Finances

[BuckinhamL]

Been working a lot with household budgets lately. I work FT and OH works PT. Currently we have our own accounts but pay into a joint account out of which household bills are paid. I pay the mortgage, groceries/shopping, Council Tax, fuel, entertainment (TV licence, Netflix), phone/broadband, loan and credit card payments, insurances and the bulk of utilities. OH pays the car finance and a contribution to the utilities.

I have been looking at our income and it occurs to me that OH has more than twice as much 'spare' cash left once bills come off than I do. I've been into my overdraft the last two months.

WIBU to ask for a bigger contribution from OH to the bills to balance things out better?

YANBU....but surely you know that.

Who's house is it? If it's just yours, and he has no financial interest in it then it's maybe not too bad what he's paying. If the mortgage and house are joint, then you should both have the same spending money after bills.

If I were you I'd put everything in and then take a set and equal amount out for each of you for personal spending. Much fairer.
Why should you work more, pay for more and end up with less?

No you wouldn't, you should both be paying an amount that's proportional to the amount of money you are paid, leaving roughly equal 'spare' money. DP and I have the same set up of separate accounts and a joint one for life costs, we've earned hugely varying amounts throughout our relationship, and regularly readjust the percentage we pay to joint costs as our individual incomes have fluctuated.

*so that it stays fair

Can you organise things 'pro rata'? eg if you earn twice as much as your OH, then you could add up all the expenses - and you pay 2/3 and your OH pays 1/3. That would seem reasonable to me.
Just checking - are you the OH of the poster who complained that their partner made her give her savings to charity, and only bought 2nd hand stuff?

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Me and my DP pool our cash in and pay all the bills then whatever is leftover gets split.
It works well for us, last year I was the higher earner whereas now I'm on mat leave he is the higher earner. I return to work in Dec and will go back to my salary so it balances out in the end. We support each other.

It's not fair that your left with less at the end of the month because your paying all the bills when he lives under the same roof, eats the same food, watches the same Netflix, uses the same heating/electric. Why should you be left in your overdraft and he have double the amount disposable income?

YANBU.

The mortgage is in both our names.

Just checking - are you the OH of the poster who complained that their partner made her give her savings to charity, and only bought 2nd hand stuff?

Not me! We haven't got the hair shirts out just yet! ;)

Put everything in the joint when your each paid and take out a set amount for "pocket money" that's what me and my OH do.

YANBU at all - have you mentioned this to him?