This is a very common question, but the answer is easy. Yes. Money fights, a lack of communication between spouses regarding money, and not setting goals together are three of the top reasons for divorce in the United States.
Work together
When couples work together, they are more successful. Budgeting together forces you to communicate, it eliminates tension and allows you to talk about your financial goals. You each have different talents and gifts that complement each other. Couples that budget together will be more successful with their finances.
Just tracking away
When my wife and I did not budget together, we did not have regular communication about money. I wasn’t even budgeting. I would track the expenses at the end of the month. She would spend something, even if it was just five dollars, and I would get critical of her.
She would ask if we could spend money on something, I would say no we don’t have money for that, then I was the bad guy. I would make a poor decision with money and I wouldn’t want her to find out about it because I knew she would get upset. There was fear, shame, and guilt.
Making a plan
Once we started budgeting together. I mean really budgeting. Creating a plan for each month. Telling our money where to go. The fear, shame, and guilt disappeared. If we had money in the budget to make the purchase or take the trip, we did it. We didn’t feel guilty, we didn’t argue. We were following the plan. There was good accountability built-in. We love each other, we trust each other. The budget just removed any chance to doubt or question what we were doing.
Our family found that budgeting together made us closer. I hope you find the same!
