8 Financial Things to Do After Getting Married

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So, you’re looking for financial tips for newly married couples. You’re lucky because we have all that you need in one place. We know how planning a new life can be challenging. It’s just the same as for the wedding. The party alone is beautiful and it means you’re committing to your soulmate, but it requires a lot of preparations and that can be rather stressful. Planning a financial part of your new life is equally difficult, maybe even more, because it’s a work in progress that will last for years to come. Sill, don’t let that stress you out so much. There are ways to get through all the planning a lot easier, and we are here to help. With our recommendations for financial things to do after getting married, you’ll find yourself prepared to deal with all the possible financial topics.

Talking About Finances

You two love birds should talk about finances before you get married. Most couples forget about this entirely, leaving the finance preoccupations for after the wedding. On the other hand, we recommend talking about it as soon as possible. If you’re not married yet, make sure to plan everything before the wedding. This way, you can enjoy your honeymoon and first days of marriage without thinking about anything else. Go over your accounts, talk about debt, and joined money. It’s important to get a clear understanding to avoid unnecessary fights.

P.S. If your wedding is just around the corner and you’re not quite sure whether you’ve covered all the important stuff or not, take a look at the following article: How to Plan a Wedding With Step-By-Step Instructions. It should help you make sure that you have all well organized and ready for the big day.

Writing Down Goals

Once you discuss finances, make sure to write down your goals. It’s crucial to have concrete plans to follow over the years. That way, you two can deal with all unexpected situations, including depths, unplanned expenses, and more. You also might want to buy a home together or invest for retirement? Whether you decide to be a one-income family or to have separate accounts all the way, you’ll most certainly have a lot of stuff to deal with together. That’s why it’s essential to have a plan you’ll both follow for a better life.

Accounts: Independent or Not?

When it comes to financial planning for newlyweds, one of the first things you should do is to discuss bank accounts. There are a lot of benefits coming with a joint bank account, but you don’t have to stick with it if you don’t want to. Honestly, having some level of independence is always a smart choice. A middle solution would be opening a joint account and keeping the separate ones at the same time. This way, you get to save money for your plans, yet you still remain healthily independent from each other.

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Building an Emergency Fund

Aside from having joined or separate accounts, you should build an emergency fund as soon as possible. It’s our top-priority advice for newlyweds. You want to be prepared in case something unexpected happens, such as losing a job, becoming ill, having a home repair, and more. Save money for 6 months of regular household expenses if you can. That should cover the expenses in case of an emergency.

Designing Budget

One of the first things to plan after marriage is a monthly budget. You want to limit how much you’re allowed to spend on food, dining out, and entertainment each month. That should ensure you don’t go into depth.

Try to review your past and joint expenses to plan the future ones. Also include some of the possible new investments. For example, one month you might need to repair a car or buy new clothes, etc. Don’t worry if you have to make adjustments in the first couple of months. That’s completely normal because you have to get used to the new life together.

P.S. Now you’ll probably have some new expenses for other weddings and celebrations as a couple. Here’s an article that could help you with these situations: How Much to Spend on a Wedding Anniversary Gift.

Tracking Budget

Once you design your budget, it’s crucial to stay within the planned expenses. You can do this by tracking down your expenses. Writing down all payments is still the best possible way to track things. You can either search for an online app or make a spreadsheet on your own. Either way, you should try to fill it in each month. It’s quite beneficial, you’ll see it!

Checking Out New Health Insurance Options

Checking out health insurance for newlyweds is one of the first things you should do after you get married. Luckily, you can make changes to your health insurance anytime during the year you get married. Make sure to check out all your options. It often happens that one of the spouses has a better option for adding the other one to the policy. You might even want to keep separate policies. Each situation is different, but you have to know where you stand as soon as possible. Also, don’t forget to examine and compare both of your doctor and prescription drugs costs and additional health expenses.

Other But Not Less Important Things to Remember

To make all these important financial decisions and plans work, you have to engage in a productive conversation with your spouse. Talking about these things is a little bit touchy, but it can be rather easy only if you keep in mind a few important things. Here’s what we have in mind:

No Judging

If you want to have a productive conversation with your spouse and make serious finance plans, you have to create a judgment-free space. Judging your spouse for whatever possible reason won’t take you anywhere. Regardless of your financial situation, you should both approach the conversation with compassion and neutrality. Only then you’ll be able to create a mind-blowing plan that will work best for your future!

Working as a Team

We probably don’t have to remind you about this, but we’re going to say it anyway. Working as a team is crucial! Your plan can work only if you both have the same goals in mind. Talk about your needs and wishes. You might have different perspectives, but you both want to see the other one happy. That will keep the balance and make you a dream team. Keep an eye on your strengths and weaknesses, and always support your loved one.

Talking About Everything

Now, here’s one crucial thing you should always keep in mind. All of this is a work in progress. It’s not enough to get through a single conversation about finances. For your ideas and plans to work, you need to follow each step carefully. You can do that only if you continuously talk with your partner, taking and giving advice and other kinds of suggestions. Also, for a plan to work, you’ll have to have monthly, if not weekly, meetings and discuss your progress. Yes, sometimes it can be challenging, but it’s for the greater good!

Sharing Responsibilities

Don’t forget to talk to your spouse about every possible financial detail. It’s not only about being fair to your loved one but about practical things. If you leave your spouse out of some decisions, things can go in an unwanted direction. For example, it often happens that one of the spouses forgets about the bills or depths, and then the financial situation deteriorates quickly.  We are only humans, and we can’t quite deal with everything on our own, especially not when in a bigger community. Now that you’re married, you and your spouse can rely on each other, so do exactly that when it comes to your finances.

Properly Dealing With Touchy Subjects

Fights are likely to happen in every relationship, and that doesn’t only refer to financial conversations, contrary to popular belief. However, you can avoid a lot of them if you put in some extra patience when discussing finances with your spouse. Remember that you’re on the same page but that you might have different perspectives. Your spouse might overspend because he or she thinks that something is worth the money. Even if you don’t think so, don’t start with accusations and yelling, that is unnecessary and completely wrong. Try to explain your loved one why you think otherwise what is to say have a calm conversation about a particular topic. This way, you can solve all problems and get an understanding. You’re a team, and the best one has players that watch over each other and share responsibilities. Never forget that!

Without a doubt, a time will come when you and your spouse won’t agree on something regarding the budget. Still, that doesn’t have to mean you’ll fight over a particular topic. It only means that you have to work harder to find the proper solution to your problem. Marriage is all about meeting halfway, after all, so try to accept that as part of your life.

Being Honest

Many couples admit that they tend to hide some of their expenses from each other, which is not wise at all. Of course, you have the right to make your purchases from your own money, whether you’re married or not. However, things are different with savings and your joint account. Nevertheless, if you sometimes make an irrational decision or purchase, don’t hide it for your spouse. Be honest about everything, and your soulmate will understand it. Nothing ruins relationships as lies, so try to be completely open and honest in your marriage.

Trusting Your Soulmate

Sometimes, you’ll probably feel like you’re better suited to handle some financial things. Whether you’re right or not, you shouldn’t make that decision for your spouse. You should be equal and share responsibility, so trusting in each other is crucial. Some people have a hard time letting go of all the control they had before marriage. The truth is, you’ll have to do it now that you’re committed to your life together. It’s not okay to ask your spouse how much she or he earned or spent or track her or his move all the time. Relax and trust. That’s what love is all about.

Show Dedication and Commitment

As you know, dealing with finances is significant. It’s not just because of the possible depths and material difficulties. It’s because these things can influence your marriage. Regardless of the love you have, because of the finances, you and your spouse might get into misunderstandings that can harm your relationships. To avoid and prevent those situations, stick with all your plans, and respect them. Don’t make excuses and avoid delaying your responsibilities. All of this can work only if both of you show 100 percent dedication and commitment, and here we are not only talking about material stuff!

Wrapping It Up

Now you’re all set! It wasn’t that hard, right? Yes, there are quite some things you should take care of, but doing it in two is way easier! Once you go through all our suggestions for financial things to do after getting married, you deserve some rest. All the planning and budget tracking can be rather exhausting, so give yourself time to process and get used to things. There are also a lot of fun things to do after you get married, and we recommend taking the time to check out Best Undiscovered Honeymoon Destinations In The World. You two deserve it!

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