A new study shows that marriage might save you more money than just living together. Buzz60's Natasha Abellard has the story.


When two hearts become one wallet, it’s critical that you understand each other’s values on money. Before walking down the aisle, you and your soon-to-be should have the money talk.

The talk isn’t always an easy conversation to have. However, these talks should be a priority, since poor money communication can lead to unhappiness in a marriage. Merging your finances and your lives may be challenging without a firm foundation. As difficult as the talks may be, each partner needs to bring honesty and realistic goals to the conversation.

Budget. You and your partner need to decide how you want to budget. Include your take-home pay, how much debt you have, how much you have saved, and what you spend monthly. Discuss what each other’s plans are to pay off debt. Discuss your financial goals: whether it be buying a house, going on a vacation, having children, going back to school or when to retire.

Once you create a budget, decide how often you want to go over your expenses. You can also discuss how you are achieving your goals. Talking about money early in the relationship makes it easier as more responsibilities are added to the family budget.

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Mine, yours and ours. When entering a relationship, you have three main options for dealing with money:

  • each spouse manages and maintains their own separate accounts and each pays an agreed upon amount per month of household expenses;
  • merging your accounts halfway where each spouse keeps a separate bank account in which their paychecks are deposited. Then there is a joint account that each spouse contributes to which is used for household expenses; or
  • joint checking account in which all paychecks are deposited and from which all expenses are paid from.

Not every couple is the same. What works for your parents may not work for you. It’s important that each person is comfortable with the option that is decided. If after a while it doesn’t work, you can always try a different option.

Prenup. Prenups used to be taboo, but many couples are now deciding to protect their assets before entering a marriage. People are getting married later in life when they have careers, a house and have started contributing to their retirement accounts.

Most lawyers recommend one for both parties, especially if each party is bringing with them a large amount of assets and debt. It is best to use different lawyers to represent each party.

Will. It could be considered an odd time to think about death at a time when you are planning for one of your happiest days. But a will is a vital financial and legal document that each spouse should have.

Create a list of your assets and financial accounts and how you would like them to be divided. If you have children, include who will have custody if the worse should happen. Include in your will who will have custody if something happens to the both of you. The attorney drafting your will may cover all these areas and more.

Insurance. Coming into the marriage, you probably have different insurance companies. As you merge car, home and life insurances, you may want to shop around for different policies and see if they can be bundled to save money. Ask your employer about a two-party or family health insurance policy and how much of a difference it will cost.

If you don’t have life insurance, you may want to consider getting a policy that protects both spouses. It’s best not to wait until you get older since premiums increase.


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