Marriage is an exciting, life-changing journey. It’s a time to celebrate love and start planning your future together—but it also requires financial planning. Money can be a major source of stress in a marriage, so it’s important that you and your partner take the necessary steps to make sure your finances are in order. Here are some tips on financially preparing for your first year of marriage. Don’t forget to follow them.

Create A Budget

Creating a budget is one of the most important things you can do when preparing for married life. By creating a budget, you and your partner will have an understanding of what money is coming in, what money needs to go out, and how much money you have left over for savings or investments. Sit down with your partner and create a budget that works for both of you. Be sure to factor in all expenses, including entertainment costs, medical bills, housing costs, student loan payments, and any other recurring costs. Having this information on paper will help you make more informed decisions about where and how to spend your money as a couple.

Discuss Financial Goals

It’s also important to talk about financial goals before marriage. Set up time with your partner to discuss each other’s short-term and long-term financial goals. You should both be as honest as possible when discussing these goals so that there are no surprises later down the road when it comes time to make big decisions such as taking out loans or buying and insuring a house together. Take stock of each other’s assets and liabilities too—this will give you an idea of what kind of financial responsibilities you may be taking on after marriage (e.g., if one person has more debt than the other).

Open Joint Accounts

Once you’ve discussed each other’s financial goals and taken stock of assets/liabilities, it’s time to open joint accounts such as checking accounts or savings accounts—or both! This will ensure that your finances are completely intertwined by the time you get married; plus, having joint accounts makes it easier for couples to manage their finances together on one platform rather than having two separate bank accounts with different institutions. When opening joint accounts like these, be sure that both parties have access (i.e., check signing authority) so that either person can withdraw funds if needed without the need for extra paperwork or signatures from both individuals every single time.

Discuss Retirement Planning

Now’s the perfect time for newlyweds to start thinking about retirement planning — even if it seems like it’s miles away. Talk about how long each partner would like to work before retiring, where you’d like to live during retirement (if not where you currently are), and how much money will be needed each month during retirement years. From there, begin exploring different investment options such as IRAs or 401(k) plans so you can save money now for future use when retirement rolls around. You can also look into Social Security benefits which could provide additional income once retired (this should be discussed with a financial advisor).

Conclusion

Financially preparing for marriage doesn’t need to be difficult or stressful; by following these tips outlined above, couples can easily get their finances in order before tying the knot! Create a budget together, discuss financial goals openly with each other, and open joint accounts so that managing shared funds is easy once marriage occurs. With just a bit of financial planning beforehand, newlyweds can enjoy peace of mind knowing they’re starting their new lives on solid financial footing!