Money in Remarriage: Keeping Things Simple — And Separate

Abstract

This paper investigates money matters in remarried couples. The number of such couples is on the increase, and their financial affairs are likely to be more complex and conflictual than for first-married couples, but there has been little research attention paid to this group in Britain. The present study explores patterns of control and management of money by means of data from semi-structured interviews with 20 couples in which one partner or both had been married before. The men and women were interviewed separately, but in the majority of cases, simultaneously, in separate rooms. This yielded data from 38 interviews since two men declined to take part in the study. Ages of respondents ranged from 28 to 83, with the majority in the 30–55 range. At the time of the study, only half still had dependent children, and not all of the latter were co-resident. A key finding of the study is a degree of separateness in financial arrangements that is in sharp contrast to earlier findings. As many as half of the couples were using an Independent Management system, compared with less than 2 per cent of couples in general. For those with children from previous relationships, this separateness was especially marked in the way they wished their assets to be treated after their death. However, in line with earlier studies, the balance of economic power in second and subsequent marriages still appeared to favour the men, who generally had larger incomes and owned more assets in their own names.