How do you have a joint account when one person makes more?

[zoebartlett]

Date: 2/27/2008 3:09:28 PM
Author: tberube
Should we each have our own accounts for our own stuff, and then a joint account JUST for shared expenses? Is that what most people do? I''m very curious as to how people make this work. It has only been a couple weeks for us, but I don''t want this to be a sticking point in our whole marriage.

That''s a good idea. I know a lot of people who do that and it seems to work. You and your husband could set up some kind of agreement, like he pays for 1/3 of the household expenses and you pay 2/3 (just an example). However you work out the joint account, I''d recommend each of you having your own separate accounts as well. That way, if there is something you want for yourself, you can use your own money and the same would go for your husband.

 

[LitigatorChick]

The problem I have with the joint and personal accounts is what is a "joint" expense. If I pick up some make-up at the mall, is that "joint" or personal? Where is the line? Just something you need to be clear on so there are no misunderstandings.

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/27/2008 4:36:12 PM
Author: Elmorton
We have each have personal checking, a personal savings, one joint checking and one joint savings. It''s a lot of accounts, but we''re very different spenders. Right now, it doesn''t make a lot of sense - my entire paycheck goes to joint (we need it) and so does DH''s, so both of us have ohhh about $15 total between our personal accounts.


When we met with our priest prior to the wedding, he highly recommended we make separate and joint accounts - and one of his reasons was that when you have separate accounts, you can also surprise your spouse with gifts, and you can choose to buy things for yourself without feeling like you should ask your spouse (thus maintaining some degree of independence, within reason).


I agree that the trick to having two joint and two separate accounts is that each person puts that SAME amount into their personal account, and all expenses that you''ve decided to share are deducted from the joint account - AND that you''re fair about what is a personal expense vs. joint. (Remember that scene from The Joy Luck Club where they split the grocery bill, down to the cat food? Ugh..) So, if one person has debt, it''s not fair for each person to have $1000 a month for fun money, but $975 of one person''s goes to paying off school.


When we first started with our different accounts, DH was doing a lot of ''taking one for the team'' from his personal account (and I tend to do this too for things around the house and groceries) until we realized that we weren''t using our personal accounts the way they were intended and that only a small minority of our purchases should be from our personal accounts. Things are running a LOT smoother now.

I think that''s where my main reason comes in for this...and also I think it''s simpler to see, separately, where our money is going.

FI and I did a budget last night and it turns out that after all our personal expenses and joint expenses, we each have about the same leftover for spending money (about $50 per week). But then we each have our own savings accounts that grow in different amounts throughout the year. So I guess I''m going to have to get myself my own checking account that''s separate from the joint, and then that way there will be 5 accounts between us...and somehow, that seems much easier.

Thanks everyone, for your insight. I agree with many of your opinions, but realize that not all of them follow our personal way of life. We originally planned to wait until marriage to join up our monies, but buying a house definitely sped up that necessity.

TravelingGal, you mentioned that for you, there was a mental shift when you entered marriage, that made it easier to think of money differently. I can see your point. However I think for us, we''ve been living under the same roof for over four years, just bought a house together, and we''re engaged to be married. Personally, I can''t imagine feeling any more "married" to him than I am now, after a party and a piece of paper.

I''d say FI and I are similar in that we like to pay all our bills first, put away our certain $$ for savings, then spend the rest with pure abandon. All $50 of it...heh. Well, it used to be more. But because of our personalities, which are also similar, we are very independent people and consider our personal cash stash...personal. It took us three weeks of a joint account to learn this. But hey at least we learned, right?

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/27/2008 6:46:47 PM
Author: Sha
I''m glad you posted this topic - since DH and I are thinking about the same thing. We''ve been married for about three months but haven''t merged accounts as yet. I thought it was a good idea - but over the weekend I started wondering whether it wouldn''t be better if we kept our separate accounts.


