2010年8月23日

你会背着另一半买东西吗? Are You a Secret Spender?

对夫妇都有秘密。不过有些秘密的风险更高,而有些还带着“价签”。

如果你的秘密之一是隐瞒支出情况,你并不是唯一这样做的人。

Walt Disney/Everett Collection
电影《购物狂的异想世界》剧照。
据美国运通(American Express)“支出及省钱调查”最近对2,000多位成年人的调查,有27%的受访者“没有如实说出买一样东西花了多少钱”,有30%的人表示对自己的伴侣隐瞒买了东西。

为了隐瞒支出,对美国运通的调查做出回应的消费者甚至可以做出以下这样的事来:

把买的东西埋在后院里。

假装东西是别人送的。

把买的东西藏在食品杂货袋里再带回家。

安排伴侣不在的时候送货。

三更半夜偷偷溜出来买东西。

弗吉尼亚费尔法克斯的作家、理财顾问艾德曼(Ric Edelman)最近对我说,夫妇在钱的问题上彼此不应该有任何秘密,理财应该是夫妇一起做的。

不过,考虑到很多夫妇不愿谈钱,一起理财可能有困难。实际上,据美国运通的调查,夫妇们会说“我更有可能知道另一半的体重,而不是工资”。

艾德曼说,结了婚的人对另一半的收入和债务毫不知情,这很常见。正因为如此,钱成了导致婚姻破裂的主要原因之一。

据美国运通的调查,有近三分之一的夫妇说,财务状况给他们的婚姻生活带来的压力最大,调查中有91%的美国人会找理由避免与伴侣谈钱。

据美国运通的调查,数据还显示,在交流支出情况时,也就是花多少钱买东西之前需要和另一半商量,不同的夫妇有不同的标准,平均为275美元。在富裕的消费者中,标准上升到395美元,在年轻的专业人士中则为249美元。

值得注意的是,有40%的受访者说,他们“认为在家庭开销之外,伴侣比自己花的钱多”,而有同样比例的受访者“认为在省钱和做预算方面,自己比伴侣更勤勉”。

读者们,你或你的伴侣是个偷偷花钱买东西的人吗?你曾经偷偷买过什么东西?你花多少钱买东西时,才会让伴侣知道?

Ruth Mantell
 
 
Every couple has secrets. But some secrets are riskier than others, and some come with a price tag.

If one of your secrets is hiding spending, you're not alone.

According to a recent American Express Spending & Saving Tracker of more than 2,000 adults, 27% of respondents have 'misrepresented the amount of a purchase' while 30% said they have hidden purchases from their partner. (I reported on the study in my column for MarketWatch.)

To keep spending under wraps, consumers responding to American Express's survey have gone as far as:

-burying their purchase in the backyard

-pretending that goods came from Goodwill

-hiding purchases in grocery bags to bring them home

-arranging for items to arrive while their partner was away

-sneaking out and bought an item in the middle of the night

'You should not have any secrets from each other regarding money,' Ric Edelman, an author and financial adviser based in Fairfax, Va., recently told me. 'You should be working together as a couple in the management of money.'

But working together when it comes to money can be tough given that many couples want to avoid money topics. In fact, couples say 'they are more likely to know their partner's weight than their salary,' according to American Express.

It's 'very common for people who get married to have no clue as to their partner's income and debts,' Mr. Edelman says. 'This is why money is one of the leading causes of divorce.'

Almost one in three couples say finances cause the most stress in their relationship, and 91% of Americans surveyed find reasons to avoid talking about money with their partner, according to American Express.

The data also indicate that different partners have different thresholds when it comes communicating about spending, with $275 being the average at which 'couples need to consult with their partner before making a purchase,' according to American Express. That level rises to $395 among affluent consumers, and is $249 among young professionals.

Of note, 40% of respondents said they 'believe their partner spends more money than they do on things outside of household expenditures,' while that same percentage 'consider themselves more diligent than their partner when it comes to saving money and budgeting.'

Readers: Are you or your partner a secret shopper? What secret purchases have you made? What is your threshold for letting your partner know about purchases?

Ruth Mantell
 

没有评论: