Financial infidelity, aka keeping an important money secret from your partner, isn't talked about a lot, but it's surprisingly common. In a recent survey, 40% of respondents admitted to hiding an account from their partners.
So if you've ever had a financial secret come between you and your partner, we want to hear your story.
Maybe you thought everything was fine because whenever you asked your spouse about their cash flow, they said things were good. Until one day, you noticed that they were acting suspicious about bringing in the mail. A few days later, you managed to get to the mailbox first and discovered a big stack of letters from collections agencies for your partner. You felt totally blindsided and betrayed, and it took a long time for your relationship to heal.
Or perhaps you secretly took most of the money out of your joint savings account back in January to buy GameStop stock. You were planning to sell it at its peak and put the profits back into your savings — and to tell your partner then. But you missed the right time and ended up losing a lot of money instead. By the time your partner found out, it ended in a massive fight, and they kicked you out for good.
Or maybe you're hiding something from your partner right now, like the real amount of student loan debt you're carrying. They come from a more privileged background and don't have any debt at all, so you feel too scared to admit that you owe more than $50,000 for your education. But at the same time, you're terrified that they'll find out somehow before you can tell them.
Share how financial secrets affected your relationship in the comments or via this anonymous Google form, and you could be featured in a BuzzFeed Community post.
And for more stories about life and money, check out the rest of our personal finance posts.