Do you and your partner both bring home a paycheck and have no dependents? If so, you are a Double Income, No Kids household, or DINK for short. During this time, there are a lot of smart money moves you can be making to set yourself up for success.
Your time as a Double Income, No Kids household presents an opportunity to hone in on your financial aspirations and take significant steps towards securing your retirement.
Combining two paychecks to improve your standard of living is a positive step! However, have you considered whether you are making the most beneficial decisions for your financial well-being in the long run?
In this blog, Park City Wealth Advisors will discuss a few smart money moves for DINK households to help you retire sooner!
Smart Money Moves: Allocate Your Incomes
Many couples may not be aware that there are strategic ways to handle their finances when your household is bringing in two incomes.
Forbes warns that sometimes in a DINK household, there can be: "increasing spending on nonessential expenses or feeling like what used to be sufficient for living expenses is no longer enough."
One way to put that excess income to better use is to allocate one income for the present and one for the future.
The Present
First, you will decide whose income will be dedicated to the present. This partner's income will be used as the means of your lifestyle spending. Their income will cover necessities like bills, groceries, and other necessities.
The Future
The other partner's income will be used for your financial future. This paycheck will be dedicated to paying down any debts, making intelligent investments, and setting aside money for long-term savings like IRAs.
Diversify Your Investments…Together
You probably learned that diversifying your investment portfolio is an intelligent way to minimize risk. Most likely, your partner probably learned the same. Now, both of your investment portfolios are diversified but with the same type of investments.
Now is the time to compare all of your individual accounts, including your 401ks, IRAs, and brokerage accounts. If you plan on retiring together, you may be able to consolidate your 401ks and even choose the account with the lowest fees to consolidate.
When you take a look at your investment portfolio as a whole, you can see the similarities but also the missing pieces. Look at what you are lacking, find a mutual interest, and add to your portfolio. If neither of your portfolios includes real estate, start with investing in a property.
Separate Finances and Emotions
This next tip is not limited to a Double Income No Kids household. In any relationship, you and your partner may not always have the same financial habits. However, there are ways to discuss your differences without conflict.
Forbes explains: "Regardless of keeping separate checking accounts or credit cards, you can still provide visibility into one another's accounts without necessarily exerting unsolicited opinions or judgments over how your partner might choose to spend."
Whether your accounts are joint or separate, a deep understanding of your spending habits as individuals and a couple can turn financial conversations from accusations based on feelings to statements based on analyzed trends.
This is where a wealth advisor can help!
Consult a Wealth Advisor
A wealth advisor looks at your entire financial picture to analyze the trends, fill in any gaps, and introduce you to new strategies that will benefit your financial health.
At Park City Wealth Advisors, we centralize the process of looking at your and your partner's finances in one place. Our team of expert advisors ensures that every aspect of both of your financial well beings are seamlessly covered through a personalized plan.
Not to mention, when you work with a wealth advisor, you are protecting one of your most important assets, your time.
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