You’re laser-focused on meeting customer demand and building your business, and then—Wham!—you meet the person of you dreams, and now you’re building a new family at the same time. Unfortunately, all the efficiencies you thought you’d get by being married (fewer dates, being able to go to bed sooner) are overshadowed by all of the new responsibilities. Not the least of which are the ghastly number of things you have to do right after you’re married. We’ve prepared a small list for you so that these critical items don’t fall through the cracks of your balancing act:
- Update withholding amounts – whichever of you receives a paycheck, you don’t want to forget to update your withholding amounts right away, as that is real cash that you could probably put to better use now than when you get your return in 6-12 months.
- Pull both of your credit reports from all three sources—knowing where you both stand from a credit-worthiness perspective can help you in strategically planning your finances for the next few years, especially in accomplishing some of your financial goals. Those sources are:
- Experian
- Transunion
- Equifax
- Be sure to collect all tax documents for both partners – this seems like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised at how many people forget about “that one job” that they had for 3 months. Don’t let your spouse forget to get in touch with that employer as well so that you avoid a missed W-2 and the triggering of an audit. You really don’t need that time waster.
- Change Names. This is the granddaddy behemoth of them all. This will unfortunately take the most time, but it’s very important to get these changes made very soon after your marriage (it’s just easier to do all at once):
- Driver’s License
- Passport
- Social Security Card
- Your Insurance Beneficiaries
- Your Health Insurance Plans
- Your Auto Insurance Plans
- Creditors
- Titles of Cars, Property, and other Assets
- Student Loans
- Bank Accounts
- A final helpful item is to remember to notify the postal service of your address change. A 5-minute time investment will result in potentially avoiding late payments that could damage your credit.
I hope these tips help save you some time and headache and allow you to continue to build your business.
