Bible Money Matters

Christian personal finance

Menu
    • About
    • Archives
    • Contact
    • Close
  • Making Money
      • Popular Articles

        • 50 Ways To Make Money: Maximizing, Creating And Increasing Your Income
        • 10 Weird And Unconventional Ways To Make Money
        • Making Money With A Blog (e-Book)
        • 10 Places To Sell Or Trade Your Unused (Or Broken) Electronics
        • Ways To Make Extra Money Series: 20 More Income Generating Ideas From Our Readers
        • Making Side Income Can Help Blunt The Impact Of Becoming A One Income Family
        • Earn Cash Back With Discover it® Credit Card
      • Recent Articles – Making Money

        • Best Sites Like Fiverr To Make Money As A Freelancer
        • 13 Of The Best Independent Contractor Jobs
        • 25 Of The Best Gig Economy Jobs
        • How To Make Money Blogging: Turn A Blog Into A Business
      • Categories

        • Making Money
        • Investing
        • Retirement
        • Jobs & Work LIfe
        • Money
        • Income
    • Close
  • Saving Money
      • Popular Articles

        • 50 Easy Ways To Save Money Every Month
        • 10 Weird And Unconventional Ways To Save Money
        • 10 Practical Ways To Save Money And Increase Your Net Worth
        • How To Save Money On Just About All Of Your Regular Monthly Bills
        • Ways To Watch TV Without Paying An Arm And A Leg For Cable TV
        • Save Money On Your Hospital Bill - Just By Asking
      • Recent Articles – Saving Money

        • Living Stingy: 13 Tips For Spending Less
        • How To Save $100k In 7 Practical Steps
        • Stairs App Review: Save And Invest To Earn 4-6% Interest
        • Honey Review: Save Money Automatically When You Shop Online
      • Categories

        • Saving Money
        • Frugality
        • Planning
        • Finance
        • Saving For Retirement
        • Savings Accounts
    • Close
  • Banking
      • Best Rates For 2019

        • Best Credit Cards
        • Best Savings Accounts
        • Best Mortgage Rates
        • Best CD Rates
        • Best Brokerages
        • Free Credit Scores
      • Recent Reviews

        • M1 Finance Review: Free Trading App And Automated Investing
        • Tablo 4th Gen Over-The-Air DVR Review: The Best Device For Cord Cutters
        • TradeStation Review: Commission Free Stock And ETF Trades
        • Firstrade Review: Commission Free Trades on Stocks, Crypto, And Options
      • Categories

        • Bank & Software Reviews
        • Investing
        • Credit
        • Banking
        • Mortgage
        • Insurance
        • Family Budget
    • Close
  • Recommended
  • Video
    • Close

Family and Money: Do You Share Your Financial Situation With Family?

By Peter Anderson 2 Comments - The content of this website often contains affiliate links and I may be compensated if you buy through those links (at no cost to you!). Learn more about how we make money. Last edited November 16, 2023.

Share
Pin2
Tweet2
Share1
5 Shares

In reading a post today over at Prime Time Money, I began to think about this question; “Do you talk to your extended family about money? Is it a good thing to share your financial situation with others, and if you do, what complications does it bring up?

My wife and I have been very candid with my in-laws about our money situation. My mother and father in-law are wonderful people, and I completely trust their discretion on the matter of our finances. I also value their advice and input as they’ve been very successful in business and have given us a lot of insight that has been very useful to us.

family talk about moneyPhoto by teagrrl

Quick Navigation

  • Being Open About Money
  • Downsides To Sharing About Money
  • Pros To Sharing About Money
  • Cons To Sharing About Money

Being Open About Money

My wife is their only daughter and they have always wanted to know that she is “well taken care of”. There have been a few occasions that they’ve helped us out financially, the biggest one of them being when we bought our first house. At the time we weren’t yet married (and were living separately), and my wife was buying a townhouse that we would move into once we were married. They helped her out with a down payment on the home, and told her that she would not have to pay them back. This gave us a huge step-up as a young married couple, and we could not have been more thankful.

Downsides To Sharing About Money

We have been very blessed to have such generous parents helping us with our finances, but there have also been the downsides of sharing our financial situation with them.

A Change In The Relationship 

Because they have helped us financially, and because we’ve accepted their help, we feel indebted to them. We feel that we can never say no to them when it comes to small requests like coming over to give them computer help, coming over for dinner, or going on vacation with them. If we do say no, we feel always feel a little guilty.

Expectations Of Openness At All Times

They also expect us to always be very open about our finances, even when I don’t really feel comfortable sharing. Because they’ve helped us a couple of times, now they’re always asking us if we need help, even when we don’t. It can be tempting to take them up on their offers of help, even when we don’t really need it and could do it on our own.

Competition Between Family Members

When dealing with family, I also think finances can become a bit of a competition. My wife’s family are all very successful, and because of that I think that sometimes it can get into a bit of the “who’s more successful than who” game. I tend to shy away from sharing with those competitive family members because I don’t want to get into the comparison game and start hearing the “if you did this you could be as successful as me” monologues.

My wife and I are doing pretty well for ourselves, we have no debt beyond our mortgage, and we’ve been able to save a nice emergency fund and some retirement savings. Still, unless you’re making at least six figures, some people will always think you’re struggling to get by.

With that said, here are some pros and cons of sharing about money that I’ve found in my own family:

Pros To Sharing About Money

1. Sharing with family about money can bring some good advice.
2. Sometimes family can help you out of a bad money situation.
3. Good to be open with your loved ones.
4. Others in family might be able to learn from your money decisions.

