"Money money money MONEY...MO-NEY!" -Trump's Apprentice theme song

Lack OF certainly creates a lot of stress, which inevitably spills over into the relationship!

Money creates comfort. In a relationship, just like every other compatibility, both partners need to agree on how money is used. If one saves religiously and the other spends like a bleeding corotted, you're going to have clashes there.

My feeling is, in order to have a healthy relationship involves healthy attitudes about money; i.e. save a little, but enjoy some of it today too. Pay all bills on time. Have similar financial attitudes and goals toward the future. Have champagne tastes on a beer budget (unless, of course, you can always afford champagne tastes).

Koolman is absolutely right. The key is "similar financial attitudes". Disagreements on the subject of money can carry serious consequences on a relationship.
two people can be happy in a cardboard box and miserable with all the money in the world in their pocket.

That's right. The so-called "successful" people I've met are the most miserable f-cks on the planet, because, no matter how much they make, and have, it''s never enough. And then they find a way to lose it so they can bitch about losing it, to get people to feel sorry for them. They're stress junkies rather than success junkies.

Me, I like life to run smoothly, I like to know things are taken care of, and, yes, I like seeing money pile up in the bank!

I'd just as soon forget about money, but we can never REALLY forget about money, because God knows everyone ELSE is obsessed with our money, and out to take it all away, and it might just be the person we love and trust the most. So I try to stay tight-lipped about how much I've got, when I actually have some.

i used to work intake in a counseling center. i want to say about 50% marital counseling was due to financial distress or infidelity.

Interesting stats, msindle. Sounds about right.

And how much of one led to the other, hmm?

I am gonna go with everything koolman said, because he's right. :)

Money comes and money goes. The person will not change dramatically.

Never judge a person by the size of their wallet, because the size of their wallet could shrink as quickly and as severly as George Costanza in the Hamptons, or it could expand 'overnight' when a long term goal comes to fruition.

That being said, don't support another adult. Every adult in American should be able to support themselves. A relationship should not be akin to an adoption.

~Peace

YES it is important I wanted to think it was not but after 2 yrs I found it it is YES. When a man is poor it does create problems and when a woman is poor its more accepted for the man to take care of her. I got tired of my normal being a luxury for him and always being judged as a spender and spoiled when I am NOT!

What is your security level - how much money does that require?

I have had close to nothing and was happy at times/not so much others and I've had an excess and was happy at times/not so much others. For me it isn't about the money but not everybody feels the same.

I think that being compatible like others have suggested is nice but doesn't that only matter if people's money is put together? I know couples that keep separate finances, even in marriage, to avoid the financial conflict.

So the answer to your question lies with what you need.

So what DO we need?

I don't need to own the world and feel that power like so many billionaires crying about the estate tax. No, I'm happy to stay 3 months ahead of the bills and be saving something for the future. That hasn't happened the last couple of years lol. But we can look at this recession as a challenge, to think outside, and deeper inside, the box, to think of new ways to work more quickly and efficiently.

I'm already in a business that has great potential, and I worked very fast last month, and now have money ahead to show for it. It's simply a matter of maximizing time efficiency.

Actually, from what I've heard, billionaires, like Warren Buffet and Bill Gates, are actually very generous with their money. They're at that point where they couldn't spend all of it in ten lifetimes, so they give millions to start foundations, etc.

No it's probably people who are "merely" millionaires who are sweating the "little" stuff, like taxes lol.

Money provides comfort, but also introduces more worries, about someone taking it all away. It's a mixed bag. But I much prefer to have money worries than lack of money worries. And I can spread my money around to a lot of different places so it's never all taken away.