what to do about bank accounts once your married?

kj*daisy

We have a joint account that all salary goes into and all DD's, household costs etc comes out of. We then transfer the same amount iNto our sole accounts to use as we wish. I used to earn more than DH and saved more of my salary for things like house deposit etc but once we had kids, my salary dropped and we set up the current system.

angelil

My husband and I have always had separate current and savings accounts in our own names. We've been together for just over 7 years, living together for 3.5, married for nearly 1.

All I did when I got married was to change my accounts into my married name. We haven't bothered setting up any joint accounts, although we both have 'joint' other things (such as insurance and the car).

Still haven't changed my passport though - it's still got 4 years left to run and I'm too tight

mildred1978

We've been married just over 8 years.

We don't have any joint accounts apart from the mortgage.

We don't have the same surname.

Hubby isn't a trustee on our son's bank accounts.

The world hasn't ended yet.

silly_moo

My DH and I have separate accounts where our salaries go in. Then we have a joint account and we pay into it once a month, proportionally to our earnings. Out of this account mortgage and all bills are paid and also a transfer goes out to another joint account which is for food and petrol only.

We find it's good to have separate accounts for bills/direct debits and for food/petrol. First of all, statements are much easier to read, i.e. we can check d/ds without having to go through 2 pages of debit card payments. Secondly, when we check our food and petrol account online we can instantly see what our remaining budget for the month is.

Whatever is left over at the end of the month in both joint accounts goes to a joint savings account, which gives us another incentive to try and spend below the budget.

Edwardia

Kept separate bank accounts, he pays bills on DD. If I pay for shopping he pays into my account. All the savings in my name as a non taxpayer.

nearlyrich

We have just one joint account for the bills we had it before we got married I just changed my name on it when I changed my name. I also changed my sole account names to my married name.

Gloomendoom

ianbar0 wrote: »

i am wondering what people tend to do once married etc? we get married in 9 weeks. i bank at hsbc and o/h at lloyds. as i have a better grasp of numbers etc i am the one to organise the money more, we don't have a mortgage but the whole thing is a bit confusing. although is providing relief from wedding planning lol :-p

We didn't actually do very much. My wife changed the name on her accounts to her married name but that is about it.

She moved into my house and I carried on paying all the household bills as I had before. The only difference is that now I rarely have to buy any groceries.

Kate78

When I got married/moved in with my husband last year, I changed my name on my existing current account by taking my marriage certificate in to the bank.

Once I had my driving licence and council tax bill in my married name, my partner and I opened a joint bank account, which we both pay our salaries into and each of us has a spends allowance into our sole accounts.

We like being accountable(!) to one another for joint account spends as it helps us keep control of finances, and having our sole accounts means that we can still have discretionary spending for fun stuff.

LondonDreamer

I don't think there's any set way people handle household income. It's down to what you're comfortable with and what you find works best for your situation.

DH and I have a joint account. All income goes in to and all bills go out of this. If either one of us wants something outside of the regular expenses, we discuss whether it should be purchased and if so, it comes out of that account as well. Don't do pocket money or anything that's specifically mine or his as don't feel the need for it. Closed our personal accounts when we opened the joint account, also have a joint savings account where anything leftover at the end of the month goes.

My in-laws have separate accounts and divide everything down to the penny based on what they consume, e.g. he gets an itemised phone bill and then charges her for the calls she makes. She does the shopping and charges him for the items only he'll use, etc. It's not a method I personally like but apparently FIL's parents (never met them) were exactly the same and married nearly 50 years before they died. So it clearly works for some people!

Owain_Moneysaver

Get the statement sent to a friend's house so your spouse doesn't find out about your scret cash stash?