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August 12, 2015 By Evangelos

What Happens When Money Secrets and Marriage Collide?

Why couples don’t always talk truthfully about their finances.

By Daniel Bortz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88VdQBYKUPQ

The Beatles may have told people all they need is love, but many couples who have experienced monetary conflicts in their marriage would disagree.

Surveys over the past decade consistently point to financial arguments as a leading cause of divorce. However, money habits lying beneath the surface of a relationship can create as much—if not more—financial friction.

According to a recent poll by CreditCards.com, the majority of women would terminate a relationship if they discovered their significant other was keeping secrets about their money habits—especially if those secrets had negative consequences for the family’s finances. In fact, the study found women see a partner’s inability to pay routine bills as off-putting as discovering they have a criminal record. “A lot of people view someone’s credit history as a good symbol for determining the person’s trustworthiness in a relationship,” says Ben Woolsey, director of marketing and consumer research at CreditCards.com.

Woolsey says before two people commit to a serious long-term relationship, they need to have a conversation about their finances since financial stability is a critical component of a healthy relationship. However, whether it’s due to grief, fear, or shame, experts say it can be difficult for couples to talk about money, which is often a source of tension.

“Our self-worth and net worth get very confused,” says Deborah Price, author of The Heart of Money: A Couple’s Guide to Creating True Financial Intimacy. If the conversation isn’t broached early on, financial secrets—when revealed—can lead to a breaking point. “When there is financial conflict, couples tend to stake out a territory,” says Price. “One says, ‘This is the way I am with money, and this is the way you are, and our values and priorities are just too different for us to find some kind of middle ground to keep this marriage together.’”

While financial lies can be a deal-breaker, secret money behaviors often start small, says Jean Dorrell, a certified estate planner and president of Senior Financial Security in The Villages, Fla., who counsels couples about money. According to Dorrell, it’s common for couples to keep minor infractions to themselves. According to a recent AARP survey, approximately one third of respondents reported they’ve hidden a purchase from their partner at least once.

A small financial omission might include a husband who quietly pays off a speeding ticket so an argument doesn’t erupt over whether or not he’s a good driver; he may even fear his wife will question if it’s safe for their kids to ride with him. In such cases, Dorrell says people are acting with good intentions since they’re trying to stave off arguments. Nonetheless, fibs have the potential to be blown out of proportion. Dorrell says, “A lot of people will say, ‘If you lie to me about these small things, what else are you lying to me about?’

Once the act turns into something more expensive, such as buying a $500 pair of shoes, the innocence fades and the secrets escalate. “If they get away with it, it will probably magnify,” Dorrell says. An outing to buy a nice outfit can lead to a shopping spree, or a spouse may open a hidden bank account to shield where part of their paycheck goes.

Additionally, Dorrell has counseled clients who inherited money from their parents but opened a secret bank account because they didn’t want to share it with their spouse. “They justify it as, ‘It’s my inheritance—not his,’ yet they’re pledging to make everything equal and they’re really not,” Dorrell says.

iStock_000006781178SmallIn some cases, secret credit cards are used to conceal how much debt a person is accumulating. Other times, people may have their credit card bills mailed to their office so they can conceal an affair. “Hotel bills, meals, lingerie—those are all expenses you don’t want your spouse to find out about if they’re going to somebody else,” Price says.

Paula Levy, a marriage and family therapist and a certified public accountant in Westport, Conn., says financial and marital infidelity sometimes go hand-in-hand. “They often have the same causes: lack of trust, lack of communication, the inability to understand each other, or they’re just not willing to work to understand each other,” she says.

If one spouse is entirely in charge of the family finances, he or she is in a position to limit how much money the other person can access. In that case, the spouse who has little or no say in how the money is spent may lash out and engage in what experts call “revenge spending,” in which they superfluously spend money to get back at their spouse. “No one likes to feel like they’re being manipulated,” Levy says. She says revenge spending can also be triggered when someone learns their spouse has been keeping money secrets and they want to retaliate by using a large chunk of discretionary spending as they see fit.

Others, meanwhile, may not want to know if their spouse is engaging in bad money habits. But William Snyder, program director at Evergreen Financial Counseling in Salem, Ore., says denial usually backfires: “If a husband buries his head in the sand and thinks everything is going to be fine, and then a few years later finds out their home is underwater because of how much debt his wife is in, what are the chances he’s going to stay with her?”

As a preventative measure, experts say couples need to have an open dialogue about their finances. Otherwise, there’s a chance for controversial money habits to remain in the dark. “The most important thing is there is no crime in talking about things that you want to do,” Snyder says. “You should be able to say any desire you have; it’s when you spend the money that it’s real and that it can become a secret.”

Original Article

Filed Under: Money Blog

March 11, 2014 By Evangelos

Dealing With Our Money Disorders

Lately, it seems like the list of society’s “money disorders” seems to be growing by the day. Common money issues today include: compulsive shopping, financial infidelity, debt addiction, hoarding, money phobia, compulsive gambling, financial enabling, and chronic under-earning. 

What can we do about this? Perhaps it’s time for a little money therapy. If we have a plumbing problem, we don’t hesitate to call a plumber. If we have a health problem, we go see the doctor. If we have money issues, we deserve the help and advice of a professional, too.

Money affects every aspect of our lives, and yet we know very little about our personal relationship to it. Isn’t it time we began to heal our relationship with money?

As we become more aware of our own money patterns and behaviors, we can begin to make new, healthier choices. This would be a great first step toward creating a new financial legacy for ourselves and our children. A legacy built on self-awareness, knowledge and power instead of stress, fear, mistrust or dependence. But first we must each begin to understand and heal our own relationship with money.

What is money and what does it really mean to you? From my personal point of view, money is a powerful energy force and medium of exchange. It is a tool and resource that I receive as a direct result of the actions and contributions that I put forth in the world. It flows in and out of my life in direct relationship to my efforts and intentions. Whenever I feel fearful or anxious about money, I spend time in prayer and meditate on what inside me needs attending to and address those needs proactively.

What does money mean to you? How does it influence, positively or negatively, your quality of life?

Filed Under: Money Blog

December 12, 2013 By admin

Money, Survival and Self Esteem

Money, Survival, Self Esteem

Photo Credit

The world has a very neurotic relationship with money.  Most people need to heal this wound. Wars, famine, inequality, divorce and suicide are a direct result of our inability to understand and come to terms with the role of money.  The planet cannot and will not heal until we learn to respect money for what it is:  a useful tool for barter and not the ultimate purpose in human existence. Money is intricately connected with survival and self-esteem. I start from the bottom and build up.  Without a solid understanding of our money behaviours, most of us fall apart at home and in the workplace. By exploring the 8 money archetypes: The Innocent, The Victim, The Warrior, The Tyrant, The Martyr, The Fool, The Artist and The Magician, we will cultivate a healthy and enduring connection to money that serves us, our families and our communities for many generations.

Filed Under: Money Blog

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What Happens When Money Secrets and Marriage Collide?

Why couples don’t always talk truthfully about their finances. By Daniel Bortz https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88VdQBYKUPQ The Beatles may have told people all they need is love, but many couples who have experienced monetary conflicts in their marriage would disagree. Surveys over the past decade consistently point to financial arguments as a leading cause of divorce. However, money habits […]

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