Being newly married is an exciting time in the lives of a husband and wife. Each year more than two million couples make a lifelong commitment to one another through marriage.
As you start to navigate your life together, you may feel happy but uneasy about the uncertainty that lies ahead. Through your faith in Jesus Christ and each other as a couple, you can overcome all of life’s challenges. This includes personal, professional, financial, and health scares that you and your family may experience as you travel through life together.
Read on to learn how to manage money when you are newly married.
Create a Realistic Household Budget
To minimize financial stress on each other it is a good idea to start your money management by setting a household budget. This means sitting down with each other to go over each one of your bills.
This includes bills that are in each spouse’s name, as well as those that you share together. For each one of your bills, you should discuss whether the expense is a want or a need.
For example, you and your spouse may enjoy an Amazon Prime membership because of the quick and easy ship times. If you aren’t using it enough to justify the expense, you may consider cutting it out of your budget.
Once you make a list of wants and needs, you will have a more realistic sense of where your money goes each month. As you plan your budget, consider the spending money you both want to have each month, as well as any savings and retirement contributions.
Start Saving an Emergency Fund
As you and your spouse probably know, life can be full of unexpected ups and downs, that include triumph and tragedy. Through the love and support of friends, family, and Jesus Christ, you will prevail through it all.
One way to help secure yourselves financially in the event of an unexpected financial burden is to start saving an emergency fund. As you may have guessed, an emergency fund is meant to shoulder an unplanned financial burden.
For example, if there were layoffs at work and you lost your job, you may need to use your emergency fund to continue paying bills. It’s a good rule of thumb to save three to six months’ worth of living expenses in an emergency fund.
Establish a Joint Bank Account
Establishing a joint bank account is a great way to begin living on the same financial page together. You and your spouse may feel that you each would like to maintain a separate bank account too.
For example, the spouses may have certain hobbies that they will want to participate in. You might want to each have an account where you can spend money without having to worry about bills and other expenses.
A joint bank account can be used for your emergency fund and to pay monthly bills that are in both of your names.
Set Financial Goals
Setting financial goals is an effective step for married couples young and old. When you set goals as a couple, this will help you measure your success and keep you on track.
Does one spouse have a large amount of student loan debt outstanding or consumer credit card balances? It’s wise to create a plan for how you and your spouse will pay off these debts so that you can avoid high-interest charges.
Do you and your wife aspire to live in a certain neighborhood or city in the United States? If the answer is yes, set a plan to make your dreams a reality. Through planning, hard work, and prayer, you both can accomplish anything.
Consider Your Future
When you are a newly married couple, it may be challenging to look 30 or 40 years down the road. For example, if you exchange wedding vows in your 20’s, you may not be thinking about where you will be when you are 50 or 60 years old.
Considering your future means thinking about the short- and long-term goals that you have together. Do you want to have kids and raise them in a certain area?
How long do you want to work in your current career? When would you each like to retire? These are some of the most common financial challenges for married couples.
When you consider retirement, you envision yourself traveling around the world together or spending time at fun places like beaches and restaurants. Speak with a financial planner about your goals and how much money you may need to fund your retirement.
This will help to keep you both on track and remember that you are working towards a bigger goal together.
Manage Money When You are Newly Married
Newly married couples should manage money together so that they are on the same page and share the same goals. Talking about finances can be a stressful topic for even the most wealthy people.
By taking time to be together and have an open and honest conversation, you will learn a lot about each other. This will also help you strengthen your marriage and the bond that you have as husband and wife.