Money Hackers Carnival #117: Wedding & Marriage Edition

If you write about personal finance, you’ve probably heard of Money Hackers. If not, I’d suggest joining the group – here. A collection of PF bloggers, the network promotes each other through a weekly carnival. Talk about strength in numbers, there were over 50 entries for this week alone!

Welcome to the Money Hackers Carnival #117: Wedding & Marriage Edition.

Comfortable with my current financial situation, I can tell you truthfully I’m nervous about all the ways things will change once married.

Should be look at cell phone family plans?
How much life insurance do we need?

What should we watch for with taxes?

Which accounts will we combine?

There’s this list followed by a few thousand more, so here’s a round-up of how to save money – either before, or after, the wedding. Enjoy!

EDITOR’S CHOICE

• Dink’s Finance hits the nail on the head with a big question – how does martial status affect your taxes? I’ll be making sure to forward the fiance this article. Speaking of name change, her new legal name will be triple alliteration.
• On the horizon, we’ll be having kids but not without plenty of planning. The Sun’s Fiancial Dairy points out A New Child Means Lots of Expenses. Hence why the pre-planning is necessary, you want to anticipate (and prepare for) what you can.
• An unconventional approach to gifting, Budgets Are Sexy explains the theory behind $100 here, $100 there, $100 everywhere! If only I had known earlier, maybe J Money would have been invited to the wedding.
• Jeremy @ Credit Cards could not have been a more perfect (and entertaining) introduction. He explains how Background Check Alerts Me to Surprising Criminal History. Hmm – should I check out my fiance’s record? …or maybe even my own!

BEFORE THE WEDDING…

Budgeting

We all make money mistakes. But don’t let Free Money Finance catch you making The 10 Worst Money Mistakes. Ever wonder Why Budgeting Fails? Well, Provident Planning does and explains why. Try managing your finances with an online program. DoughRoller does a Review of Mint.com.  Of course, all those pesky wedding costs can be taken care of using Cool to be Frugal’s 10 Principles for a Frugal Wedding.

Credit/Debt

Barbara Friedberg helps us understand What the Heck is a Credit Score and Why Should I Care. Once you have that score, Canadian Finance Blog shows how to Improve Your Credit Rating in 5 Easy Steps. Part of eliminating debt is cutting out the fat, which Wencypoo touches on in A Radical Idea That Just Might Solve Food Poverty. Many people have heard of the debt snowball – Cash Money Life wonders if it’s The Best Way To Pay Off Debt.

Dividends/Interest

Like your future marriage – investing in the relationship should return dividends in the long run. Dividend Growth Investor highlights How to Uncover Hidden Dividend Gems while Gen Y Wealth explains The Power of Compound Interest and Dividends Value points out 4 CEOs Showing Confidence with Increased Dividends.

AFTER THE WEDDING…

Insurance

Thinking about buying life insurance? Check out Free from Broke on How Much You Need. Then scoot on over to Consumer Boomer for How to Compare Policies. Switching gears, let’s not forget about insurance. If you’re self employed, read Good Financial Cents guide to Paying for Self-Employed Insurance.

Trimming Bills

Budgeting in the Fun Stuff illustrates how Multiple Accounts make for Easy Budgeting.

Money Help for Christians shows that you can Cut Cable TV and Still Watch on the Cheap.

Bill Eater provides Tips for Negotiating a Better Deal – on anything!

Limiting “Stuff”

First, you question Is That Really an Investment as MoneyNing does. Next, you learn the Art of Detaching From Our Stuff over at Equinaut. Then you perform the infamous Side Hustle – Garage Sale using Live Real Now’s complete preparation.

Appreciating Life

Squirrelers poses the idea – Can We Achieve Financial Greatness? Sure we can! And a Discover Card $1 Million Prize couldn’t hurt either according to Ask Mr Credit. But don’t let it become an obsession. Watson Inc points out the Reasons For and Against Tracking Net Worth. It’s good to remember a work-life balance, and Eliminate the Muda provides a new Work-Life Balance Definition. And speaking of balances, Balance Junkie gives a great example of how we need to adapt to changes through highlighting 5 Investing Challenges for the Next Decade.  Finally, when things seem to hit a rough spot with money- read The Millionaire Nurse Blog’s Money and Marriage: Marital Bliss or or Beast and The Wealth Artisan’s Money and Marriage post.