Top Money Mistakes for Women

“In order to preserve harmony in a relationship, many women forgo their own needs to keep the boat from rocking. But those little accommodations can pile up and lead to tremendous resentment. Don't worry about rocking the boat. Make sure your needs are spoken, heard, and understood,” said Adryenn Ashley, author "Every Single Girl's Guide To Her Future Husband's Last Divorce."    


2. No Joint Anything – Especially Accounts.
While this point can be debated, the overwhelming advice from the financial experts is that combining bank and credit card accounts are not the measure of a healthy marriage.  “The minute you deposit your paycheck into a joint account, you have co-mingled it. It now becomes community income not separate income,” said Leslie Dawson, a CPA with the Walnut Creek, Calif., firm of Glenn & Dawson, which specializes in family litigation and divorce. “People don’t understand that. In addition, if you are going to get into a second marriage, where there are most likely a lot of assets between the two of you, get legal advice. Most people consider a pre-nup. I strongly recommend that someone look long and hard at a pre-nup.”    

“The danger of a joint checking account is that if one spouse decides to leave the marriage suddenly, he can drain the checking account upon his departure,” said Kindler. “Use of jointly held credit cards, or even worse, having your husband as an authorized user on a credit card in your name, is also a bad idea. Obviously, if large credit card balances are accumulated during the marriage, your spouse can leave you with the obligation to pay the debt. Some credit card companies will require the balance to be paid off before the other spouse’s name will be removed from the account.”   

And according to Jonathan Klein, certified mortgage and divorce planning specialist and general manager of Associates Home Mortgage in Boca Raton, Fla, taking joint credit with a spouse is a bad idea for some other reasons: “If your spouse is a victim of identity theft then you are as well. Spouses don’t have the same spending habits and thus you should not be subject to their bad behavior. And debt is one of the biggest obstacles to leaving a marriage.”    

In addition to keeping separate credit cards and separate bank accounts, Ashley is a strong proponent of the joint checking account as well. “You should each have your own accounts, and one small joint account for joint bills and living expenses. But if one of you ends up with a tax/child support/student loan problem, your account can be emptied without notice. And it doesn't matter if half of what was in it was your innocent spouse's.”  

“This holds true when you inherit assets or property, too. Keep that separate. Don’t mix that in,” said Martin Neely. “If you did mix that in, get it separated now. It’s really important to keep a record so that the day you get married, you have a copy of all those statements in a safe place, to say what your assets were on that day. And you will most likely never need to use it. If you have a house, call a Realtor and get them to do a CMA and keep that in that folder, you will be so glad that you have information.”   

Combining all your assets and your debts can also have a long-reaching effect, according to Freeman. “Losing your financial identity – merging bank accounts, closing individual credit card accounts. If you divorce you will have to start all over with your credit history or may be penalized if your joint account is delinquent.” 


3. Don’t Give up your Potential to Earn Money.
It’s far too common that most women make less than their spouses or earn no income at all during a marriage, especially if they are home child rearing. “Leaving your career to be a stay at home mom can have repercussions,” said Freeman. “If you plan on going back to work, the longer you stay home the harder it will be to find a job.”