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From YourTango

Balancing the family budget requires teamwork and setting common goals. People who are in love support each other through thick and thin—through good and bad financial times. Before you decide that he’s the right guy to marry, you need to take a serious look at how he views financial goals, choices and commitments.

Since the number one cause of disagreements in marriages is financial, it’s critical to observe if the guy you think you want to marry exhibits any of these 12 warning signs:

1. You are not on the same financial page. In fact, you disagree about almost all financial goals, choices, and commitments.

2. When you quiz him about his personal budget, it’s clear that he doesn’t have one. When you suggest that budgeting is a good thing and try to show him how to prepare a financial budget, he acts disinterested or feigns interest and never goes any further with the budgeting process.

3. Rather than pay off his credit cards each month, he pays the minimum. He often pays late or doesn’t pay them at all. This is a regular occurrence because he never seems to have enough money to pay his bills.

4. He is often out of work. He blames other people, the high unemployment rate or other circumstances beyond his control for his lack of employment. He often says that it’s just a temporary situation, but even when he’s working he doesn’t seem to keep a job for very long.

5. He excessively spends his money without regard to his income. It seems that he’s living far beyond his ability to support that level of lifestyle. When he wants something, he buys it without regard to what it costs or how he will pay for it.

Read more on YourTango.com.

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From YourTango

There are over two million marriages in the United States and if you are considering joining that number, be sure you know what you’re getting into.  Before you pop the question to your beautiful bride (or groom) to be, you may consider all the things that make you smile – great sex, same taste in food, spontaneous personality – but  you also need to look further down the road.  Here are 3 questions to ask before you ask the biggest question of your life:

Are we having kids, and if so, when?  Believe it or not, the decisions of whether and when to have children can be deal breakers.  So while you may not think it’s a big deal to wait another ten years to have a child, your future spouse may have other plans in mind.  Don’t allow yourself to be in the kind of marriage where your spouse’s gynecologist knows more about her plans to have children then you do.  Raise this conversation before you get married in order to make sure you are on the same page and avoid future disagreements.

Read more at YourTango.com

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Every couple goes through rough times. However, where money is concerned, there is a lack of communication between people around the world. It’s a tough topic, and couples that have merged their economic situations can see their relationship go from smooth sailing to choppy waters.

Once your relationship begins to drown in financial issues, you’re on the path to either Breakup City or a financially hazardous relationship. If you are concerned about your or your honey’s finances, but don’t know the signs to look out for, take a look at these nine financial red flags that could be right under your nose, targeting your bank account.

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Do you find yourself checking your bank account on a daily basis over and over again? Do you give a side-eye to the idea of a joint account with your current or future spouse, automatic bill payments and building credit? If this sounds like you or someone you know, you may be a money hoarder; one who excessively acquires money, but has difficulty spending it or letting go financial control.

Here are a few ways to tell if you are hoarding your own money, unable to trust your family, your bank, or even yourself with spending it, in fear of losing a little bit of control.

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Cash. Dough. Bread. Dosh. However you name it, money is a delicate topic to discuss with anyone, and things can get rather precarious when talking about it with your partner. Before you find yourself surprised at discovering that your lover would like to sign a prenuptial agreement three months into your marriage, here are nine financial topics that you should talk about with him/her in the early stages of your relationship:

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Nothing tests romance more than mismanaged finances. But typically people regard their money as personal business. At the same time, you know the way a man manages his money can potentially ruin a long term serious relationship or marriage. We asked our Facebook followers when they start monitoring their partners and how they spend their money. See what they had to say.

Nancy: The way they handle money says a lot about them. I’d keep a cautious eye out.

Shamika: Oh I definitely keep an eye on it. Financial problems are one of the major reasons for break ups. If you have a financially irresponsible partner, that can cause all sorts of problems.

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How are your finances looking? Have you been sticking to the goals you set at the beginning of the year, or do you find yourself putting it off for the next month? We have all made promises to save a little more and spend a little less, but life can happen, making plans fall to the wayside. Thankfully there are smartphone apps that hold us accountable. Here are ten to keep you on the road to financial freedom.

Hey Damon

 

Recently, a few of my friends have come across the sentiment that men don’t want to even date seriously if they’re not in a certain place financially. Can you explain whether this is really a thing or an excuse to avoid commitment? And if it is a thing what types of markers do men need before they can feel comfortable progressing in a relationship?

Curious About Men And Cash

 

Read the rest of this entry »

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Perhaps not the most romantic thing to be talking about around Valentine’s Day, but with so many couples breaking up over money issues, now is as good a time as any.

Relationships end all the time because of disagreement about money — how much to spend, how to spend it, etc. According to Patrice Washington, it’s not so much the money that causes the problems, but the ways in which people in a relationship think about it.

“I believe the reality is that money, in and of itself, is harmless. What couples need to begin discussing is the value they associate with money or lack thereof,” Wilson writes on Black Enterprise.

The article goes on to pose three questions that you should ask your significant other… and possibly yourself.

To read more, click through to BlackEnterprise.com.

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Whether a job cut is expected or unexpected, it can be a harsh blow. Rent is due on the 1st, the car insurance in due on the 2nd, and possibly baby number three is due in a couple of months. When the unexpected happens and your financial lifestyle is threatened, it could be unnerving, leaving you feeling powerless and and fearful for the not-so-distant future.

Don’t feel trapped by the binds of finances and money. Prepare better for unexpected financial situations that could put you in a bind, like unemployment, children or a sudden rent increase with a few of these money-tightening techniques.