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AJC.com > Living > Blog > Archives > 2008 > September > 30
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Accrue a partner, accrue debt?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As our country’s economic meltdown continues, I’m pondering the toll debt can take in our relationships.
I begin with a disclaimer: for the first time, I’m carrying a balance on my credit card. Thankfully its still in the manageable stages. My hope is to have it paid off in the next few months, though ideally I’d never have purchased something I couldn’t pay off the first month anyway.
I’m a single gal, so I’m shouldering the debt alone. That’s the way it should be, of course, as I was the one to make the purchases.
But what about in relationships when one person accrues the debt, but both people are left paying for it?
A reader wrote me about her niece, who carries a significant credit card balance and is afraid to tell her fiance. She worries he won’t want to marry her if he knew she owed several thousand dollars in credit card debt.
I think I’d think twice about assuming someone’s debt in marriage or combining finances, though I’m not sure the situation would be cause for ending a relationship. On the other hand, I’d worry about a man who allowed himself to accrue serious debt, barring extraordinary life circumstances.
How do you think debt plays into relationships? Have you encountered this situation and how have you handled it? And finally, would you end it with a person whose financial situation wasn’t under control?
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