By Avani Peterson
If you are in love and in debt at the same time then clearing your debts and being debt free should be your first priority and not marriage. Although you may have found “the one” for you, you need to wait to have a secure financial base so that your future marriage can be stress free in terms of monetary concerns.
One must always start off a marriage on a positive note and debt can never be a positive thing. There are several reasons as to why one shouldn’t get married if in debt:
Your post marriage joint expenses will become a huge issue
Couples fight, but when in debt, they will fight more. If you / your spouse-to-be are in debt then once you are married you will realize that there will fights for little things like grocery expenses, bills, rent payments, EMI’s etc. So it’s always wise to have a huge savings account handy to overcome the problem and not a huge debt account. This will at least give you a smooth start journey.
Both of you will have more stress on your head
Typically, in a marriage what’s “yours” becomes “ours”, be it problems, concerns, good things, bad things etc. So if one of you or both of you are in debt then you both will be stressed out trying to overcome the problem because living together means rising expenses and needs and with a heavy debt on your back, it will give you a hard time. Furthermore, if the situation gets terribly out of hand then both of you are liable to be at fault in the eyes of the financial institution or bankers.
You will have to cut corners on the lifestyle you are used to
You will be use to a certain way of life which may not continue if you get married while in debt. This is because you will have to reduce your outings and movie trips and weekend plans to save money to pay the debt. This can become frustrating for a newly married couple.
You will be dependent on friends and parents for money
If in debt then you will have to borrow money at some point to sustain yourself and your spouse. Maybe your friends and family members will become money lenders for the first few times but after that they will expect you to fend for yourself. Try to remember that no one respects a person in debt for too long. So the goal should be to get to the debt free stage and then stay that way for a long, long time. Once you reach that stage then you can choose to get married whenever you want. It will save a lot of people, including you a whole lot of trouble.
You won’t be able to sustain yourself / plus a spouse
If you are in debt then your present earnings would largely be going towards paying off your debt. This will result in lesser present day money to pay for current expenses and eventually this will result in hardships. If you (as a man) can’t support your new wife, then the relationship will take a drastic turn as a result of this.
You will have to wait for your plans to materialize
All married couples have a wish list in place when they get married. Some want to travel, buy new furniture for the home, maybe even buy a home etc. Probably even a car. But if you marry while in debt you will have to put off all these wishes for later. Then the whole point of getting married would be lost. Do not kid yourself into thinking that you got married just to “be together”. Because once the problem overtakes you then you won’t be a happy couple anymore.
Your office / boss may add to your problem
When in debt, the company you work for might have a problem with you. They might not fire you but they will watch you. No one wants a liability on their head. If your debt situation gets very serious then they may let you go…which means that you will be in debt and will be job less. Having a spouse at this time might become a source of stress. The point remains: clear your debts and then get married.
