True love means never having to say you’re sorry. Or, alternately: “I’m taking you to court because you’ve ruined me financially.”
When a couple is in love (or at least think they are part of something destined for “happily ever after”), the temptation is to share and share alike. What’s mine is yours — “mi dinero, su dinero.”
Sadly, intertwined finances can be disastrous if the relationship does fray. In fact, money problems can be the source of friction that sours a relationship.
“I really think that people’s emotions can override their common sense,” says Gail Cunningham, of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, the nation’s longest-serving nonprofit credit counseling organization. “When you are in love you can look at life with rose-colored glasses if you want to, but don’t look at your finances with them on. Make financial decisions with your head, not your heart.”
The following are five ways couples can set each other up for financial woes:
