Evolving Personal Finance » marriage
Money Updates from the EPF Household
Today’s post is a collection of odds and ends – thoughts and observations about our life as it intersects with our finances. None of these topics are enough for a full blog post at this point so this is a clearinghouse for our thoughts at this moment. Townhouse Water Damage We had a bit of a scare a couple weeks ago with the townhouse we rent. A leak developed in the ceiling of the lower floor, directly … Read entire article »
Filed under: budgeting, cars, housing, marriage, personal, savings, targeted savings, transitions, travel
Mini-Vacation Financials: Madison, WI for a Wedding
We traveled to Madison, WI from July 4 to July 7 for a wedding and to see some friends. This trip was very different from the ones we usually take (like our recent trip to Boston) and really made me appreciate both styles of travel. I really liked downtown Madison, probably mostly because it’s summer – great weather and not so many college kids! Usually when we travel for events like weddings we couch-surf and try … Read entire article »
Long-Distance Marriage: Travel and Advice
This is the fourth installment of our series on financially navigating a long-distance marriage. Please read and comment on the first, second, and third installments as well! Our final post in this series on the impact of long-distance marriage on finances covers visits and advice. It made sense combine these two categories since much of the advice was on travel itself! Many of the couples emphasized the importance of regular visits, even at the expense of other … Read entire article »
Attend Weddings But Don’t Go into Debt
Wedding season is upon us! I love marriage and I love attending weddings to spend time with and support our friends and family. That’s why I initially felt sympathy for Christopher Sledzik, the face that CNN put on its recent article on the rising cost of wedding attendance and the pressure friends and family feel to attend. Like Sledzik, we are also 27 and in the last three years have devoted all our vacation time … Read entire article »
Filed under: choices, credit cards, debt, marriage, savings, targeted savings, travel
Long-Distance Marriage: Communication and Personalities
This is the third installment of our series on financially navigating a long-distance marriage. Please read and comment on the first, second, and fourth installments as well! I asked the couples several questions regarding their money personalities and communication about money and the answers ended up being closely related to one another. 1) Did living apart cause any major money conflicts? 2) How much of your communication time was spent on money, and how did that compare to … Read entire article »
Filed under: marriage, psychology
Realities of Account Ownership
This post is a follow-up from my visualizations of account structures that couples use – different combinations of joint and separate accounts. I didn’t specify during that post, but there are actually three ways of viewing account/property ownership: the names on the account/deed how you think of the account the legal owner and beneficiary, in the case of divorce/death (will depend on the state) For example, I’ve talked with married couples who have individual names on various accounts but … Read entire article »
Filed under: marriage, transitions
Long-Distance Marriage: Money Management
This is the second installment of our series on financially navigating a long-distance marriage. Check out the first installment and come back on subsequent Wednesdays for the third and fourth! The questions I asked about money management logistics were the ones that I was most interested in. My bias here is that Kyle and I keep totally joint money (both in the names on our accounts and how we think of them), but I wondered whether … Read entire article »
Long-Distance Marriage: Meet the Couples
This is the first installment of our series on financially navigating a long-distance marriage. Please return on subsequent Wednesdays for the second, third, and fourth installments. Kyle and I are anticipating living apart next year for a year or so – he’ll start a postdoc in another city and I’ll finish up my PhD here in Durham. (For more details as to why, see my response to Lucas’s comment from last week.) Because I love thinking … Read entire article »
Married with Roommates?
Here are the parameters we’re working with: 1) Kyle will graduate as early as June or as late as September, but we’re not sure where he’ll be doing his postdoc or when he’ll start. 2) I’ll need a roommate for after Kyle moves out. 3) If Kyle has a significant period of non-employment in between graduating and starting his postdoc, my pay isn’t quite enough to cover our expenses and basic percentage-based budgeting. Since roommates are easiest to find … Read entire article »
How to Spend Less When Attending Out-of-Town Weddings
In a 48-hour period last week, we received two unexpected wedding invitations, heard about two more engagements, and attended a pre-wedding event – all for weddings occurring this summer! We had thought it was going to be another slow wedding season for us, but we are now planning to attend at least two out-of-town weddings – one in Boston and the other in Madison, WI. Since 2010, we have attended TEN out-of-town weddings. We want to … Read entire article »
Filed under: family, food, frugality, marriage, personal, travel
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