Skoodge wrote on Nov 21
st, 2017 at 4:18am:
My wife would freak if she knew how much I spent on games. Way I see it, 20 bucks won't go very far or last long in a bar or even a movie theater.
But that same 20 bucks buys a lot of hours of entertainment in a game.
A monthly investment of 20 bucks (or maybe a little more) for your entertainment budget is pretty damned cheap.
To each their own, but keeping financial expenditures secret from your significant other is generally not good for the health of a long term relationship. Money and cheating seem to be two of the most common reasons for divorce these days.
Dunno why so many people have money issues with their significant others. Assuming you're not living paycheck to paycheck, they can easily be avoided by creating and following a budget. In addition to the actual financial benefits following a budget provides, it sets clear expectations and boundaries for both you and your spouse, removing the potential to feel like you need to keep secrets.
1) Use one of the myriad online retirement planning calculators and pick an intelligent amount for monthly retirement contributions that will put you where you want to be when you hit retirement age.
2) Total net monthly income - monthly necessities (housing, food, transportation, utilities, etc.) - monthly retirement planning - monthly "rainy day" fund contribution (up to an intelligent limit (e.g. 4 months worth of net income)) = fun money.
3) Divide divide the fun money in half. You get 1/2, your significant other gets 1/2. Both are free to spend it however they want within reason (the wife didn't go for my hookers and blow suggestion).
No fuss, no muss.