How to make an agreement with your partner about money problems!

How to make an agreement with your partner about money problems!

Life isn’t simple!

Rather things get tougher and difficult as you age, get married, and start living in a relationship!

This post will be dealing with one big issue that nearly we all couples face at the end of the day. It is about coming to an agreement with one’s partner about money problems and other financial issues like fighting debts together and merging finances!

What makes a financial agreement so important in relationship?

Finance is a very sensitive and personal subject to discuss.

If you think minutely, then you will realize that hiding deep financial secrets from your partner can only bring future chaos in your relationship!

Being a couple, you share so many personal secrets. To be precise, sharing is the main driving factor that keeps a relationship intact. The more transparent you are with your partner, the better is it for the relationship!

If you approach any financial therapist or counselor, you will understand what I am trying to say. There are many instances where debts and other financial problems cause divorces, breakups, delays in conceiving child, and many other mental health issues.

Also united we stand and divided we fall. As I will talk later in this post, if you can merge your finances with your partner, then you can fight emergency expenses and other costly issues efficiently.

Is discussing finances with your partner difficult?

Absolutely not!

If both of you are ready to participate equally in such discussions, then it’s not difficult. The initiatives should come from both sides.

How can you approach your partner to discuss money problems?

1. Sit with your partner in a relaxed mind. Tell how you’ve been feeling lately about solidifying your relationship more than ever. To do so, you believe, that both of you must be clear about finances just like other aspects of life and love.
2. Open up your financial issues one by one. Remember to speak out the worst problem first. By doing so, you will be able to throw out the other petty issues without any dilemma or shyness.
3. Reveal both of your salaries, and don’t hide one’s financial strength from the other.

Merge the finances and handle debt together:

The main reason for coming into an agreement about financial problems, with your partner, is to merge your finances together.

If both of you are income holders in your family, then you can easily divide the expenses between you two, and take charge of obligations separately.

You can take care of groceries and the utility bills, while your partner can take hold of debt payments.

Debt payments is a very important factor in merging finances.

Do you have enough debts to take away your night’s sleep? Do you feel your income is not enough to suffice your debt payments?

Well you must discuss in brief with your spouse about all the debts that you have, whether or not you can fight it alone, how helpful will it be for you if your spouse plans to contribute to your debt payments.

When it comes to debts, or tackling loan bills, you both should work together to get the optimum results.

If both of you are breadwinners, then having one low income won’t be much of a problem. Surface your options to pay off debts even with a low income, by merging your salary with your spouse’s.

Start making extra payments, with the help of your partner.

There’s nothing called “your debts” or “my debts” in a relationship. By being together, you agree that everything will be shared by both of you equally, including liabilities and responsibility, and debts are no different.

Ultimately the money agreement should look a bit like this:

1. There will be no secrets and hiding of facts when it comes to sharing personal financial information.
2. Each should have a brief idea about one another, regarding income, expenses, debts, obligations and other miscellaneous costs.
3. Savings and expenses, should be divided between you two, based on who earns how much.So if you earn $5000, and your spouse earns $8000, then your spouse’s contribution will be more than you.
4. You can deal with small expenses, while your spouse can deal with the bigger ones.
5. The same thing will happen with savings. Your partner’s contribution will be a bit more than yours.
6. From now on, every financial decision is to be taken jointly, be it a vacation planning or managing medical debts, or even your kid’s college expenses.

That’s all I had to say about making a financial agreement with your partner. No doubt it will be helpful in whatever financial goals you want to achieve.

Also don’t forget to check out the book family travel hacks and tips for any budget, if you are planning a vacation with your family on a tight budget, and want to deal with the travel expenses together.

Andy Masaki is a blogger and financial writer associated with the Oak View Law Group. He is a debt expert and a member of several online forums where he shares his advice as well as tips to lead a financially independent life.

How to Survive Black Friday Without Destroying Your Budget or Your Bank Account!

For many Americans, Black Friday has become a ritual and expectation.  While we're not against Black Friday, the day can lead to buying things you don't need for more than you should pay. Here are some tips to help busy frugal families survive Black Friday without destroying your bank account or your budget.

Set a Black Friday spending limit with your spouse.