I make more than DH - so contribute more to the groceries, bills etc. Which is fine - we consider everything to be ''our money'' anyway. But I''m wondering how we communicate about transactions. Right now I''m the only with a chequing account - so I write the cheque for the rent, bills etc. It''s good that way because I can keep track of all the cheques I''ve written and make sure I''m not going overboard on spending. He does the same thing with his account. If we have a joint account though - I feel like we won''t be able to keep track of each other''s spending, or at least I feel we''ll have to be asking each other, ''Hon, did you write any cheques today? What transactions did you do at the bank today? etc. etc''. It just seems like it''ll involve so much more communication about expenses. I don''t want to be talking about money all the time - who did this, who did that- and I wonder what would happen if one of us forgets to inform the other of an expense, and we end up overdrawing our account or bouncing a cheque. We have enough money to take us from month to month - with just a few hundred dollars to spare - so we can''t afford to go overboard. Dh is pretty good about finances but he loves to grocery shop and tends to go overboad there. I just feel we won''t be able to keep track of it all.

Sha - I feel like that''s exactly what has happened with us. One of us pays a bill, it doesn''t come out of the account right away, and the other person doesn''t know about it so they think there''s more in the account than there is. If we have an account JUST for bills, then the joint bills won''t be interacting with our other personal expenses, and I think that will make money matters much simpler.

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/28/2008 9:48:18 AM
Author: LitigatorChick
The problem I have with the joint and personal accounts is what is a ''joint'' expense. If I pick up some make-up at the mall, is that ''joint'' or personal? Where is the line? Just something you need to be clear on so there are no misunderstandings.

Well I think I can assume that your husband doesn''t wear makeup.

I would say joint expenses consist of mortgage, electric bills, heating bills, groceries and other household things. A new sweater for me and underarm deodorant is a personal expense. Although I kind of wonder sometimes where the line should be drawn on my birth control prescription...

 

[Independent Gal]

Birth control is definitely a joint expense, unless he''s indifferent about the joint expense of a baby right now.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Date: 2/28/2008 10:10:01 AM
Author: tberube

Date: 2/28/2008 9:48:18 AM
Author: LitigatorChick
The problem I have with the joint and personal accounts is what is a ''joint'' expense. If I pick up some make-up at the mall, is that ''joint'' or personal? Where is the line? Just something you need to be clear on so there are no misunderstandings.

Well I think I can assume that your husband doesn''t wear makeup.

I would say joint expenses consist of mortgage, electric bills, heating bills, groceries and other household things. A new sweater for me and underarm deodorant is a personal expense. Although I kind of wonder sometimes where the line should be drawn on my birth control prescription...

Hahaha, the BC is definitely a JOINT expense, even if it''s only $10/month

We had our joint account for years before we were married and I didn''t consider BC a joint expense, but I remember the first time I went to pick up my prescription after we were married I thought "Why is this MY expense??!" and it''s been a joint expense since

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 2/28/2008 10:24:42 AM
Author: Independent Gal
Birth control is definitely a joint expense, unless he''s indifferent about the joint expense of a baby right now.

AGREED. Why should you have to pay for it alone?

 

[vslover]

Date: 2/27/2008 3:09:28 PM
Author: tberube
Should we each have our own accounts for our own stuff, and then a joint account JUST for shared expenses? Is that what most people do? I''m very curious as to how people make this work. It has only been a couple weeks for us, but I don''t want this to be a sticking point in our whole marriage.

We only have shared accounts (I''m a stay at home mom) and it really hasn''t ever been a problem for us. I do recommend, though, some sort of money management software so that you each know how much money you have and where it''s going! We use Microsoft Money but there are others that are good out there.
HTH

 

[vslover]

Date: 2/28/2008 10:10:01 AM
Author: tberube

Date: 2/28/2008 9:48:18 AM

Author: LitigatorChick

The problem I have with the joint and personal accounts is what is a ''joint'' expense. If I pick up some make-up at the mall, is that ''joint'' or personal? Where is the line? Just something you need to be clear on so there are no misunderstandings.

Well I think I can assume that your husband doesn''t wear makeup.

I would say joint expenses consist of mortgage, electric bills, heating bills, groceries and other household things. A new sweater for me and underarm deodorant is a personal expense. Although I kind of wonder sometimes where the line should be drawn on my birth control prescription...

Wouldn''t things like deodorant or prescriptions go under joint expenses with groceries? This kind of system is too complicated for me...heehee

 

[LitigatorChick]

Okay, makeup was a bad choice - deoderant is better! I just get tired of details like this (okay, honey, your deoderant cost $4 and mine cost $3, so you owe $1???). It just becomes a bit cumbersome, IMO.

 

[Elmorton]

Re: drawing the line -

For us, anything at the grocery store or drugstore is a joint expense. If an item is necessary, then it''s joint. If it''s for the household, it''s a joint expense.

