Shared Material Resources

Relational Resource: Shared Material Resources

Relational Resource: Shared Material Resources

As the old adage goes, “Money can’t buy love.” While this is certainly true, couples usually benefit
from working together toward shared financial goals and from committing to building a solid and
secure financial future. Shared material resources can increase a couple’s ability to access other
supportive resources, and they can also help to minimize the stresses that often arise when financial
resources are scarce.

Strategies for increasing your shared material resources

1. Conduct an honest evaluation of your current financial status. Consider your and your partner’s
assets, liabilities, income, and regular expenses. You may find it helpful to talk with a trusted financial
advisor to determine whether you are in good shape for your stage of life.

2. Together with your partner, develop specific financial goals for both the short- and long-term.
These goals may include such things as buying a new house, paying for your children’s college
education, retiring early, and taking a dream vacation. Then, develop a detailed plan for how you will
be able to achieve those goals.

3. Talk about differences in your and your partner’s approaches to managing money. Is one of you a
spender and the other a saver? Does one of you like to buy luxury items, while the other prefers
buying the least expensive item possible? Once you have identified these differences, figure out the
compromises that each of you is willing to make to minimize the disagreements that could arise over
these differences.

4. If you determine that you are living beyond your means or aren’t able to save what you’d like to at
this stage of life, try to identify ways to increase your income and/or decrease your living expenses.
For example, perhaps one of you could turn a hobby into a part-time business. You may also
consider downsizing your living environment or cutting out unnecessary expenses.

5. Set some “ground rules” related to money for both partners to follow that will help you to avoid
financial conflicts. Two examples of possible rules are as follows: (1) Neither partner will spend over
a certain amount of joint money without consulting the other partner; and (2) Each partner will
maintain a discretionary account with some personal money that can be used without consulting the
other partner.