Most people have to work hard for their money and many may have experienced a scarcity of it at some point in their lives. So it is understandable why it can lead to disputes between married couples who must share their finances.
A recent study found that 25% of couples cited differences over money as the principal difficulty in their relationship. In some cases, those difficulties will lead to a divorce. Here are some of the money issues that can most harm a marriage:
Spender vs. savers
You want to save up for an early retirement and your spouse wants to spend on enjoying life now. They tell you there is no point in having money in the bank if you get hit by a car tomorrow. Such contrasting attitudes can make it difficult to co-exist harmoniously.
Control
Your spouse brings in the income while you raise the kids and look after the house. You hate having to ask for money every time you want to do anything. They resent having to give you money. Imbalances in income can soon build resentment if not handled well.
Supporting others
When you married your spouse, you dreamed of pooling your money to buy a home, go on holidays and so forth. You did not reckon on sharing your joint income with others. Maybe your spouse is constantly bailing their brother out of financial trouble. Or perhaps they want to spend the house deposit you saved together on medical treatment for their mother. You feel that money should be kept for the two of you but they disagree.
The problem with many of these issues is that they are unlikely to just stop. If you get to the point where enough is enough and want to take back control of your finances, you may want to find out more about divorce.