Managing debt can be tough on your own, adding a significant other to the mix, however, can make the process even more difficult. But, don’t worry. Managing debt with a partner doesn’t have to be difficult. Here are 7 secrets to managing debt with your partner:
1) Examine Your Personal Finances
It’s important for you to understand your personal financial situation outside of the relationship. You’ll want to know your total debt across all cards and lines of credit, interest rates and minimum payments for each.
2) Find Out the Same About Your Partner
Once you’ve done your due diligence, it’s time to talk about money with your partner. You may want to create a spreadsheet together that shows all of your individual debts and payments—and then compare it to what you make jointly as a couple.
3) Communication is key
When both people in a couple work together to manage debt, things can go a lot more smoothly. If you’re in debt, remind yourself that it’s better to come up with a solution together than let your partner hold the debt alone. Credit cards can be an easy way for partners to get into a lot of trouble because if one person wants to overspend, the other person may be powerless to stop them. On the other hand, if both partners are using the same card and carrying the same balance, then they’re both equally responsible for payments.If you have any questions about managing debt with your partner,take the first step and we will see if you are a candidate for a short term lending solution right now
4) Create a vision for paying down debt
In order to effectively manage debt with your partner, you need to have a shared vision. When you lay out exactly what that future looks like, you can develop actions to help get you there.
To get started, define the date you want your debt paid off. Next, make a list of what paying off debt will look like. You might write things like “We’ll be free from harassing phone calls,” or “We’ll have room in our budget to enjoy going out with friends.” Once you have a written list, share it with your partner and talk through it. Do the same thing with a list of what not reaching your goal would look like—you might write things like “I will be too embarrassed to go on a family vacation,” or “We’ll continue to argue about money
5) Set boundaries
The No. 1 factor that can determine whether you’ll succeed or not in getting your finances in order is how willing you are to set boundaries with each other. Partners share a lot of the same DNA and even if there’s an age difference between you, you likely share the same cultural influences and values. These influences can get in the way of your debt management efforts, but if you and your partner can draw a line in the sand and agree to disagree, you can succeed where others who have a more challenging relationship might not.
6) Automate your payments
Use automatic payments to ensure that you’re always making your debt payments on time. This will help reduce stress and avoid late fees.
7) Stay disciplined
It can be difficult to stick to a debt repayment plan, but it’s important to be disciplined if you want to succeed. Stay motivated by setting regular reminders and tracking your progress.
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