How do Canadians feel about mixing love and money?
On February 9, 2022, TD released its second annual Love & Money survey, polling more than 1,700 Canadians who are married, in a relationship, or divorced.
We sat down with Michelle Lo, a Senior Financial Advisor at TD, to talk about her thoughts on the TD Love & Money survey as well as some advice on communication, how to start taking control of your finances, and how to navigate financial hurdles after a divorce or relationship breakdown.
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Michelle Lo, Senior Financial Advisor, Markham, ON
A financial advisor's perspective
Create a new budget
If you're newly single due to a divorce or relationship breakdown and no longer sharing expenses, you will likely need to adjust your budget to account for living on a single income. Creating a new budget that accounts for all your expenses on a single income is an important first step.
Make your bill payments on time to help establish and maintain a good credit score
Forgetting to pay your bills on time can lower your credit score, which can impact your ability to apply for loans and other credit facilities. You may need to keep up with payments that were previously paid by your partner, or paid jointly, and are now your responsibility.
Reach out for financial advice
Speaking with a financial advisor can help you address concerns about things like how to manage your finances, how to create a budget, how to handle and pay off your debt load, and address questions about investing and planning for retirement.
Michelle Lo has helped many of her clients manage their finances over the years. Here are her three tips on how to help get back in shape financially
in the event of a divorce or
relationship breakdown.
Love &
money lessons
Click through to learn about Michelle Lo's reaction on the survey results.
More from the Love & Money survey
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It turns out Canadians are feeling luckier in money than love.
Divorced respondents were less likely to have regularly discussed money during their marriage. Only 29% of divorced respondents said they talked about money weekly with their former partner, compared to 50% of married couples polled who said they talk about their finances weekly.
The survey results also revealed the downside of not talking about finances with your spouse.
In fact, 60% of all respondents surveyed claim it's harder to find true love than financial success (up from 51% in the 2020 TD Love & Money survey).
In fact, 74% of divorced Canadians polled feel their financial status is the same or better than when they were married, and more than half (54%) of respondents say it's easier to manage their finances post-divorce.
It's not all bad – sometimes divorce can have a positive impact on how you feel about your finances.
Q: How do the findings from the 2021 TD Love & Money survey align with what you see with your clients?
A: I would say the survey results align with what I see day-to-day on the job. Especially the lack of communication that can happen within relationships. It's very important that people discuss their finances, and if they can, obtain advice for their financial journey from a financial professional.
A: I see a lot of situations among my clients where only one person in the relationship is in charge of the finances. This can be problematic because if the financially literate partner leaves or the relationship breaks down, the other is left in a tough spot. It's important both partners remain financially literate and aware during the relationship so that neither is at a disadvantage financially if the relationship should end.
Q: What is the most common financial mistake you see after a divorce or relationship breakdown?
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60%
51%
28% learned how to better track their spending
Half of the survey's respondents learned a new financial skill after their divorce:
24% learned how to
make bill payments
23% learned how to
save for retirement
more effectively
Securing your financial future is important, regardless of your relationship status. So, consider reaching out to a financial advisor to help you manage your finances.
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About TD Love and Money Survey
Research company MARU/Matchbox conducted the survey among a nationally representative sample of Canadian consumers focused on couples and money. The online fieldwork occurred between November 10, 2021 and November 18, 2021. A total of 1751 completes were gathered in Canada and have been weighted by age, gender and region to reflect the population. Margin of Error cannot be calculated as the audience comes from a non-probability sample, however the Margin of Error on a probability sample of this size would be +/- 2.3%.
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