Shared account on maternity leave š·š³
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We arenāt married at this point (plans to happen in the near future) but we have had a shared account since we moved in together. We had 2 separate and one ābillsā account where we put bill money and kept personal money separate. After baby number one was on the way we dropped the separate and used the shared account for everything and I took over paying the bills and the budget. Now I stay at home with our two boys and he works but we do it the same, one account and I manage the money.
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Great thanks for getting in touch mamas and sharing on this topic. Currently about to open one but wanted to know how do you guys split/share/contribute to the household being on leave.
This is the first time since I was about 15 that I havenāt worked, and itās so awkward spending someone elseās earnings. š We pay all the bills from a joint account, then I usually just use my credit card for anything else and we pay it off at the next cycle. He uses the joint account for spending money.
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Yeah seems the more common but being on maternity leave means very little money coming in on my side so cannot contribute the same way obviously...
We have simple finance management. I spend my salary and he saves his š I can't save lol
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I feel you š
I live in CA, so I'm on SDI for 12 weeks plus 6 weeks of PFL. My husband and I still keep separate accounts and exchange $ thru Venmo when necessary, but I may return to work part time rather than full time. If so, we will just split the bills differently.
We have separate accounts and a joint account. Our paychecks go into our own accounts, and then we each contribute to the joint account, which we use for paying bills, buying groceries, going out to dinner, etc. We contribute different amounts, because we have different incomes, plus I have debt to pay off and my husband doesn't. The way we handled finances for our first child this year is different from how we'll probably handle the next one... I got very lucky this past year, because the business I work for was acquired by another company, and I got some extra income I wouldn't normally receive. I banked that money to cover the gap in my income for maternity leave. For the next child, I'm going to have to put away money in advance, so I'm going to ask my husband to do the same and help put money aside to cover the household expenses, because any extra money I put aside from my paycheck is money that's not being used to pay down my debt, which is important to both of us.
We both have separate accounts as well as a joint account that we both put money into every paycheck and we use it for things like our mortgage, vet bills for our dogs, and now baby expenses. I think it works well.
Everything is joint for us, we have a spending checking, a bills checking, and a savings. We automatically pay bills whenever either of us gets paid, always put money in savings, and then leave enough in spending for what we need until the next person gets paid. Neither of us spend much money really, so it doesn't get too complicated.
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That's what we do too. Even if one person needs or wants something extra that month, it all evens out in the long run. We don't like feeling like we "owe" each other.
Money is one of the biggest reasons people get divorced, so it was super important to us to feel like we both have equal rights to our money. When I was on maternity leave and not making money, my husband never once tried to make me stop spending money, aside from "we only have ___ to spend this week" but it was always a curb on BOTH of our spending, not a restriction on me. I would not be able to constantly worry about what is mine and what is his, that would make me unhappy in life and wouldn't work for my marriage. It works for some people, and that's fine.
We have separated accounts but at this point that I'm on maternity leave I give him all my maternity pay to pay bills and food and stuff plus putting some money in saving, plus if I need to buy anything clothes or shoes I just tell him, once I'm working again we will have separate accounts again, and all things from or baby girl we will do 50/50.
We arenāt married and we have a 5mth old lg.my partner works really hard and is working a lot of overtime, but we have separate accounts - we have split the bills I pay for food and baby and he pays all other household bills, Iām only on basic maternity pay and itās so hard to manage as I still have my bills phone and car etc. Itās hard as Iām trying to cover usual on less then half of what Iām used too... I donāt head back to work for another 4 mths.
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Yeah that is what we are currently doing, but I feel a joint account would be better. Thanks for sharing x
I saved up money been on leave for 9 weeks and still have money from when I was workin
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I just feel bothered to use my own saving š¤Øš
I only work part time and my partner works full time but while I'm on leave I take on majority of the care for the baby due to my partner works mornings and evenings over 5/6 days we have a shared account and even though little money comes in we still pay all the bills then split what's left and if baby needs extra or needs news toys, or food then I pay and I don't mind tbh
Iām a stay at home mom now. But when I worked my husband made 4 times as much as me. Heās always made more than me. So ever since about 6 months into our marriage we have had a joint account. We pay all the bills out of it and we spend what we need to out of it. I donāt really feel bad per say for spending his money because we are married and itās not just his money anymore. I have a spending addiction too. Lol. Like I use to order things and have packages arriving every day of the week before having our daughter. Now I usually just buy things for her and not as much. But having a joint account has never been an issue with us. š¤·š»āāļø He has always made so much more than me that itās always been like me spending his money.
