Who hasn’t had awkward conversations about money? You know, those that start with “Where did our savings go?” or the classic “On what did you spend it?”.
We’ve all been there, with different opinions on how to manage our finances, based on our experiences and the financial education we received. But even though it may be somewhat uncomfortable, talking about money is key, especially when sharing expenses with another person.
To make you feel better, let’s begin by telling you that you’re not alone. Here we share several tips on how to maintain a healthy financial relationship, whether it’s with your partner, roommates, or family members!
Some people are savers by nature, while others prefer to indulge. That’s completely normal, but when sharing expenses, it’s important that both parties are on the same page and reach a happy medium.
To achieve this balance, discuss the following:
Keeping an open line of communication regarding our priorities and financial boundaries allows us to avoid misunderstandings.
Known as the 50/20/30 rule, it consists of the following:
If you need help putting this rule into practice and understanding how to allocate your expenses efficiently, you can use our interactive budget sheet.
Using the boxes on the sheet, enter the information for each section. Anything that doesn’t apply, just leave it blank.
This budget sheet will help you determine how much you can spend on each item —without falling short— while getting a full picture of your finances.
This can help you:
It will also help you see how, based on individual income, these expenses can be evenly distributed.
Activate your alerts and monitor your balance
When it comes to distributing expenses, another useful tool is the Mi Banco Alerts1 feature. By activating this option, you’ll receive notifications about your balances, payments and transfers, and even purchases made with your Popular debit or credit card.
This will keep you aware of everything that happens in your account while taking care of your finances.
In an ideal world, everyone would be able to contribute equally to household expenses. However, in many cases salary differences can be quite marked among people who live together. In this scenario, it’s important to be empathetic towards the other person and be realistic about how much they can contribute.
Ways to deal with this include:
Dividing expenses based on each other’s income helps keep things fair and balanced in any relationship. It also helps avoid misunderstandings and is an essential part of making both people feel that they contribute something of value while living under the same roof.
Although simple, these tips can help save your relationship and your wallet. If you’re interested in exploring even more tools, continue browsing our Future Me page and choose all the services that apply to your financial reality.
Learn more about the tools and services available to manage your accounts and help you achieve your goals.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not represent an endorsement or guarantee of the accuracy or applicability of its content for any particular purpose. Neither Popular nor any of its affiliates, subsidiaries or related companies are or will they be liable for any special damages, direct or indirect, resulting from the information contained in this article. If you require any type of advice related to this article, you must request it from the competent professional of your choice.
Alerts and Notifications by SMS is a free service Banco Popular de Puerto Rico offers its clients. Charges may apply for text messages or data excess according to your cell service plan. Check with your provider about your plan. Other restrictions may apply. Learn more in https://www.popular.com/en/mi-banco/online/alerts/.