The line IS murky for things like clothes, etc. We typically shop together (I know, crazy), so if we''re shopping together and looking specific item, we''ll put it on joint. For example, when we moved to the land of ice and snow, we both realized that we needed better coats. Both of our coats went on joint.

But, if I go out to shop some evening because I''m bored and buy a pair of shoes, that''s on my personal. It could be a joint expense if I felt like consulting DH about it before hand and had some reason for needing the shoes (like wrecking my black heels I wear to work), but by doing that, it means we need to figure out together how much I should spend on a pair of new shoes, and I''m not a fan of doing that - it kinda wrecks the whole concept of maintaining a sense of independence that the joint account offers.

I think like most newlyweds, we''re still feeling things out and it does take time - and I think what a joint expense is and what isn''t is something that each couple needs to sit down and define together. We both assumed that it was just bills and rent at first, but then realized that we have a lot more joint expenses than that.

 

[LitigatorChick]

I guess the key is to have a clear system. My hubby and I just could not function with those rules (but yes darling, manolos are a household expense

). So everything goes into one big pot, and hefty chunk comes out immediately for saving, and off we go. Works for us, and I guess that is the key to any system.

 

[firebirdgold]

There was also a mental shift for us after we were married. It took a little while for us both to readjust our thinking about money, but now it's really 'our' money... to a certain degree. We have a joint account where the paychecks go. Almost everything comes out of that account. Then we each have our private accounts that we had before we were married. We're pretty much just using those for Amazon.com purchases, discretionary spending we don't want to discuss, and presents for each other. I don't want to know how much the latest boxset of concerts that he already owns costs, and he really doesn't want to know how much my latest trip to J.Jill costs.

Moving to a lower-living cost city has had a huge impact. Even though our incomes are less (a lot less in my case) we're actually saving money and growing a nice reserve of joint money.


ETA: We're defining necessary and day-to-day things as joint. Sometimes clothes are necessary things, sometimes they're discretionary. Dh's exercise shoes were on the joint account. My new daily purse (a whole $25) was joint. Any spring-time shoe purchase on my part will be discretionary.

It does sort of work itself out. We're almost at our first year's anni and it's taken this long to really blend our money and just organically work out what comes from what. It's always a bit different for each couple.

 

[icekid]

Wow, I don''t think I realized how many people keep separate accounts and then "split" expenses. It was probably easier for us, being slightly on the younger side. Plus there is that fact that I''ve been in school forever and never really had a job, so I don''t exactly have anything to contribute (other than a quarter mil in debt

) So I consider everything that my husband makes as our money. ha! It also helps that neither of us are big spenders right now and instead are in super-saving mode, so there is rarely an issue about who is spending what. However, it is quite likely that I will make a LOT more money than my hubby in 4 years, so we may have to reevaluate then

 

[scarlet16]

My fiance and I have lived together for the past 4 years. When we first moved in together, we set up a joint checking account to pay for our joint expenses (ie. rent, cable, groceries, electricity). At that time, both of us were working (and going to school). This past year I decided to just go to school and plan the wedding. Since then I still contribute to our joint account for rent and our wedding fund equally, but he''s basically picked up everything else (including my "non-necessities") since he''s already begun to think of it as "our money." After we get married, I think everything will go into one account. I''ll be making about twice what he makes but again, we''ve decided it''s our money. Neither of us are huge spenders so what we''ve decided is we''ll set a limit up of what we can spend without consulting the other (we''re thinking like $500). So, things like makeup, hair products, pharmacy things will all be included in that limit.

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

We have our own accounts and our salaries are paid into them. DH earns more than me at the moment, so he pays a proportionately higher amount into our joint account, from which bills etc are paid. We also each have savings in our own names (mainly for UK tax purposes).

For big joint expenses that aren''t everyday bills (like new bathroom fittings last year) we split the cost according to who has more cash/ feels most strongly about the expense (ie the remote control garage doors were all his, since I didn''t see the point).

We haven''t argued about money so far (together ten years, married five) so I guess it works for us.

Jen

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 2/28/2008 9:51:16 AM
Author: tberube

TravelingGal, you mentioned that for you, there was a mental shift when you entered marriage, that made it easier to think of money differently. I can see your point. However I think for us, we''ve been living under the same roof for over four years, just bought a house together, and we''re engaged to be married. Personally, I can''t imagine feeling any more ''married'' to him than I am now, after a party and a piece of paper.

