together. This allows both of you to know what is going on, and when to stop spending money. This helps to prevent an overwhelming burden being placed on one spouse as well.
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