March 22nd, 2007 
NCN
I am the “nerd” in our family, so I pay our bills and manage our investments.
(Here’s a post about how I avoid arguing with my spouse about money. My wife is awesome, but she’s not all that interested in the “mechanics” of our finances.)
Every three of four months, I create a Financial Inventory Worksheet for my wife. I keep one copy at home and one copy at my office. The worksheet allows me to keep track of various accounts, balances, and passwords. I print out the inventory worksheet and fill it out by hand. If something were to happen to me (injury, death, etc.), my wife would have access to all account information. I always “date” the worksheet and include an estimated balance for each account.
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Oh yeah. I make sure that I don’t just leave this piece of paper lying around the house. Seriously, a piece of paper with bank account numbers and passwords could potentially be misused.
| Account | Account Number | Telephone | Website | User Name | Password | Balance |
| Date This Document Was Created: |
Here’s a post I wrote a few months ago, entitled “What If I Die?”. Not my favorite topic, to be sure. But, these are things for which we must prepare.
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Wow~ I have the same sheet sealed in an envelope just in case. I told my spouse only open when I die. Mine is a little more detail, more like a will
NCN, I think this is a good idea – but I see some potential problems. I’m sure you’ll think this is silly as would most of your readers, but you’d be shocked how often this becomes an issue. When a couple, for whatever reason, decides to stop dating or become separated if married – it’s not uncommon for one party (usually the one who would be hurt most financially by a divorce or separation) to make off with the others money.
Generally, for someone with a joint bank account, this is as easy as a trip to a bank or now, a click of a button. By doing something like this, you give the other a literally guide of where the money is, how much is there, how to get it, and the logins/passwords to do so. Since it’s a joint account, it’ll be VERY difficult to get any of it back.
I’m not trying to say this is totally a bad idea, but for me, I’d rather see people sit down with their partner each month (and when asked of course) and talk about what’s going on.
Kirby..
I’m a little confused… maybe I didn’t explain everything…
My wife and I sit down, not monthly, but WEEKLY and go over our budget, our finances, etc. The document above simply brings all that information into one place, for easy access. When I say that my wife is not interested in the “mechanics”… I simply mean that she’s not the one who sits down and actually clicks the buttons… But, she CAN. I’m totally transparent with her… Am I saying all of this correctly? My wife is VERY involved in our finances, but I’m the one who goes online and clickity clicks…
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