We had been living together for over 2 years and were engaged as well. For me, it was still different being married. If I thought it was just a party and a piece of paper, I wouldn''t have been compelled to do it. It was marriage. Vows. Husband and wife. The father of my future children (I would not have them out of wedlock). Just different. For me.

 

[sumbride]

There was definitely a mental shift for us too and it immediately became "our" money, even though we''re still in the process of merging accounts. Every expense is a "joint" expense because we''re in this together. That''s how we view it anyway. It''s a partnership... so what if I want a new lipstick or he needs a new shirt... it''s a life expense. Granted we have both tried to cut back a wee bit on our extraneous spending but that''s because we''re dealing with a bit more debt than we''re comfortable with right now because of the economy. After 5 years together, I know he''s buying season tickets for the Redskins, but it never occurred to me to ask the cost until this year. I didn''t say no, of course, because he doesn''t say no to my twice a month massages. We will cut back as needed though, and we''re still working out the logistics, but every penny is "ours".

 

[applequeen]

I agree about the "mental shift" thing.... that''s the way it was for us. To be honest I really didn''t expect things to be all that differant between us but I was amazed at the change I felt after our wedding. For me I first noticed it the morning after our wedding, I woke up and I remember just looking at him and thinking "wow... this is my HUSBAND". In a way I guess everything just seems... I don''t know... bigger somehow. I was 30 when we got married so I''d spent a lot of time becoming a very independent person so this shift really took my by surprise. The thought of marriage actually terrified me a bit (losing total control over my life) but now that I''m married I LOVE the change.

My husband and I are a team and I''ve found that every decision we''ve made together has been much better than what either of us would have done on our own. If he wants a new shirt then I want him to have it... if I want a new shirt then he would probably give me his last penny to see that I have it. We want each other to be happy and as long as we can afford it I really don''t care if some of the expense comes from my check. Overall we both know what the best financial course is for us and trust each other to help meet those goals. I am lucky though that my husband is a saver so I really dont'' have to worry about what might buy... that makes things much easier for us.

The thing about keeping seperate accounts for gifts for each other and that sort of thing makes sense though... that''s a good idea. My husband says that he can never surprise me and I''d hate to put him in a position where that would actually be true.

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/28/2008 10:24:42 AM
Author: Independent Gal
Birth control is definitely a joint expense, unless he''s indifferent about the joint expense of a baby right now.

hahahaha! Good one, indie!

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/28/2008 11:42:24 AM
Author: LitigatorChick
Okay, makeup was a bad choice - deoderant is better! I just get tired of details like this (okay, honey, your deoderant cost $4 and mine cost $3, so you owe $1???). It just becomes a bit cumbersome, IMO.

He''d actually only owe you 50 cents. Hehehe...

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/28/2008 11:47:24 AM
Author: Elmorton
Re: drawing the line -


For us, anything at the grocery store or drugstore is a joint expense. If an item is necessary, then it''s joint. If it''s for the household, it''s a joint expense.


The line IS murky for things like clothes, etc. We typically shop together (I know, crazy), so if we''re shopping together and looking specific item, we''ll put it on joint. For example, when we moved to the land of ice and snow, we both realized that we needed better coats. Both of our coats went on joint.


But, if I go out to shop some evening because I''m bored and buy a pair of shoes, that''s on my personal. It could be a joint expense if I felt like consulting DH about it before hand and had some reason for needing the shoes (like wrecking my black heels I wear to work), but by doing that, it means we need to figure out together how much I should spend on a pair of new shoes, and I''m not a fan of doing that - it kinda wrecks the whole concept of maintaining a sense of independence that the joint account offers.


I think like most newlyweds, we''re still feeling things out and it does take time - and I think what a joint expense is and what isn''t is something that each couple needs to sit down and define together. We both assumed that it was just bills and rent at first, but then realized that we have a lot more joint expenses than that.

That''s very interesting, elmorton. Usually I wouldn''t consider something that was JUST for me a joint expense. Sure, if we''re grocery shopping and we both throw in a stick of deodorant, no harm no fowl. But if I make a special trip to buy special shampoo that only I''ll use, then I don''t mind paying for it myself.

