Personal Finance Series #11: Finance Tips for Newlyweds

Hi there,

I often get a question when I attend a wedding, "do you have any finance tips for newly married couples?" Well, I'm glad you asked! Based on both personal and professional experience, I can provide the following tips for those out there who are recently married or will soon... So let's get started...

1. Skip the 'Dream' House (for Now): Pursuing the American Dream is, for many, owning a large house/mansion. But ask yourself, "do you really need all that space". Bigger house means bigger everything, especially expenses such as bigger mortgages, property taxes, homeowners insurance and maintenance costs. Most likely, you will use at best half of the rooms, and the other half will become glorified storage space. Instead, save up for a down payment and purchase a starter home (or rent depending on your situation). You can always upgrade later once your family gets larger!

2. Skip that shiny new BMW: some say BMW stands for: "Be My Wife". But seriously, she loves you for who you are, not what you have (right?). Instead, lease a late-model used car that has factory warranty for the duration of the lease. Lease payments are much smaller than a finance payment, which allows you to save up. Hopefully, if you do this right, you may have enough savings at the end of the lease for a large down payment on the purchase of a new (and modest) car, or even have enough to pay in cash for a late-model used car. Why invest in a depreciating asset that loses value each day (whether it is being used or sitting idle)!

3. Do not keep secret credit cards: this is not just money advice, but also to keep marriage strong. If you hide spending from your spouse, not only does that damage financial planning, it also damages something even more important, TRUST. If you are taking money out 'secretly' from the ATM or paying 'secret' credit card bills, he/she will find out.. Trust me on this. And when the thing hits the fan, watch out! Small incidental spending (less than $50) is probably fine, but major spending requires a joint conversation...

4. Start saving money now: when you are young, you feel invincible and that you will live forever. But we will all get old, and so it would behoove us to start saving up for our retirement as early as possible. As I have mentioned in prior posts, starting early is crucial for retirement planning success. If you don't want to think about old age and retirement, then at least start an emergency savings fund so that you can weather challenges that life sometimes throw at us, such as a job loss, medical bills, or other emergencies.

5. Spend quality time with each other: this is much like Tip#3. It's both a money and a marriage advice. According to most statistics, half of all marriages end in a divorce. And divorce can be a very expensive event, in terms of legal fees, court costs, and lifestyle changes (like liquidating houses and assets, child support/alimony, etc). It would save a ton of money if divorce does not happen in the first place. A step in the right direction would be to spend quality time with each other on a daily basis. Have dinner together, and discuss about what happened during the day, family matters, and world events. Do things together, like exercising and watching movies. Stay together!

Hope you enjoyed this article. Which one(s) do you like the most? Please reply and let’s share our thoughts together. Thanks for reading!

If you liked this article, check out my previous posts below:

Personal Finance Series #10: Financial Habits of the Wealthy

Personal Finance Series #9: Finance Tips for Millenials

Personal Finance Series #8: How to Manage Your Debt

Personal Finance Series #7: Stop Wasting Your Money!

Personal Finance Series #6: Retirement Planning

Personal Finance Series #5: How to Get a Pay Raise

Personal Finance Series #4: Investment Advice - Part Two

Personal Finance Series #3: Investment Advice from Warren Buffett

Personal Finance Series #2: Top Money-Saving Tips

About the Author : I am a cryptocurrency enthusiast and a U.S. Certified Public Accountant with over 15 years of experience in accounting, taxation, and finance.

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