Wedding season is back! Though we are still in the shadow of this deadly virus, people are rejoiced to kick start celebrations.
Wedding is one of the important ceremonies for every family! We Indians, are ever enthusiastic to organize & celebrate it with new themes & ways.
Well, this demands ‘money to spend’. People put larger part of their lifetime savings & investments just to spend on this single ceremony.
It has been observed that, families of bride & groom discuss all things under the sun to organize this day, rituals & how & who will spend for it.
But, the new couple happy & egger to start their new life together often fail to discuss many things about money & finances before getting married.
Today, girls are well educated & are financially dependent. They continue to work even after marriage. This way they keep their financial independence intact & can contribute to their new family financially.
They have their own views & opinions about money but after marriage many things change & for which ‘discussion around money’ must happen between bride & groom.
Let’s see how….
Get it started…
If the girl is working & earning, then she is often expected to contribute financially after marriage. Often, it can be monthly or when the need arises.
Along with her career, she has duties being a wife & daughter -in -law.
Both bride & groom need to talk about financial contributions to family, how much to contribute each, who will invest & how much, etc.
Along with this ‘contribution’ part, you need to acknowledge & understand each-others balance sheets. Assets if any, loans taken, investments made so far & ongoing investments, expenses per month, insurance policies.
This can turn into a practical discussion but it will lay ‘foundation stone’ for your future journey in finance & investments.
Understand behavioural aspects about money & finance-
Money & personal finance revolves around our views, opinions & beliefs about it. They decide our spending habits, investing journey & discipline.
When you decide to get married, you acknowledge each-others likes, hobbies, dislikes & interests.
Try to learn & understand more about behavioural finance aspects of each other. Like-
- how your partner likes to invest,
- how much he/she spends on her ‘wants’,
- how much ready he/she is to shoulder financial responsibilities,
- Does he/she use credit cards often to pay off shopping bills
- How many loans & liabilities your partner has while getting married & for which reason he/she has taken loans? Does he/she want to buy expensive things by taking such short-term loans.
- How your partner believes in saving & investing?
- Is your partner ready to learn more about personal finance?
Marriage is a partnership of two different persons but in aligned way to fulfil future dreams & responsibilities. Money is crucial aspect to fulfil them. So, its better to understand behavioural aspects beforehand.
Talk about sharing responsibilities:
In some families, you will have dependent parents to look after. Either groom’s or bride’s parents. It should be absolutely fine if a girl wishes to support her parents financially even after her marriage.
In this case, you both should support each other’s decision. Sharing financial responsibilities will help to grow bond between you both & you can manage your finances clear headed.
Talk about future goals:
When two different persons come together to spend their lifetime, they are responsible to support each other to fulfil their dreams. Both the partners can have different dreams & wishes to fulfil. You both should sit & discuss on the same.
For this, you can simply list down your individual goals, write down common goals that you both want to achieve & then short list the goals which are of priority.
This way, you & your finances will get right direction to invest & your cashflows will be streamlined.
Make nominations:
When you get married, its important to streamline your finances by adding nominations. You both should be ‘nominee’ in each other’s investments & insurance policies, bank a/cs, insurance policies & other benefits which your respective employer gives you from time to time.
Both of you should know everything about your finances.
Make your ‘financial records’ straight:
Its important to note down all your bank a/c details, nominations details, investments made, assets owned, liabilities, loans taken, etc.
You should also keep records of your respective relationship managers at bank, your chartered account, your financial planner, HR department officials & immediate senior officials of your respective department.
You can maintain one excel spreadsheet or can simply maintain a diary. It’s important for you to update it from time to time so that you can get a mirror view of your personal finance.
These records you & spouse must know.
Approach a financial planner working in ‘fiduciary’ capacity:
Starting a life together after marriage has many aspects involved. Getting adjusted with new family on both the sides, new household, getting to know each other day by day, working & handling careers, facing many challenges on the work front & so on.
Usually people get busy with this & personal finance may lose its structure & discipline.
You may end up investing in instruments which are not suitable for you & are ‘sold’ to you.
To avoid this, its better to approach a ‘financial planner’ who is working in ‘fiduciary capacity’.
SEBI Registered Investment Adviser is the one who is competent & work on unbiased basis. They work on ‘fee only’ basis & work in ‘fiduciary capacity’ for you.
You can share all your financial aspects with them & the data will be kept confidential.
When you plan early, you give discipline to your cashflows & invest in right way to build a better future.
Married life sees many changes, up-downs, challenges but also gives meaning to your life when you get a right partner. On the top of it, when you both are clear with your views & opinions about ‘money & personal finance’, you can build a better future ‘together’!!