My husband and I got a joint account after we found out our daughter was on the way. I stay home with her so I do not have income we rely solely on his which is hard sometimes but we manage. He could care less what I spend on as long as bills are paid and we are not completely broke but I still run stuff past him just to keep him in the loop and I let him know what we're working with incase he wants/needs things.
Weāve always had joint accounts- no separate accounts. I do the accounting and he makes the money... for nowšš¼šš¼
We have a joint which is for all bills food mortgage, gifts, family activities etc etc. And then our own accounts for our own money. It works so well. Best of both worlds. If we want to buy something with our own money thatās our prerogative but any shared costs come out of the joint. Hope that helps!
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Well I work at the credit union lol. We have a joint and both have a primary.
We have a joint checking account and another checking account that we use for savings. We sit down and budget together and pay all bills every 2 weeks. We take out "fun money" in cash. Each of us get the same amount and can spend it however we please. We use the second account to put back money for all holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, etc.
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We also do this!
It all depends on your comfort! In my opinion, it shouldnāt be up to just one person... as both the child is both of yours. For us, we have always had a joint account since right after we got married. Now that I am a stay at home mom, things still work the same. There is no āmine and yoursā we just work to make sure we each can get what we want within reason, after making sure our son has everything he needs.
There is such an economic benefit to having a sahp that we really need to stop perpetuating the myth that youāre not contributing! First of all, you both agreed to have a baby. The understanding that you would be home for a time (or for good) is baked in! Medically, you cannot work for 6-8 weeks to recover from childbirth, the babyās first six weeks are imperative to form healthy attachment to a parent and daycare wonāt even take them before 6 weeks. Secondly, add up what it would cost to have someone come take care of a newborn baby, plus whatever else you might be doing at home like extra loads of laundry and cooking... if youāre breastfeeding price out formula (hint! Itās not cheap!) Iām willing to bet that unless you were making a six figure income the amount would add up to more that what your take home pay is. Even if you arenāt married youāre now a family so itās āusā and āoursā. Period.
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Yes!!! I am a stay at home parent and work a very part time job cleaning a medical office. I had what I thought was a pretty good paying job before I had our son and after adding up daycare cost we realized it wasn't worth it for me to continue working. Whatever you guys choose to do it should remain "our money" because although you aren't working outside the house you are still working to make sure the child you both made together is doing well. That is a big job. Good luck!
Amen šš¼
My husband and I have joint accounts. Thereās no my money vs his money. When we are working our salaries are similar but he has the opportunity for overtime which I donāt, so his take home is often a bit more. When Iām on mat leave I obviously make less, but I do most of the housework and childcare. Itās never been as issue, neither of us are spenders- both savers. We discuss any big purchases beforehand. Actually I usually tell him when Iām buying anything for our kids too even if itās small like clothes. You have to do what works for your family though and what will cause the least stress between you two.
I had a really hard time with this because we were married for a few years before we had a joint account.. when my daughter was born and my husband got a promotion to day shift we decided I would quit and become a SAHM we had no choice but to join our accounts.. he never makes me feel like it's his money and encourages me to buy something for myself but nearly a year later I still struggle. I have worked full time since I graduated highschool so it was hard to give up my account and how I like to run it.
My husband and I had a join account the day after we moved in together. We weren't married yet, but was sick of "your money" already. We actually have 2 accounts. One our debit card is attached to (main account) and the other is where I hold half the rent, where the automatic bill payments come out of, and where the checks come out of (hold account).
I had a horrible experience with a joint account when I was previously married to my first husband. He drained it and claimed there was fraud happening. I would suggest separate accounts- but especially if you start to have any kind of major conflicts in marriage or in your relationship. Things can get nasty as far as money and divorce - just thought I would send out a warning! Two people can love each other deeply and have two accounts too!
We have a joint where basically he puts in a $200 allowance for me to spend on baby. If I need more I ask and I have my own debit card.
We're having a joint baby that's about it ššš
We have everything shared. We budget together too.. It helps because everyone is on the same page
We have seperate bank accounts since we each have income (my idea, I like to shop when I want and don't want to have to explain), but during leave when I didn't have income, he ordered another card for me to use from his credit card account, so I used that for groceries and such during that time.
1. We are married so take that into consideration. 2 All paychecks go into joint account. 3. Allowances go into personal. Those go up or down depending on budget.
We have our separate accounts cause I had money saved up before meeting him . He has his own account he likes to drain and we have a joined account which isn't all that . I have a savings as well but dont touch that at all because I want that to be my sons money I'll be opening him up a bank account as well shortly . My bills come out my account n I pay what I need he pays what he needs and we do a 80/20 thing on rent . I have baby bonus so I get all baby needs . Joint account if so he can put the rent $ in there so I can pay it . He does a big grocery shop at Costco and I do a little one at another grocery store . It works but there are times i get upset with the bf cause he just dont understand the meaning of the word save he is terrible with money me on the other hand stingy with mine .