Whether you handle your finances jointly or separately, discussing your financial goals with your spouse and getting on the same page is critical for a healthy marriage.  Come to an agreement on how much you will spend based on what you can afford.  Ideally, you would have money saved up for this expense, but if you're not there yet, you can at least agree on how much money you both will spend.

Think about what you want to buy before looking at the Black Friday ads.

Deciding what you want by looking at the ads is like going grocery shopping when you're hungry. If you let the ads tell you what you should buy, you're more likely to overspend and buy things that seem cool but you don't really need or don't help you reach your goals.

Free yourself from the pressure to buy something for everyone.  

Heartfelt gifts don't have to cost a lot of money. If you buy someone for every coworker or person you supervise, every family member, and all your friends, you'll be broke before you even get to Cyber Monday.  They probably won't even remember the gift you gave them in a few weeks. If you take the time to compose a handwritten note or make something from materials you have at home, the gift will be distinguishable from all the other gifts people get during the holidays.  If you're a person of faith, remember that Christmas isn't about presents in boxes. It's about the greatest gift we could ever receive.

Don't forget about any unused reward points, reward miles, or coupon app earnings.

One way to reduce your out of pocket costs for the holidays is to use accumulated reward points or miles. If you plan to travel during the holidays, you may be able to use your points for hotel stays and transportation and use your miles for plane tickets.  If you use Coupon apps like iBotta or Checkout51 and have accumulated enough money to cash out your savings, you may have enough extra money to drastically reduce the amount of money you need to contribute for holiday purchases.

Have another tip for saving money on Black Friday? Let us know in the comments!

Order Our New Book!

Twelve Easy Ways to Save Money That Won't Make You Feel Frustrated!

Bills. Groceries. Debt. The struggle is real.

If you're anything like us, you need to save money to put more money toward your financial goals.

Getting out of debt. Building an emergency fund. Saving for retirement. Saving for college.

Here are some ways we save money that have helped in our journey to financial independence:

Save Money on Groceries at DAISO!

Do you like to shop at dollar stores? Do you like to get your shopping done fast? Then make a shopping trip to your nearest DAISO store!

The first thing we noticed after walking in the store was how bright the store was because of the white and pink color scheme.

Like many dollar stores, the majority of items are one price. At DAISO, most items are $1.50.  The extra fifty cents allows them to carry a few items you might not find at other dollar stores.

I've never seen felt at a dollar store before!

DAISO carries a variety of craft supplies!

DAISO also carries gardening supplies!

You will also find a large selection of toys!

Sports enthusiasts can also find items at DAISO.  While it's not $1.50, this tennis racket is a steal at $2.00!

DAISO even carries ping pong paddles and gloves!

DAISO even carries cleaning supplies.

The chandeliers at the checkout line are a nice touch!

You can also find a large selection of international food products to try!

Have you ever shopped at DAISO? What did you find?

Let us know in the comments!

How to Save Time and Money with Kroger Clicklist!

Too busy to go grocery shopping? Need to save money on groceries? Then try Kroger ClickList!

Save Time Grocery Shopping

As grocery stores get larger and larger, it takes longer and longer to walk all the aisles to find what you need. You can dramatically reduce the amount of time you spend by shopping online and picking up your items - outside the store.

Save Money on Groceries

Even when you go the store with a list, we often end up spending more because of impulse buys and items we find along the way.  One way to solve this problem is to buy your items online based on your grocery list so you don't buy any extra items.  You can also save money by using online ClickList coupons!

How to Buy Groceries with Kroger ClickList

First, you need to buy your groceries online.

Then you need to decide when you want to pick up your groceries.

When you arrive at the store, you will follow the ClickList signs to the pickup station.  At our local Kroger, the pickup station is on the side of the store.

Pull into the ClickList parking spaces and call the store using the phone number on the sign in front of the parking space to let the ClickList staff know you're ready for pickup.

Once the staff member arrived, she went over the items on the receipt and even loaded the items into our car!

The whole experience took between five and ten minutes! And no impulse purchases!

Summary of the Kroger ClickList experience:

• Save time grocery shopping ✅
• Save money on groceries ✅

Grocery shopping will never be the same!

Have you bought groceries online? What did you think of the experience?