For many couples today talking about finances is complicated, but this, as well as home responsibilities and future plans, are important issues to deal with, especially if you think long-term.
Although there are no perfect formulas on how to carry the income from a home, as it will depend on the couple, it is necessary to keep in mind that establishing an organization with the money can generate economic stability in the relationship; therefore, the starting point would be to answer the question: is it appropriate to share it all or manage the finances separately?
According to data from the U.S. Census Office, more than 40% of married people prefer to keep their finances together, as opposed to 30% who prefer a combination of joint and separate accounts, and 20% who choose to keep their finances separate.
However, a study developed and published by the Journal of Consumer Research in 2023 revealed that couples who share their bank accounts are happier, as they managed to work in teamining a “sentiment of union and collaboration”, and being less likely to separate, unlike those who had their accounts separately, who showed marked dissatisfaction.
According to Jenny Olson, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Indiana, “research suggests that having joint accounts is something positive for marriage, it allows you to maintain that feeling of unity,” she said.
However, it cannot be denied that separate accounts in some cases are important, as they manage to protect assets acquired long before marriage, whether by savings or inheritance, and this trend is increasingly observed among younger Americans, who choose to separate their possessions compared to Generation X or baby boomers.
And the reason behind these decisions could be what Jeffrey Mellone, executive asset management adviser at TIAA Wealth Management, says, who mentions that “the advantage of having individual accounts is that they provide a sense of autonomy.”
It is a way in which both parties can continue to feel independent and in which there is no way to blame each other for impulsive spending or purchases; however, it puts aside working together for shared goals.
For Olson, “When you have joint accounts, everything is in sight. There is more transparency. There are fewer opportunities to hide things from the couple. They are more likely to have common financial goals. The mentality of “we” is preserved instead of “you and I,” he said.
But you also have to keep in mind that there are some reasons for carrying bank accounts separately, such as for example, that one of the members of the couple drags large debts that affect the other. To have individual emergency funds in case of divorce or that either party has irreconcilable spending habits.
In these cases, Brian Walsh, director of counseling and planning at SoFi, believes that “the key is that couples talk to each other and decide how they want to manage their money and why. If they have individual accounts, there should normally be a joint account for shared expenses,” he said.