But I would definitely say beyond a doubt that any pair of shoes, or jacket, that only I can wear, would definitely be my own expense. It''s not a house bill. I think if anything, we''re pretty clear on that and have been practicing as such for over four years. Just now there won''t be that "okay you give me $20 for the groceries and I''ll give you $50 for the cable bill...." And all that confusing stuff.

 

[vslover]

Date: 2/28/2008 3:26:19 PM
Author: tberube

Date: 2/28/2008 11:47:24 AM

Author: Elmorton

Re: drawing the line -



For us, anything at the grocery store or drugstore is a joint expense. If an item is necessary, then it''s joint. If it''s for the household, it''s a joint expense.



The line IS murky for things like clothes, etc. We typically shop together (I know, crazy), so if we''re shopping together and looking specific item, we''ll put it on joint. For example, when we moved to the land of ice and snow, we both realized that we needed better coats. Both of our coats went on joint.



But, if I go out to shop some evening because I''m bored and buy a pair of shoes, that''s on my personal. It could be a joint expense if I felt like consulting DH about it before hand and had some reason for needing the shoes (like wrecking my black heels I wear to work), but by doing that, it means we need to figure out together how much I should spend on a pair of new shoes, and I''m not a fan of doing that - it kinda wrecks the whole concept of maintaining a sense of independence that the joint account offers.



I think like most newlyweds, we''re still feeling things out and it does take time - and I think what a joint expense is and what isn''t is something that each couple needs to sit down and define together. We both assumed that it was just bills and rent at first, but then realized that we have a lot more joint expenses than that.

That''s very interesting, elmorton. Usually I wouldn''t consider something that was JUST for me a joint expense. Sure, if we''re grocery shopping and we both throw in a stick of deodorant, no harm no fowl. But if I make a special trip to buy special shampoo that only I''ll use, then I don''t mind paying for it myself.


But I would definitely say beyond a doubt that any pair of shoes, or jacket, that only I can wear, would definitely be my own expense. It''s not a house bill. I think if anything, we''re pretty clear on that and have been practicing as such for over four years. Just now there won''t be that ''okay you give me $20 for the groceries and I''ll give you $50 for the cable bill....'' And all that confusing stuff.

I guess I have to wonder with systems like this...what happens if one of you has to be out of work for a while? Or what if you decide to be a stay at home mom? or someone becomes disabled? Would you change the system?

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/28/2008 2:20:07 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 2/28/2008 9:51:16 AM

Author: tberube


TravelingGal, you mentioned that for you, there was a mental shift when you entered marriage, that made it easier to think of money differently. I can see your point. However I think for us, we've been living under the same roof for over four years, just bought a house together, and we're engaged to be married. Personally, I can't imagine feeling any more 'married' to him than I am now, after a party and a piece of paper.

We had been living together for over 2 years and were engaged as well. For me, it was still different being married. If I thought it was just a party and a piece of paper, I wouldn't have been compelled to do it. It was marriage. Vows. Husband and wife. The father of my future children (I would not have them out of wedlock). Just different. For me.

I don't mean to discredit the sanctity of marriage (I'd be the last person to do that - believe me). What I am simply trying to get across is that I already consider FI my husband, and as he's put it before "we've essentially been married ever since we decided to get married." Once the wedding day passes, he'll still be the same wonderful guy I fell in love with, and our responsibilities will be the same as they were before. We feel strongly about this...we are just as committed now as we will be in 6 months. Only in 6 months we'll be legally bound to each other...taxes, insurance, children, rights of survivorship, etc. etc. And that will be wonderful, but the decision's already been made to be together henceforth.

that's all.

ETA: I suppose I could understand the point that we AREN'T married yet and therefore can't know if things will change...but I hardly can imagine a change in views over money, since all those decisions have already been made.

 

[sumbride]

Date: 2/28/2008 3:36:54 PM
Author: tberube

Date: 2/28/2008 2:20:07 PM

Author: TravelingGal

Date: 2/28/2008 9:51:16 AM


Author: tberube



TravelingGal, you mentioned that for you, there was a mental shift when you entered marriage, that made it easier to think of money differently. I can see your point. However I think for us, we''ve been living under the same roof for over four years, just bought a house together, and we''re engaged to be married. Personally, I can''t imagine feeling any more ''married'' to him than I am now, after a party and a piece of paper.

