Getting Married and Credit Cards

[Anonymous]

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@eparker wrote:

Just my thoughts:    Through research I have found that many suggest having separate credit card accounts.  The only joint was a mortgage.  I guess the thinking just in case there are credit problems down the line both wont be effected.  Then at least one spouse will have credit to purchase something.  I know marriage is suppose to be forever but you also have to think what if something happens down the line.  At least that will not follow either one of you.  But you have to do what is best for your situation. 

If one person is not credit savy and alert it wont' hurt both of you.  I recently remarried and I am still dealing with some credit issues from my previous marriage. 

Good luck.....

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+3

My DH and I have no joint accounts, but he is an AU on 2 of my cards. We have a joint mortgage. I see no reason to have joint accounts, because we can always be put on an account as an AU. My sister is recently divorced and her credit is ruined due to her ex not paying on their joint accounts (he had the bill sent to him, and she stupidly didn't monitor those payments). The only cards she has now that she can use are the ones she had on her own that she has always paid on time.

[mindacid]

+4 on keeping your cards separate.   My DW and I keep separate credit cards.  When she wants one that I have I just make her an AU and viceversa.  The only thing we have together is a loan.  You never know, things could go wrong and by keeping separate credit cards you stand a better chance of at least one of the two spouses remining credit worthy. 

[Anonymous]

Nothing new to add - just in agreement with everyone else that its best to keep them separate, at least in the near future. My ex and I joined all our accounts back in the day. No one plans to break off an engagement/marriage when things are going well but things got messy and even messier sorting through all the finances.

[dalebb]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Nothing new to add - just in agreement with everyone else that its best to keep them separate, at least in the near future. My ex and I joined all our accounts back in the day. No one plans to break off an engagement/marriage when things are going well but things got messy and even messier sorting through all the finances.

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+5

[quest208]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Nothing new to add - just in agreement with everyone else that its best to keep them separate, at least in the near future. My ex and I joined all our accounts back in the day. No one plans to break off an engagement/marriage when things are going well but things got messy and even messier sorting through all the finances.

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oh very good point.

[Walt_K]

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@quest208 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Nothing new to add - just in agreement with everyone else that its best to keep them separate, at least in the near future. My ex and I joined all our accounts back in the day. No one plans to break off an engagement/marriage when things are going well but things got messy and even messier sorting through all the finances.

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oh very good point.

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Just to add to this, which I think was alluded to above, it's not always about whether you may end up getting divorced.  Other unexpected tragedies could happen, for example, a spouse dying.  If the account is joint, you're definitely responsible for the debt.  If it isn't a joint account, you may not be responsible (I don't pretend to all the rules about what debt survives and whether it matters if it's a community property state or not).  I just don't see the appeal of joint accounts.  They don't seem to add anything that an AU account doesn't, and they carry lots of potential downside.  Of course, there is the issue that with new regs, a non-income earning spouse may have more difficulty obtaining an account on their own. In that case, I could see the value of joint accounts.

Overall though, I prefer separate accounts and AU accounts where you want to combine things.  There are lots of benefits to having separate accounts.  Right now we are getting ready to app for a mortgage.  I can support the app with my credit and income without my wife being on the loan.  At the same time, we need to do some work on our current condo to get it ready for sale.  She is applying for a 0% card to fund the repairs so we don't have to touch our reserves.  Since the card will be in her name only, I won't end up with a new inquiry, a new account, and it won't affect my utilization.  So nothing to explain for the mortgage app.

[LS2982]

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@eparker wrote:

Just my thoughts:    Through research I have found that many suggest having separate credit card accounts.  The only joint was a mortgage.  I guess the thinking just in case there are credit problems down the line both wont be effected.  Then at least one spouse will have credit to purchase something.  I know marriage is suppose to be forever but you also have to think what if something happens down the line.  At least that will not follow either one of you.  But you have to do what is best for your situation. 

If one person is not credit savy and alert it wont' hurt both of you.  I recently remarried and I am still dealing with some credit issues from my previous marriage. 

Good luck.....

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+1

[tinuviel]

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@Walt_K wrote:

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@quest208 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Nothing new to add - just in agreement with everyone else that its best to keep them separate, at least in the near future. My ex and I joined all our accounts back in the day. No one plans to break off an engagement/marriage when things are going well but things got messy and even messier sorting through all the finances.

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oh very good point.

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Just to add to this, which I think was alluded to above, it's not always about whether you may end up getting divorced.  Other unexpected tragedies could happen, for example, a spouse dying.  If the account is joint, you're definitely responsible for the debt.  If it isn't a joint account, you may not be responsible (I don't pretend to all the rules about what debt survives and whether it matters if it's a community property state or not).  I just don't see the appeal of joint accounts.  They don't seem to add anything that an AU account doesn't, and they carry lots of potential downside.  Of course, there is the issue that with new regs, a non-income earning spouse may have more difficulty obtaining an account on their own. In that case, I could see the value of joint accounts.

Overall though, I prefer separate accounts and AU accounts where you want to combine things.  There are lots of benefits to having separate accounts.  Right now we are getting ready to app for a mortgage.  I can support the app with my credit and income without my wife being on the loan.  At the same time, we need to do some work on our current condo to get it ready for sale.  She is applying for a 0% card to fund the repairs so we don't have to touch our reserves.  Since the card will be in her name only, I won't end up with a new inquiry, a new account, and it won't affect my utilization.  So nothing to explain for the mortgage app.

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That's yet another good point! As of 2010, my DH and I have been rebuilding our respective credit. I apped for and received several rebuilder cards in 2010, and I added two department store cards in the spring of 2011. We also agreed that it would be a good idea to have a Lowe's card. But, since I had already added a bunch of inqs and took a hit to my AAoA, and since he needed to build up from a thin file anyway, he apped for the Lowe's card instead of me. He also was the one who got the CareCredit card. The bottom line is that we were able to add a couple of cards that we believed would be useful for our family, but were able to keep from pounding my reports with new credit while at the same time building up his. IOW, keeping accounts separate can help to spread out the inqs and new credit dings.