Cons To Sharing About Money

1. Once you start sharing about finances, it can become expected, even when you don’t want to.
2. People will start the comparison games and people can be judged by how much they make.
3. People you’ve shared with will sometimes tell others about your finances, even when you don’t want them to.

For me, there are positives and negatives on both sides of the issue. I think in our family my wife and I have come to a consensus that we can share some general information with our loved ones, but that we don’t need or want to get into too many details. We want to keep it general, tell them if we’re doing ok or not, and not get into a lot of the specifics. We’ve also been a lot better about refusing help when we didn’t need it.

So how do you feel about sharing your financial situation with your family?

Related Posts

  • Improve Your Financial Situation By Making This One Change

    This year, take the time to surround yourself with people who are responsible with their money. You’ll be amazed how much your own financial life…

  • Overcoming Money Issues In Marriage

    Recently, my pastor gave a message about the leading causes of money issues in marriage.  He referred to them as “money minefields” that if not dealt…

  • Making Kids Money Savvy: Try These Four Financial Tricks

    Helping your kids become savvy about money is all about looking for and taking advantage of teachable moments.Here are four financial tricks for them to…

Share
Pin2
Tweet2
Share1
5 Shares
Last Edited: 16th November 2023 The content of biblemoneymatters.com is for general information purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Visitors to biblemoneymatters.com should not act upon the content or information without first seeking appropriate professional advice. In accordance with the latest FTC guidelines, we declare that we have a financial relationship with every company mentioned on this site.

This article is about: Commentary, finance, Money

About Peter Anderson

Peter Anderson is a Christian, husband to his beautiful wife Maria, and father to his 2 children. He loves reading and writing about personal finance, and also enjoys a good board game every now and again. You can find out more about him on the about page. Don't forget to say hi on Pinterest, Twitter or Facebook!

Comments

    Share Your Thoughts: Cancel reply

  1. tracy says

    I think it is a mistake to share this information.

    My husband shares with his family and I hate it. They look down on us b/c of what he shares. Nothing he does will ever be good enough. I don’t think he handles the money well either and when he is with them he is seeking validation of his financial maneuvers.

    I don’t know if he gets any good advice from them all I know is they don’t seem to think we are capable of making it on our own and they are very snotty and would delight (at least his mother) in our stumbling financially. I do not want help from them. My husband did that in the past and he still has not paid them back. He disappoints me b/c of this. We’ve had several times he could have paid them back and he didn’t.

    So, his sharing information with them no doubt makes them wonder why he has not repaid them and disgusts his mother and makes me not proud of him.

    It’s in poor taste to share financial information with your parents if your spouse does not consent. In our situation there is no reason for him to give all the details he has given them. He tells them how much in his 401K, how much debt he’s paid off, how much our trips costs, how much he makes, etc. Isn’t it enough to say “I am making a good living, but I’m still working out a few things, but I will be okay”?

    Reply
  2. Mr. Enchumbao says

    Sharing financial information with the extended family is a tricky situation when they’re not on the same page financially. Great topic of discussion.

    Reply
Previous Post: Rest In Peace: Kip Allan
Next Post: Personal Finance Bible Verse Of The Day: Rot
Discover Investment Platforms

Popular Posts

  • 21 Easy Ways To Earn Free Amazon Gift Cards
  • 10 Best Free Tax Filing Services And Software Online
  • 21 Apps That Pay You Real Money Fast
  • 17 TV Apps And Live TV Streaming Services To Watch TV Free
  • 30 Legit Online Jobs That Pay Well
  • 37 Easy Ways To Get Free Gift Cards
  • How To Get Free Stock
  • 40 Easy Ways To Get Free Money Fast
  • 21 Places To Read Free Books Online
  • 24 Legit Online Jobs
  • 17 Best Work From Home Jobs: A List Of Legit Online Jobs That Pay Well

Recent Posts

  • A Eulogy And A Remembrance Of My Dad, Mark Lloyd Anderson
  • Why Do We Celebrate Our Independence On The Fourth Of July?
  • Enjoy Your Memorial Day But Let’s Remember Those Who Gave The Ultimate Sacrifice
  • 25 Bible Verses For A Happy New Year!
  • Merry Christmas To One And All: The Original Christmas Story
  • 401k Contribution Limits And Rules
  • Traditional And Roth IRA Contribution Limits Announced
  • M1 Finance Review: Free Trading App And Automated Investing
  • Tablo 4th Gen Over-The-Air DVR Review: The Best Device For Cord Cutters
  • Living Stingy: 13 Tips For Spending Less

Disclaimer

The information contained in BibleMoneyMatters.com is for general information or entertainment purposes only and does not constitute professional financial advice. Please contact an independent financial professional for advice regarding your specific situation.

In accordance with FTC guidelines, we state that we have a financial relationship with some of the companies mentioned in this website. This may include receiving access to free products and services for product and service reviews and giveaways.

Any references to third party products, rates, or websites are subject to change without notice. We do our best to maintain current information, but due to the rapidly changing environment, some information may have changed since it was published. Please do the appropriate research before participating in any third party offers.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

We respect your privacy: Privacy Policy.

Thanks for visiting!

Bible Money Matters - Seen On These Sites and more..
Bible Money Matters is a personal finance, entrepreneurship and investing community. Give more, save more and live more.

Copyright © 2025 · Bible Money Matters | Sitemap | Advertise | Privacy Policy