Moving in with your partner is a serious commitment as it will have numerous impacts on your lifestyle. Couples often ignore the financial aspect of the decision while deciding the next stage of their relationship. And without proper planning, it may lead to many disputes and confusion that will hurt your relationship.
Therefore, the couple should sit together and start an uncomfortable conversation about finances. You may have different financial goals, lifestyles, and spending habits. And it makes more sense to make decisions keeping in mind these factors for both the partners.
How to Start the Awkward Conversation About Finances?
Financial condition is a sensitive topic for people as they often try to avoid it. However, it is essential to create a strong foundation for your relationship before moving in. Create a list of objectives to start and prepare your stand for them.
You need to start with a shared budget to manage the bills, shopping, and amenities. Prepare yourself to sacrifice a few luxuries as the budgeting may require cost-cutting from your lifestyle. The shared financial goals can wait as the first few weeks are the testing phase for your relationship.
Important Questions for the Couples About to Move-In
You need to answer a few questions before moving in with your partner for a smooth transition. Otherwise, it will result in disputes and a lack of understanding to create troubles for your relationship. We have created a list of those important questions to create a start living together with a clear financial picture.
- House
You need a house to move in together as the basic requirement. Generally, the couples move to the house of the partner with a bigger space. You may have to find a different home if both the couples live in a limited space or shared accommodation.
It is a tough decision as the rent will take a significant portion of your income. You need to find a place at a comfortable distance to your offices. Moreover, the couples often have a different idea for the ideal space for living.
Therefore, create a list of requirements with your partner and find a middle ground for each. You need to make sure the rent remains within the affordability of the shared budget. You can take instant loans for the unemployed to cover the cost of moving or deposit for the new house.
- Expenses
Your budget will start with a list of expenses to support a comfortable and affordable lifestyle. It gets easier to manage the expenses if you open a shared account and transfer an equal amount to pay for them. Or, you can divide the expenses to share the responsibility.
The expenses will include the bills, shopping items, and amenities. Let the partner earning more money spend a little extra on the household expenses. Though, make sure they are okay with the idea of putting more money in the spending account.
Do not put the responsibility to pay the bills on a single person. It will create a feeling of resentment as they will go through troubles while communicating with the service provider. Dividing the bills will ensure both the partners will take equal responsibility for the finances.
- Current Financial State
Sharing the current financial state is difficult for people because of the embarrassment. You should not force them to share information such as debts or savings. Let the come clean after a polite discussion over the topic.
You can start with sharing the credit score to get an idea of their debt situation and fund management. Let them share the financial goals and their progress to support them. Furthermore, you should share important luxuries such as expensive cable packages or visits to the spa.
- Debt Situation
The debt situation of your partner is a great measure to find how responsible are they with the finances. Also, it will help create a better budget to make sure the repayment is made to eliminate the debts slowly. The amount of debt in their profile will negatively impact your personal life as well.
Many landlords check the credit score of the applicants before signing an agreement with them. You may not get the house in your favourite locality to live in because of their debt situation. Moreover, it will indicate their mindless spending to put unnecessary stress on the shared budget.
- Habits and Lifestyle
The decision to move in together come after knowing each other very well. You already are aware of the major habits of your partner and they know yours. Therefore, it will get easier to share the habits, and lifestyle with them after moving in with them.
However, there are certain habits people often ignore or hesitate to share with their partners. You may not know about their weekend games with heavy stakes. Similarly, you must ask them to come clean of any habits to ensure transparency in the relationship.
It is okay if they have some bad financial habits. You need to find a solution together to get rid of them. You can replace them with positive habits while spending time together.
- Income Security
Income security is critical to safeguard your finances from unexpected situations. You cannot predict for sure about the laying off in the industries. However, it is simple enough to predict whether the complete may fire a few employees because of the market or organisational problems.
Therefore, you should not rely on a single source of income to manage the expenses. Explore the different side hustles ideas to invest in a common project. With the savings of both, it won’t be hard to start a side hustle along with a regular job.
Conclusion
To sum up, couples should discuss their finances by creating a budget or sharing important information. Do not hide difficult information such as debts or financial troubles as it will hurt your relationship. You cannot hide this information from them forever.
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In this blog, readers will find the important questions to secure their financial condition before moving in with their partner.
