I'm almost a mommy! Lots of friends have been texting and wishing me an almost-mother's-day on FB :)
Then everyone asks what Won is doing for me or what he got me, which I thought was a really odd question. How do guys get gifts for their wives without it being a joint effort? I've always been under the impression that a couple shares finances. I grew up in a one income household so it never occurred to me married couples had separate finances.
It wasn't until after college when I was hanging out at a friend's house when her mom made a casual comment how she was so broke for the month. And my friend explained that her parents have separate finances and they paid for different things in the house. So her dad could be rolling in dough while her mom was "broke" until she got her next pay check.
It wasn't until after college when I was hanging out at a friend's house when her mom made a casual comment how she was so broke for the month. And my friend explained that her parents have separate finances and they paid for different things in the house. So her dad could be rolling in dough while her mom was "broke" until she got her next pay check.
Ever since we got engaged, Won and I combined our finances.
I have my separate business account that I keep separate from everything. I only pay for business expenses with it and whatever I make with my business goes into that account and accumulates for the business.
The other account we have is our general account that Won's paycheck goes into. EVERYTHING we spend comes from that account. We have a joint credit card that gets paid with from our joint account. If I want spending cash, Won gives it to me from that account.
Then aside from that we just have a joint savings account.
So when Won buys me trips or gifts, I see it coming from OUR account. That's like me buying it for myself! Won's birthday is coming up and I asked him what he wants with an unlimited budget, he says nothing because it just means he is paying for it. LOL!
If Won buys me a $1,500 gift, yes I get a nice gift but now I feel $1,500 poorer. I guess this type of mentality makes holiday gifts a moot point.
Don't get me wrong, we get nice things for ourselves when we want it. But we don't view it as a "gift." We just view it as something we want and buy. It's never around the holidays either.
Don't get me wrong, we get nice things for ourselves when we want it. But we don't view it as a "gift." We just view it as something we want and buy. It's never around the holidays either.
And no, we don't want a joint account plus separate accounts because that's a lot to keep track of and how do we decide what goes into the separate accounts since all the money is coming from Won's paycheck anyway. Plus I prefer Won be in charge of everything, I'm terrible about paying anything on time :(
What does everyone else do?
Not married yet, so I don't have an answer, but I had always been thinking about joint accounts too, but also in tandem with separate accounts. If things go the way that they're going, then it's very clear that we are (or will be once I find me a "grown-up" job) on different ends of the salary brackets, with his end being a lot bigger than mine. So my joint account idea is that everything we do together (when we get there) such as bills, the house/apartment, dates, etc. will be spent out of the joint account. The joint will be an accumulation of a percentage of our incomes, so that way, we're both "equally" contributing into the pot. Like 50% of his and 50% of my income will go into that. Then our separate accounts if for us to pay for things that are for us. Like if I want shoes, pay off student loans, etc or if he wants car parts or something.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, that's all in theory and fantasized in my head, but that's what I'm thinking of.