Tips to get newlyweds off on the right financial foot

It’s wedding season. Love is in the air. While couples vow to love each other till death do they part, nothing can kill a marriage like money woes.

Getting off to a good start and staying there is key. Here’s some priceless advice for newlyweds.

• Define shared goals: Talk about money. “One of the most important things for a couple after getting married is to get on the same page on how they want to live their lives together and what they want to achieve. This won’t be a one-time discussion, but an ongoing dialogue to get a better understanding of each other’s money views and values. These discussions will help them understand what financial goals they want to achieve, such as buying a house, saving for retirement, or planning for a child,” says Roger Ma, founder of Lifelaidout.com in Manhattan.
• Establish good patterns early: “Whether it’s getting out of debt, beginning to save for retirement, or keeping track of your monthly expenses, the patterns you set as a new couple are going to carry on with you, for good or for bad, for the coming decades,” says Jeremy Walter, a certified financial planner and founder of Fident Financial in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
• Create manageable steps: “Using manageable steps helps couples to measure their achievements. No matter the financial goal or plan, having smaller steps will make the process smoother,” says Raeshal Solomon, who runs the financial education site raeshalsolomon.com. Making some things automatic, such as retirement saving or bill paying, “will help them be consistent. The more consistent you can be, whether paying off a debt or saving for retirement, the faster you can build.”