Pyar, Paisa Aur Shaadi
Even though money is often cited as the most common issue couples argue about, many of us fail to talk about finances before the marriage. Here are some of the points you may consider discussing with your partner before your marriage to avoid some unexpected and unpleasant surprises.
Know Where They Stand
Get a broad idea from your partner about the financial position and understand the short-term and long-term financial goals. This will allow you an opportunity to discuss the investment strategies and avoid unnecessary expenses.
Understand The Psychology
It is the psychological phenomena that heavily weigh into our money-making decisions and our overall happiness. Understand your partner and family's beliefs and viewpoints about money. In India, our family’s views can have a huge impact on the way we see our finances. It is important to work out these differences and agree on a strategy that is acceptable to both partners.
Know Spending / Saving Habits
There are high chances that both the partners don’t spend and save money the same way. It is a good practice to understand spending/saving habits at an early stage than later. This will help you identify differences in your financial personality.
Assigning Responsibilities
It is a very common practice in India to share financial responsibilities after marriage. Consider discussing responsibilities and setting a budget. A realistic understanding of your earnings as well as expenses/debt can create a realistic budget based on your combined income and expenses.
Financial and Career Goals
Understand each other's financial and career goals and how they plan to deal with those goals. One partner may want to get rid of 9 to 5 slavery to start his/her own venture and another partner may want to pursue higher studies. Understanding these goals will help you deal with the nuances involved in planning your finances.
💡 We are in 2021, and yet discussing finance before marriage is considered taboo. Finance is one of the crucial parts of our lives and relationships. Discussing finances before marriage builds a foundation of our relationship, prepares us for many uncertainties, reduces our stress, and more importantly, helps us plan our future.