Money Monday: How your relationship status affects your finances
Updated: February 12, 2024 9:09 PM ET
Stephen Albritton WLWT News 5. Well, this weekend is Valentine's Day. Love is in abundance, but what about your wallet? You may not realize it, but your relationship status can affect your finances. I think you're all aware that the person who's going to be helping us all navigate all of this is Megan Hammond, our finance director. Plans at Wealth Quest. Thank you for your participation. Money is involved in every situation, and we received some great advice. So let's talk about this. Does your relationship status actually affect your financial situation? That's a very interesting question. And there's research that's starting to come out about that. The answer is yes. You absolutely can. Therefore, there is a consensus that it is easier for married couples to build wealth than for single people. And the idea of this single person tax is that at the end of the day, whether you're married or not, it costs a lot more money to live on your own than it does to live with someone else. And the idea is, you know, you can have two sources of income, but you can split your expenses, utilities, rent, everything. It makes a big difference. Um, so when we talk about this, you know, we talk about these costs and the relationships that can absolutely make a difference, but what's really interesting about the research is that we is when we look at individuals living together. The net worth of single and married people is pretty staggering. In other words, people living together have only about a quarter of the net worth of married people. So that really begs the question. Why? Right. Because we are still saving with the same lifestyle. However, there must be other factors contributing to these differences. What are the factors? I'm sure many of us want to know. There are many factors. And I think I'm one of them, and I think there are a lot of benefits to marriage. One of them is taxes. As you know, we have tax benefits. We also have legal protection when we are married. And so when we think about the relationships that we have, and when we look at them. Research shows that married couples are more likely to view their assets as joint. There they talk about long-term goals and look at long-term opportunities like buying a home. And they are more likely to pool those resources to make those goals a reality. You don't see that much in other relationship situations. And I think part of that is due to a perceived lack of protection. So we think about what would happen if something happened? What if I bought a house with my partner and something goes wrong? Do I have the same protection? MHM. And I hear a lot of people say, yeah, you're not just a business, you're going into a full-fledged business. Marriage, Megan, there's nothing a person can do in a situation like this. Absolutely, absolutely. You know, we think about these benefits that married couples have, but it's not specifically limited to that relationship. So let's talk about the protections that are in place. There is absolute protection that you can receive even if you are not married. So let's talk about asset ownership. We can talk about contracts like having a business agreement. It also helps us become masters of our finances, understand what they are and what we want, no matter what your relationship situation is. I think it's also really important to start building those goals. We discuss those goals and start thinking about them ourselves. And discuss it with those involved. Whether it's a partner, a roommate, or a family member, it's something we all have. It's really important to start doing that. And when we talk about those goals, it could be travel. Maybe you have a girlfriend or friend who would like to travel as well. How can we pool these resources and leverage our relationships to maximize our current and future wealth? Yes, because you know, you hear it all the time. One of the things couples argue about the most is money. yes. Do you mean make sure they are intact as a person before joining with others? absolutely. And let's communicate. We can talk about this regardless of what that relationship is like. It only makes things better for everyone. Okay. What I hear is there is no romance without economy. Okay. Megan Hammond and Wealth Quest. I am always grateful for your help.
Money Monday: How your relationship status affects your finances
Updated: February 12, 2024 9:09 PM ET
This week is Valentine's Day and love is in the air. But what about your wallet? Many people may not realize that your relationship status can affect your finances. In the latest edition of Money Monday, WLWT is joined by Megan Hamman, director of financial planning at WealthQuest, who tells us more: To watch Hamann's full interview, click on his video player at the top of the story.
This week is Valentine's Day and love is in the air. But what about your wallet?
Many people may not realize that their relationship status can affect their finances.
In the latest edition of Money Monday, WLWT was joined by Megan Hammann, director of financial planning at WealthQuest, to talk more about the factors that influence it.
To watch Hamann's full interview, click on the video player at the top of the story.
