Significant Other: Joint Accounts or Separate?

[s0me0nesmind1]

Simple question: Do you share your money with your significant other, or do you keep them separate? Or do you keep it somewhere in between?

Currently that is what I am debating. I'm having a tough time managing finances when I pay a bill and have to pull from 3 different accounts every time. At the same time, I think everyone should always have a personal account so that if one person wants to make a purchase the other one disagree's with - it won't matter because it's coming from their personal account.

 

[rudeguy]

Simple question: Do you share your money with your significant other, or do you keep them separate? Or do you keep it somewhere in between?

Currently that is what I am debating. I'm having a tough time managing finances when I pay a bill and have to pull from 3 different accounts every time. At the same time, I think everyone should always have a personal account so that if one person wants to make a purchase the other one disagree's with - it won't matter because it's coming from their personal account.

are you married to them?
do you live with them?


Details help!

 

[Demoralized]

Separate. I transfer money into her account for bills etc... but I have my own account.

 

[Jimzz]

We, me and my wife, have separate accounts. She likes to pay the bills so I write her a check each month.

Keep your money separate. That way neither of you will ever judge the others fun purchases. My In-Laws share an account and they fight about it all the time.

 

[rudeguy]

We, me and my wife, have separate accounts. She likes to pay the bills so I write her a check each month.

Keep your money separate. That way neither of you will ever judge the others fun purchases. My In-Laws share an account and they fight about it all the time.

So you don't believe in marriage?

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

are you married to them?
do you live with them?


Details help!

Oh I was just looking for everyone else's experience/decision.

Personally, I'm with my fiancee - scheduled to be married in March. We're moving our assets together now after I decided it was best with all our purchases together. I'm the finance person, and I don't have time to keep transferring money through 10 different banks/accounts anymore.

 

[brotj7]

Put your own checks into your own accounts and transfer in your portion of the monthly bills to the joint. Then pay from the joint account. Makes transfers easier with kids accounts too.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

We, me and my wife, have separate accounts. She likes to pay the bills so I write her a check each month.

Keep your money separate. That way neither of you will ever judge the others fun purchases. My In-Laws share an account and they fight about it all the time.

It's funny, I hear this all the time - and I expected it too. Apparently I'm the one that spends all the money :$

She grew up poor. I grew up upper-middle class. She hates going to the mall to shop for clothes. Hell, I have to tell her get your ass to the mall and get some new jeans damnit.

 

[Oyeve]

Separate. It keeps the divorce simpler.

 

[Yourself]

Joint account. We've been married 16 years and having the joint account hasn't caused any issues.

 

[RedShirt]

I think joint is the way to go. This way, you really have to think about what you want to spend your money on. You both will likely become less impulsive with your money.

My wife and I created sub-savings online with our bank account (one for each). We put an even amount of money each check into each sub-savings. That's what we call our "fun money". This is money we can use for whatever (For example, I saved for months in order to get an Xbox One). Basically, anything that's not a bill or necessary expense (groceries for example), needs to be taken from fun money. The exception to this is if we both agree that it should be taken from somewhere else (For example, we are going to Florida for 5 days in February. This didn't come out of our fun money).

I've noticed people at work that have separate accounts get into fights. Mostly about bills and credit card payments. When both people don't have their eyes on the same account, spending seems to increase by both parties. I've also seen some people create accounts that are hidden from their spouse. That's asking for serious pain later on down the road.

 

[Remobz]

Separate accounts all the way. Seen too many men get screwed over with joint accounts. One should never fully trust a woman when it comes to money no matter how well you know her.

And to be fair, yes I have also seen some men screw women over as well.

 

[rudeguy]

I think joint is the way to go. This way, you really have to think about what you want to spend your money on. You both will likely become less impulsive with your money.

My wife and I created sub-savings online with our bank account (one for each). We put an even amount of money each check into each sub-savings. That's what we call our "fun money". This is money we can use for whatever (For example, I saved for months in order to get an Xbox One). Basically, anything that's not a bill or necessary expense (groceries for example), needs to be taken from fun money. The exception to this is if we both agree that it should be taken from somewhere else (For example, we are going to Florida for 5 days in February. This didn't come out of our fun money).

I've noticed people at work that have separate accounts get into fights. Mostly about bills and credit card payments. When both people don't have their eyes on the same account, spending seems to increase by both parties. I've also seen some people create accounts that are hidden from their spouse. That's asking for serious pain later on down the road.

I think you are doing it right.

Marriage is joining two people into one. I don't see how one person could be divided into two for money's sake.

 

[Uppsala9496]

Separate joint accounts. We can each access and transfer from each account as needed.
Her paycheck goes into "her" account and mine into "mine". Most of the bills come out of "my" account. I grab money as necessary to pay bills.

 

[child of wonder]

if married=1 then $account = joint
if married=0 then $account = separate

 

[sixone]

if married=1 then $account = joint
if married=0 then $account = separate

nerd + 1

 

[ch33zw1z]

When my wife and I got married, we created joint accounts and closed our personal accounts. It's our money, not mine and yours.

 

[rudeguy]

When my wife and I got married, we created joint accounts and closed our personal accounts. It's our money, not mine and yours.

:thumbsup:

 

[dank69]

When my wife and I got married, we created joint accounts and closed our personal accounts. It's our money, not mine and yours.

Fuck that noise. She can earn my money the old fashioned way.

 

[highland145]

Fuck that noise. She can earn my money the old fashioned way.

Sammiches

 

[ch33zw1z]

Fuck that noise. She can earn my money the old fashioned way.

If by taking care of the house, kids, bills, food, pretty much everything else except physically going to work for "the man". than yea, she does. And she does WAY more work than I do any day of the week.

 

[highland145]

Depends on each of your ideas about spending and saving. Many couples have one spender and one saver....2 accounts.

 

[dank69]

If by taking care of the house, kids, bills, food, pretty much everything else except physically going to work for "the man". than yea, she does. And she does WAY more work than I do any day of the week.

Not my fault she chose to be born without a penis.

 

[Jaepheth]

if married=1 then $account = joint
if married=0 then $account = separate

married = 0.8



or married = 6 (almost exclusively a rural issue)

 

[ch33zw1z]

Not my fault she chose to be born without a penis.

easy buddy, I'm just letting you know how it is. She does all this without complaint, remorse, and is one of the least selfish people I have ever met. I wasn't saying she hates it, just explaining how it is.

I wasn't really sure what you meant by "the old fashioned way"