We had been living together for over 2 years and were engaged as well. For me, it was still different being married. If I thought it was just a party and a piece of paper, I wouldn''t have been compelled to do it. It was marriage. Vows. Husband and wife. The father of my future children (I would not have them out of wedlock). Just different. For me.

I don''t mean to discredit the sanctity of marriage (I''d be the last person to do that - believe me). What I am simply trying to get across is that I already consider FI my husband, and as he''s put it before ''we''ve essentially been married ever since we decided to get married.'' Once the wedding day passes, he''ll still be the same wonderful guy I fell in love with, and our responsibilities will be the same as they were before. We feel strongly about this...we are just as committed now as we will be in 6 months. Only in 6 months we''ll be legally bound to each other...taxes, insurance, children, rights of survivorship, etc. etc. And that will be wonderful, but the decision''s already been made to be together henceforth.


that''s all.

Honestly I felt the same way before, but it was still different after. You may experience an even tighter bond after... you probably will. Things will feel different. That legal stuff means a lot.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 2/28/2008 3:38:34 PM
Author: sumbride


Honestly I felt the same way before, but it was still different after. You may experience an even tighter bond after... you probably will. Things will feel different. That legal stuff means a lot.

I agree. I know it may not be like that for everyone though. TGuy was already my partner. Unless he was crazy, there was no way I was sending him back to Oz after he packed up and moved here. The day he got on that plane with me, I knew he was my life partner. But I guess somehow I KNEW it much more when I woke up and he was my husband - legally. It''s so strange...I can''t explain it because I was surprised how much differently I felt.

Re: having own money...thought I''d add that we both get to keep our respective bonuses. We thought it would be a nice treat for working hard all year and we could spend it how we wished. So I keep 100% of my bonus and he keeps his. Mine is a lot bigger (as of now), so I usually splurge on something nice like a mini getaway for the both of us. Then I save the rest for whatever, and always use some of it for nice gifts for him.

 

[julabean]

Tberude: My FI and I joined accounts before we were even engaged (yipes!). We had lived together for a few months and the transferring of money just felt too much like a business transaction for us. So we combined accounts. And we have one joint account. Like a lot of people here, I''m in the boat where my FI makes twice as much as I do. The MAIN thing that has let our budgeting work is the idea that it is not his money or my money, but OUR money. When I see our paychecks deposited into our joint checking, I think of it is as our paychecks. WE got paid. WE''RE buying groceries. WE are spending X on this. It was the WE mentality I had to get into.

FI could do just fine without my paycheck, as he did for years before he met me. But having my paycheck allows us the extra spending we use for fun things, allows us to save just that little bit extra each month, and allows us to not be tapping our foot until the next payday. We each have a credit card that is only in one of our names, so when I want to buy him something or vice versa, I just use that because he won''t see it on banking. And in my case, once we joined the account, he pretty much handed off the financial planning to me.

 

[metro]

Interesting thread...

My husband and I have one joint checking account and one joint savings account - that''s it.

In our group of friends, we are the only couple that does this and we are the only couple in our group that never fights about money. We''ve been married 6-years and we have not had one fight about money (knock-on-wood).

When we got married, I was very nervous about joining our accounts. I was good with my money and DH had spending issues

, but we both sat down and said, okay, we''re married and we''re joined as one. We need to trust one another with all aspects of our lives and we WILL do this together. So we laid our budget and we stuck to it!

We both take responsibility for what goes in what comes out of our accounts. We know what bills must be paid and how much is being spent and how much is being saved. We both know what''s appropriate for us to spend on "stuff" and how much play money is available, though we''ve never set an amount or allowance. Once a year, I create a graph chart showing where we spend extra cash goes, which usually helps us see where we can cut back and where we can improve to meet our goals.

I don''t think that is a right way and a wrong way to set-up your finances. But you two need to sit down and figure it out together. The last thing any new married couple needs is a reason to argue.

DH''s salary is about 25% higher than mine.

 

[tberube]

Date: 2/28/2008 3:28:29 PM
Author: vslover

Date: 2/28/2008 3:26:19 PM

Author: tberube

I guess I have to wonder with systems like this...what happens if one of you has to be out of work for a while? Or what if you decide to be a stay at home mom? or someone becomes disabled? Would you change the system?

Of course we would change the system if that happened. I can''t imagine it working very well if only one of us can contribute.