Getting married
When you get married, your lives change. So does your financial situation. Granite Wealth can help you start your finances off on the right foot with an eye toward your future dreams together. Some things to discuss with your soon-to-be spouse include:
- Budget. You each should list out your monthly incomes and expenses.
- Separate and/or joint bank accounts. Having a joint account can mean fewer fees and simpler accounting, while keeping separate accounts can be easier if you are used to managing your own finances. Another possibility may be to set up a combination of joint accounts for shared household expenses and savings goals while keeping separate accounts for personal spending.
- Health insurance. If each of you has separate health insurance coverage, do a cost/benefit analysis for both plans. Which is better — the family plan or two single plans?
- Auto and home insurance. Can you consolidate policies and save?
- Life insurance/disability income insurance. Consider protection to make sure one spouse will be able to make ends meet without the other and protect your income in case of illness or disability.
- Employer-sponsored retirement plans/IRAs. Take advantage of as many retirement savings options as your budget allows.
- Credit cards. If one of you has poor credit, it can drag down the other's rating. If this is the case, you may wish to add him or her as an authorized user of the other's card and pay down the debt as quickly as possible to boost their credit score.
Granite Wealth can also help work with you on some of the more complex financial questions including:
- What are your financial goals and how are they prioritized? How will you work toward these goals?
- What is your risk tolerance for investing? Do you and your soon-to-be spouse have the same tolerance for risk? We have a helpful tool to help you evaluate your risk tolerance.
- Do you have a plan to review/update beneficiaries?
- Have you executed or updated your will? Durable power of attorney or health care proxy?
- How you will handle your tax return depending on the timing of your marriage?
- How you will keep important records and documents now that you are married?
Granite Wealth Management can help you evaluate your financial plan. To schedule a meeting, please Contact the Granite team.