8. Learn about your tax liability
When you understand what tax bracket you each fall into, you will know which spouse should deduct child-care and medical expenses, who should claim charitable donations and how much of a tax break you'll each gain with an RRSP contribution.
If one partner is in a higher bracket, he or she should think about paying into a spousal RRSP to ensure that you build equal assets (you'll pay less tax in retirement). "Bottom line, you don't want to pay more tax than you have to," says Anderson of MoneyPower.
9. List important names and numbers
Most people have a list of emergency phone numbers at the ready. Add the names and numbers of the accountants, financial planners, insurance brokers or lawyers involved in your finances, and your credit-card numbers and expiry dates. "Tape it to the inside of a cupboard so everybody in the house has access," recommends Lermitte, a certified financial planner. When you go on vacation, leave the list with someone you trust.
10. Look forward to retirement
"This is a journey you and your partner are going to take together," says Anderson. "Once you have that vision, you can map out the strategies that are going to help you get there." The key is to start early. "If you start saving at age 20 and you don't have a company pension plan, usually you only have to save between $1,000 and $2,000 a year each to get to a comfortable retirement at 65," says Anderson. "If you wait till you're 45, you've each got to save between $11,500 to $12,800 annually."
One extra tip: talk it over
Most couples don't discuss money unless they are arguing. "It has both power and security attached to it," says Anderson. "You need to do some exploring about each other's ‘money personality' early on and keep talking about it." Anderson urges couples to have a monthly finance meeting. Joan agrees and believes that couples should start talking even before they pool their resources. "Couples should be required to take some sort of finance class," she says. "It would be a real eye-opener."
*Names have been changed.
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