In a relationship, splitting costs are vital when it comes to expenses such as food, bills and entertainment. A few months ago, I lived with my significant other and the proportion of our budget was a little uneven. He had a better paying job, honestly, a job that paid twice as much as mines. This meant he paid more rent than I did, which we both knew getting into the situation, but was difficult sometimes. Often I felt guilty for not bringing at least half as much money to the table. We were able to budget very well, but I know in the future, I'd like to have more financial stability when it comes to providing equally.
If you live with a spouse or even a roommate, is it even or does someone make more money? Do you split the costs evenly or does someone dish out more?
Comments (8)
I currently live with my fiance and he makes a lot more then I do as I am still a full time college student and only work part time. He already graduated from college and is a junior engineer. The agreement was when he wanted me to move in with him, was that he would pay for the apartment and everything that went with it, as the amount I work only covers my bills and school. Sometimes I feel guilty about not paying rent, but then I think about the fact that he wants me to live with him and that once I'm done schooling I'll eventually make much more then him and then I'll be the one paying more.
I think if you're married, it shouldn't matter who makes more. Together, you are one unit. I don't believe in separate accounts and splitting bills-- that's for roommates, not a married couple who is going to spend their entire lives together.
He makes about 60% of our income, we don't split up who pays what. We'd never split up who pays what bill, our checks go into the same account and it's our money and our bills to pay.
My boyfriend and I live together, and he makes almost double what I make. We are still college students, so this doesn't concern me because we are not married.
We keep our money seperate for our own personal bills (cell phone, car payment, insurance) and we usually split utilities and rent. Sometimes he pays a bit more than me, but we are just working with what we have right now.
All of my living experiences have been either home or dorm, so I don't have any experience with splitting money. However, I do make more than my mother and I pay for more than she does. My dad is still the one who makes by far the most money out of all of us.
I bring home more than my husband because he pays child support
I lived with my ex for a while. We split everything 50-50, despite the fact he was making significantly more than me both before I went back to school and obviously while I was in school. Most others thought this was an odd arrangement, but my pride wouldn't let me do it any other way. It ended up biting me in the ass when we broke up.
My current boyfriend and I do not live together, and I plan to keep it that way until after we're engaged. After that point, I think it'll be more realistic for us to create a joint account & contribute based on income. Until I get really settled in my career, we'll be making roughly the same amount of money, so there shouldn't be huge discrepancies between contributions & expenses.
I always believed in equal pay but sometimes one person has to dish out a little bit more than the other. At the the same time I've always said that I wouldn't have a problem if my wife or GF made more money than in the future.