My hubby and I have joint accounts. We donāt do the whole my money is separate from his money. Itās our money. We both work hard regardless of who gets paid more and All our bills are together. Every month we set aside the money for our bills, and set a limit on eating out, shopping, etc. If he wants to buy a new pair of shoes or something for example, weāll set it aside in the budget for that month. Our main priority is to take care of home and baby, which is a responsibility we take together so it makes sense to have a joint account. However everyone does things differently and they have their reasonings for it.
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We had a joint bank account before we were even married. I control the ins-and-outs and he basically gets an allowance weekly. It just works best for us that way since he's a spender and I'm a saver. Any big purchases are discussed and decided upon together.
My husband is so sweet. He works, we have 2 joined accounts and when he wants to spend ANY money (could be a video for $60 or a bottle of water for 99Ā¢) heāll ask me before he spends it because I manage the money. I tell him all the time he doesnāt have to consult me on little things or things he needs but he still does. ā¤ļø
We have 2 babies I stay home. We have been married for 3 months and he pays for everything and buys me whatever I need and I get an allowance to spend on me. My hair and nails close whatever I want. And the account is joint.
My husband and i have a joint account and it works just fine. We genuinely see our selves as nothing but a team so we dont worry about who made more money that month, or who spent more money that month. We arent in a situation to really go on shopping sprees or anything crazy most of it goes to bills, but if i need or want something i usually just run it by him. Not that i need to, but out of respect because we are a team, and he does the same. If its for the baby and its something small i usisally just buy it because its out of necessity for her. if its something bigger we usually have a discussion about when is the best time to purchase it. I was concerned about the joint account thing at first but its worked out really well for us.
We joined our accounts when we joined our goals (when we decided to buy a house together - which was 2 years before we got married). We've been together 13 years now and have two boys together. There is no "his and hers" anymore, our lives and finances are intertwined.
We have separate accounts and then have a set amount that goes into the joint account for household bills and shopping. Whatever is left in our own accounts is for personal bills and spending. I pay slightly more into our joint account as my husband has about Ā£5k a year coming out for his commute and he runs the car. Once I go on maternity, he'll take up some more of the joint bills as my pay won't cover my share. But we always have the understanding that if I need more then he'll give me some money as he does earn slightly more than me (I'm happy with having my account at Ā£6 at the end of the month whereas he likes to have about Ā£100 "just in case"... whatever is left goes into savings though)
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We do this! Calculated how much we spent on bills and going out etc each month then we put that into the joint between us. Then anything left is my money to spend on massage or clothes (and him on beer and betting, how cliche are we?!) And anything left at the end of the month goes into joint savings. Now we're married with a little one on the way we're considering just putting everything in joint - partly because or maternity pay making it less equal, and because our flamboyant spending is likely to decrease when we have extra expense for our son xx
When we say joint account does it mean going to the bank and opening 1 account in both names or 1 person open the account but both are putting money in?
We maintained separate accounts after marriage and each paid for certain things, like he took care of the mortgage, utilities, home repairs, things like that and I did groceries, phone bill, pet care, miscellaneous things as they came up. That's when I was working full time. I'm fully a SAHM now though, so while I technically still have my own accounts, they rarely have anything in them and my husband have me a card that draws from his credit card for groceries, gas, pets, etc and all bills directly pull from his account now. While I don't love not having my own money to spend just because he feels weird, he doesn't usually say anything if I buy something non-essential with the credit card, so in general, this arrangement works for us.
We both work full time and he makes slightly more than me. We don't have shared accounts. I pay the car insurance and he pays majority of the rent so it evens out. Other than that, we don't have anything combined. Been together almost 7 years, living together for 4.
We both work. We have 3 accounts. One for each of us and one shared. I computed our monthly bills and they all get automatically paid on our shared. A portion of our paychecks go to our shared.
Joint accounts once we brought the house about 4 months after we married. Helps that we currently earn the same amount. Set it up so his pay has always paid the mortgage, bills and groceries. Mine goes to our future house reno plans, new car, holiday savings and savings specifically for maternity leave (no employer paid leave) so once the baby comes we just go without the luxuries for a while. We each have our own separate account which gets $100 a fortnight to spend how we wish. Before we were married and joint i had worried how it would work but we've both adjusted well. I think it would be harder for a tighter budget getting each others approval when getting one thing means going without another.
Well I adopted so Im on leave so I can spend time with my baby but not getting paid. We prepared before hand and my husband handles the finances. I'm only taking six weeks though