Debt Could Ruin Your Marriage

In an article in the September issue of Money magazine titled Is Money Pulling You Apart?  they feature this bit of data found by a researcher who analyzed 4,500 couples :

"Dew found that a couple with $10,000 in debt and no savings is twice as likely to divorce as a couple with no debt and $10,000 in savings"

A married couple that has debt and no savings will have more arguments about money then a couple with savings and no debt.    Money can cause a lot of friction in a relationship and lack of money causes the most friction.

Even if the couple doesn't argue about money per se their poor financial state will add stress to their lives which and then that stress could make the marriage more difficult.    Think about it this way:  Are you generally in a happy mood when you're in debt?  If you're not generally in a happy mood then is it more or less easy to get along with your spouse?   

Think about the married couples you know who are having financial problems and the ones that are doing well financially.   Which group has more happy couples?    You may find a pattern there.   A friend of my wife has had a lot of difficulties in her marriage and almost all of it has been due to their handling of money and the debts they have.   One of my friends just got a divorce after a short marriage and a lot of their arguments revolved around money.