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We two, our accounts too
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For decades, couples have held joint bank accounts. How does this generation look at the practice? SUBHA J RAOchecks out the scene
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A MATTER OF CHOICE Some couples find joint accounts convenient
As a child, Maithreyi would watch fascinated as all the elders in her joint family — grandfather, father, mother, uncles and aunts — dropped their earnings into a kannadi petti kept in a common room.
Anyone could walk in, dip their hands into the box and take what they wanted, no questions asked. “There was never any concept of ‘your money’ and ‘my money’ recalls the young mother.”
Why a kannadi petti? Until a decade ago, most couples would opt for at least one joint account. Try telling that to this generation, and you will be met with sullen silence.
Loss of privacy?
“A joint account? But, why? I don’t want to lose my privacy when it comes to my money,” insists Nihara, a writer. A view that many young boys and girls share.
“Why should you allow someone, even if it is your partner, into something as private as financial matters?” questions G. Nandakumar, 27. “It’s best to have an individual account. You operate it at your own pace; and you are not accountable to anyone,” he states.
But, those who have experienced the benefits of a bank account feel otherwise.
“I don’t think one should look at it as invasion of privacy. It is just more convenient,” says Anita, an agricultural scientist whose husband works in the defence forces. “I was not working earlier, and when I needed money for an emergency when he was not in town, it was the joint account that helped,” she narrates.
Take the case of Subhash and Pramila. When Subhash was down with a disc prolapse and advised complete bed rest, it was homemaker Pramila who had to go about withdrawing money from the couple’s joint bank and post office accounts.
“It is also more sensible to go in for a joint account in case of a husband and wife, because the job of running a family becomes easier when the wife has access to money,” says Subhash.
A question of trust
At another level, a joint account makes a partner feel trusted and accepted.
Says Seetha (name changed), a software engineer who recently got married to a teacher: “Our salary structures are very different. I earn much more than him, but once you have decided to live under one roof, why keep the finances separate? I think we should all make the transition from ‘your money’ and ‘my money’ to ‘our money’ after marriage.”
Forget the emotional point of view. Even from a practical angle, a joint account makes life simpler. “This account is always better because it makes claim settlements easier,” says R. Ravishankar, chief manager of a scheduled bank. But, slowly the number of people opting for it is coming down, he says.
There have been instances of spouses cleaning out a joint account before filing for divorce, or rendering the primary account holder penniless.
But, one should remember a joint account is operated on trust, and is something that two people have agreed to for mutual benefit, says N. Seshagiri, a retired banker.That trust is important, says Vaidehi, 57, who holds many joint accounts with her husband.
“And, it works great both ways, because you have money in your name, but you don’t have to do the rounds of banks and manage the finances. That clinches it for me, because I hate dealing with banks,” she says.
From ‘I’ to ‘us’
Having grown up in a family that never looked at money with a selfish eye, Maithreyi is stumped at stumped at the current generation’s stand. “This whole individual account thing, and ‘I pay half’, ‘you pay half’ system, drives me mad. Remember, you got married to be one?”
Has she ever missed not having an account of her own, to spend as she wishes? “Never.”
Another advantage, chips in Vaidehi, is that it helps you maintain a check on your spending, and helps increase the bonding between a couple.
“You will learn to take joint decisions on matters concerning the house. And, when two people talk it out, you will learn to see a possible purchase in the right perspective. That helps.”
GO JOINT
* * *
It is useful during emergencies
It helps claim settlements
It aids finance management
It checks spending
It builds trust
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