Protect your relationship from money traps!

Research shows that 20% of people looking for a divorce say financial problems are the reason for their marital breakdown, compared with 5% in previous years. But it's not all bad news. With a bit of know-how you can avoid the money traps.

Here are the four most common mistakes couples make with their money, and expert advice on how to tackle them.

MISTAKE 1: ONE BIG MONEY POT

It's a bad idea to have one money pot because you'll end up justifying every purchase. Life's too short for these conversations, you should be able to spend some of your hard-earned money on what you want without a huge quizzing.

WHAT TO DO.....

- Have your salary paid into your own bank account. If you don't have one, then open one.

- Open a joint bank account for the rent, utility bills and other household expenditures. Every month, both of you can pay a set amount into it by direct debit.

MISTAKE 2: RUNNING UP DEBTS

It can be shocking to discover that your partner is in debt, but you must support each other. In return, it's totally acceptable to ask your partner to attend a support group if you think they have a problem.

WHAT TO DO.....

- Stop hiding your debts by not doing anything, you could risk losing everything.

- Go through debts together, draw up a budget and work out what you can afford to pay back, regularly. Keep in contact with your creditors.

- Cancel everything where you're wasting money, such as unnecessary insurance and extra mobile phones.

- Work out what you can sell, such as gadgets, and use this income to pay off loans.

MISATKE 3 : FAILING TO BUDGET

It's important for couples to keep all financial communication as up front as possible. If you start to keep money secrets, the other person will feel exploited when they find out.

WHAT TO DO.....

- Sit down and go through your finances together, every month. Have all statements at hand so you know who is spending what.

- One of the best ways to avoid over-spending is to draw out cash every week and use this for daily expenditures instead of cards. You spend about 30% more when using cards!(Yes, I personally agree.)

- Agree on realistic money goals for the coming month, and also for the long term. If you don't talk about money goals, one person will be splashing the cash while the other is trying to save and this will cause arguements.

- If your partner slips up, don't start a row. What's important is to acknowledge the spending mistake, work out why it happened and move on.

MISTAKE 4 : NO EMERGENCY PLANNING

Couples avoid planning for emergencies because they think it's being pessimistic. But what if you lost your job, or became ill and couldn't work? You need to plan for a rainy day.

WHAT TO DO.....

- Sit down with your bank statements, imagine that one of you has lost the job, then look at your outgoings. How much money a month do you really need to live on?

- Do you and your partner have enough savings to cover this amount, and for how long?

- Set up a separate savings account and treat the outgoing as an essential. Put aside as much as you can afford at first to build up 3 months outgoings, then drop the amount to a realistic monthly sum.

- If you receive any unexpected cash, remember to put some into your savings.

- If you're lucky enough to receive a pay raise, increase your monthly savings amount.

-Courtesy: Daily Mirror