Courtney Joy

Handling Money

            I interviewed my mom, she has been married to the same man for 25 years. I have idolized my parents for how well they work together, and help each other through all the hard things in their life. I hope to have this same kind of relationship when I find the one I will marry. I have friends that got married a year ago and they have struggled with money and how to handle it. They are still in the state of mind that they want everything they want and don’t need to share finances but that is not true. I love the idea of each spouse having an allowance they can use without question, use it on what they want!
Do you believe that all your assets belong to both of you and that all your debts are your joint responsibility? Yes, because we are a team. We work for everything we have together and share the same belief of working together on everything and doing what is best for our family. Do you expect to share equally in financial decisions? If not, how do you plan to make financial decisions? Yes, again we are a team. We do use a budget, because it helps us live within our needs. How do you feel about each partner's having a personal allowance for which he or she is not accountable to the other? I think it is a good idea, everybody wants and needs different things so to have money that doesn’t have to be asked about it would be nice! How do you feel about buying on credit? Small items? Large items? It is good to build credit so you can buy a house, car etc. but in some instances I think it’s best to not use it. I would say no to small items on credit because it is easy to get into financial trouble. Keep your credit open for bigger purchases. Neither of us had any debts coming into marriage. We share bills we divide and conquer. We both use checks, we both help with the bookkeeping, primarily my husband but just like everything else we have said we do things together.