Hiding money is way more prevalent than you think.
By Tom Miller — Written on Jan 18, 2011
It's common knowledge that money is one of the top things couples fight about. Now, interestingly, Reuters has detailed info on just how prevalent financial infidelity really is.
Per a study conducted by Harris Interactive, 31 percent of couples (over 2,000 were polled) have committed financial perfidy. The findings were very interesting, and two items in particular stuck out:
1) 58 percent of people admit to hiding cash, and
2) 15 percent of respondents have hidden a banking account.
The first part isn't really surprising. Many people squirrel their cash away. But keeping an account from your spouse is pretty darn deceitful.
There are only three reasons to hide a money market from your husband or wife: you don't trust your spouse; you don't think the relationship is going to last; or you're using it to fight an underground war on crime and want to insulate your spouse as much as you can from any reprisals. The Secret Tax-Related Infidelity
Interestingly, the data shows that men and women are equally perfidious when it comes to financial issues. (And if TV is any indication, women aer spending most of their secret monies on shoes, while men are spending it on hourly hotel rooms and carburetors.)
It seems as if money-hiding is something that perpetuates itself pretty viciously until you have that awful conversation where you admit to everything. I'm all for maintaining a little mystery, but keeping a secret Swiss bank account (unless for the express purpose of fighting international crime) is probably gonna bite you on the part that makes sitting down comfortable.
Have you hid any money? Has your spouse hidden financial information from you? What would you do if you found out that that your spouse was keeping a secret account?
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