This is the last entry of 5 sets of ?Valentine?s Day Tips for Love and Money? geared to help you achieve financial harmony in your relationship. Read the first set here, the second here, the third here and the fourth here.
9. Retirement happens. Plan Accordingly. Given the current financial crisis, younger generations are worried most about not having enough to live the way they want to, while those over 45 worry more about having resources for old age and retirement. The under-45 crowd could learn a lot from its elders. There’s no time like the present to start saving for retirement, especially for couples. Sit down together and evaluate your respective 401K plans, then make your collective contributions to the plan that offers the best benefits - higher employee matching, for example ?instead of each contributing blindly to your separate accounts. If you have maxed out the matching options under one 401K, and still have extra funds to put toward retirement, then consider other investment options, such as the other spouse’s retirement plan if employee-matching is available there. Free money in the way of matching, tax credits, tax deductions, tax-deferred savings, should typically win out over those that don’t offer such benefits .
10. It’s OK to have some financial independence, too. While it’s imperative to plan your financial future together, many couples still want their own money to spend as they like. In fact, over half of all couples keep some sort of separate bank accounts. The smartest solution is to keep joint bank accounts to pay household bills but also separate checking accounts for personal spending. Just make sure to agree on how much each of you contributes to your joint accounts ? take into consideration what you earn.
