When two people couple up, they’re often tempted to combine their finances too, as it seems simpler and signals they’re both committed.
But if they break up, joint accounts can be a knotty mess to untangle and might leave them high and dry in the credit-driven US economy, Kevin O’Leary says.
“What I tell everybody to do in a relationship is have your own account, your own credit card, never merge your finances together,” the “Shark Tank” star said in a Fox News clip posted to his Instagram on Wednesday.
“After you get divorced, if you have been merged in with your significant other, you’re a nobody in our system,” O’Leary continued. “You have to have your own credit track record. Don’t let emotions get in the way of that.
“I don’t care how in love you are; you keep your account to yourself.”
O’Leary pointed out that financial problems are a leading cause of divorce. If two people pool their money, and one has a spending or gambling problem, the fallout can be painful. In a worst-case scenario, one party might steal from the other.
The O’Leary Ventures chairman, whose nickname is “Mr. Wonderful,” offered similar advice during a Fox Business interview in March.
He said that “even if you have a long-term situation and anything would happen to your spouse … if you don’t have your own financial identity, you’re in the wilderness in America.
“You must have a credit rating, and a financial identity, and an account, and your own investment accounts just for survival.”
O’Leary added that when people tell him they’ve merged their accounts, he responds: “What are you, nuts?”
“I forbid it in my own family,” he continued. “I force prenups. I force cohabitation agreements. I want financial due diligence on significant others because I’m a realist — I deal in the real world.”
The veteran investor recommended having a frank discussion about personal finances as early as the third date, over the second glass of wine. Knowing if your potential life partner is in debt, or if they or anyone in their family has filed for bankruptcy, is vital information in his view.
“Before you even have your first child, you have a baby — it’s called money,” he quipped. “It’s sitting right there at the table with you every day,” he continued, joking that it “looks up at you smiling” if your finances are sound but cries if you’re broke.
O’Leary’s advice feels especially pertinent at a time when many people are struggling to afford basics like food, fuel, and housing after a historic inflation spike and surge in interest rates.
They might be looking to split their rent or car payment with a partner, but if O’Leary’s right, they should stop short of meshing their financial lives together.
