One of the most exciting times in your life is when you make that permanent commitment to that special someone. Understandably, the happy couple can get caught up in the excitement of the news. When I was planning my first marriage, couples counseling was not something many people did. One thing that was rarely done, at least in my circles, was to have financial counseling. I asked a friend if she and her future husband were going to seek financial advice for their new joint life together. She looked at me a bit oddly and said they were not as that was something that was very personal and private. Yes, it is and that is exactly why couples need to get their financial history, habits and future plans out into the open. That is why going to an expert in the field, like the staff from Genworth Financial is such a smart part of your pre-wedding planning.

Protecting Your Finances When Moving In Together

I recently read an interesting article entitled “8 Tips for Protecting Your Finances Before You Move In With Someone“, written by Megan Durisin. In the article, she talks about how of 1,000 renters, 38 percent of them will end a personal relationship with the person they are living with. What I found fascinating was of that 38 percent, almost all would continue to live with their partner due to financial issues. There is nothing worse than to break up with someone and then be forced to continue to live with them because you cannot afford to move out. Many of those polled said they had the most difficult time splitting up possessions and would advise that people save money that would be kept separate. This would help greatly in protecting your finances when moving in together.

I can tell you from experience I would strongly advise new couples to talk with an expert in finances. We all have different money styles, spend and save differently and have different financial goals for the future. If you do not get all this information on the table and see where you can meet in the middle, your financial future can be in jeopardy. I was 23 when I married, had never had a credit card and was a spender, not a saver. My husband was the polar opposite from me and I can tell you, when it came to the big financial decisions, we could not agree to save our lives. When he wanted to save for our retirement at 24, I wanted to buy a new car. When he wanted to save for a down payment on a house, I wanted to rent an apartment and buy pretty clothes. In looking back, I wish I had someone like the folks at Genworth Financial who could have helped us map out our financial future. If you are preparing to walk down the aisle with that special someone, I would suggest visiting the Genworth Financial website and see what information you have at your fingertips in many financial areas.  You can use budget calculators, ask questions of the experts, look into life insurance, planning for retirement and many other important money matters. Have you ever been stuck in a situation where prior financial planning would have been useful? I would love for you to tweet this post out!

26 COMMENTS

  1. This is such an important topic that most people don’t even think about when moving in together. I lived with someone for a year and a half and then we broke up. Fortunately, we kept everything separate financially, so it wasn’t as difficult to move on.

  3. This is so important to talk about before the relationship becomes for unified. We got married, didn’t move in together beforehand. But still it could have really benefited us after we got married to. Get us on the same financial page so to speak.

  4. You know this is something I’ve never thought of, since I got married almost 20 years ago before moving in together…lol But it’s definitely important to talk about these kinds of things before they become a problem!

  6. we kept all of our finances separate for the first year or so of our marriage before we ever combined them together. thanks for the tips and info 🙂

  7. Finances are one of the top reasons for relationships to break apart. If you take the time to get on the same page and be more unified in the finance department, you can have the confidence that the leading obstacle in relationships is solved. Wouldn’t that be worth it? I love the idea of a financial counselor. We didn’t have anything like that. But I think it could have helped us not have such a rocky start.

  9. These are some really good things to think about. I should have been more careful “back in the day”. I’m lucky it all worked out!

  10. Very important topic! So many people move in together without discussing the specifics of finances but at minimum that is setting up future arguements and at worse it will tear apart your relationship and finances both.

  20. It is so difficult to remember this stuff. We were lucky, we were broke when we moved in together! We were also lucky that adopting a child forced us to do wills, something we might not otherwise have done so soon in our child’s life.
    Mitch

  21. Great tips for new couples! Finances has the be the no.1 reason why people fight. It helps to be on the same page and have short/long term goals set.

  22. I agree completely. There’s so much to disagree on in life. Best to be on the same page when it comes to money! You can avoid a lot of unnecessary arguements that way!!

  24. I couldn’t agree more, couples should definitely have long conversations together and with professionals when possible in regards to money! It’s such a huge deal to be on the same page and to see if you have the same goals in mind. This is a great post, thanks!

  25. I think a lot of people make the leap into moving in together without considering the consequences and requirements. We’re still so afraid to discuss money, and I’m really nor sure why. Maybe it’s the fact that it’s a hot-button issue.

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