While there’s nothing wrong with allowing yourself the opportunity to treat your upcoming nuptials as your own personal fairy tale, it’s best to keep a close eye on your finances during this time. This is so you both properly understand the implications that tying the knot may have on your money. You don’t need reminding how expensive weddings can be!

 

It can seem like a romantic gesture to take on joint finance but while there’s nothing at all standing in your way from helping each other out, formalising that can come with its own range of issues and considerations.

 

Here are three things to be aware of before you say ‘I do’.

 

1 – Be aware of each other’s credit history

 

Your credit history is hugely important where personal and joint finance is concerned, especially if you’re thinking about buying a house or car together. It will factor into just how much of a loan or mortgage you’ll be offered, and on what terms.

 

If you’re in a relationship with somebody who has a poor credit history, it could become a problem if you launch a joint application, so it’s something to be aware of sooner rather than later.

 

While it won’t directly affect your own score, it could hamper your chances of landing a joint loan or mortgage, which may disrupt what budget you thought you had to work with, and the type of vehicle or property you thought you could afford.

 

2 – Start small, and build trust over time

 

Relationships are built on trust but something like that doesn’t just happen overnight. So rather than jumping straight into a joint account, why not consider easing yourselves in?

 

With options available with no overdraft, you could use your first account together to just cover the main household bills, each paying in what’s needed, and using that knowledge and belief in one-another over time to extend your account should you feel the need.

 

3 – Worried about your partner’s spending?

 

How individuals manage their personal finances is an extremely personal thing, and it can be among the most difficult subjects to broach within a relationship, no matter how close you are. There are relationship councillors available who deal directly with this kind of sensitive issue, or you could speak to a financial adviser, which gives you somebody to talk to about how best to manage your money.