Do you and your spouse fight about money? Does he/she want to spend money on items that you don’t agree with? Maybe it’s new items for their hobby, a latte at Starbucks, or other items that really seem to get under your skin. If you answered yes, you might want to consider adding in a Personal Allowances section to your budget.
A personal allowance is a small sum of money that each spouse receives weekly/bi-weekly/monthly that they can spend however they want without having to answer for what they chose to spend their money on. They can save or spend this money, but the personal allowance is not meant to be returned to the budget or put into The Fund.
If your budget has wiggle room and you feel like you need this allowance, you might want to add it. Here’s what one reader had to say after she emailed me:
My husband I were constantly fighting about money. I couldn’t even get him to agree to go on a budget because he didn’t like the idea of being told how to spend his money. But then Kristin suggested that we each have a personal allowance. Each week, we each get $25. He spends his money on whatever he wants and I spend my money on what I want and we don’t fight anymore! Seriously! I have never been this happy before. The budget binder has changed our marriage!
Keep in mind that a personal allowance area of the budget is not for everyone. If you don’t feel like you need or can justify this, don’t feel obligated to add it.