Getting a joint account with your spouse has many benefits. For example, financial goals can be achieved more quickly. You can split bills payment. But before opening a joint account, it would be best to discuss these 4 things with your spouse.
4 Things to Discuss Before Opening a Joint Account with Your Spouse
1. How much each should contribute
Contribution is an important thing to discuss. Will you and your partner deposit the same amount into this joint account? Or are there a primary saver and a secondary saver? Agree on how much each should contribute before opening a joint account.
2. Budgeting for needs
Good financial management requires proper budgeting. Just like the total contribution for the joint account, you and your spouse must also reach an agreement regarding budgeting for needs.
For example, will you pay all the monthly bills, while your partner will pay for daily food and transportation needs? Or, will the portion of payments follow your total income each month? For example, if your salary is higher than your spouse's, will you pay a larger amount of the apartment rent?
3. How to spend the money
Next, you and your spouse also need to discuss and know each other's spending habits. Agree from the beginning how this joint account will be used.
This is done to avoid debate if later your spouse finds out that you have been spending the money on something they don’t approve of.
4. Mutual trust
Opening a joint account requires not only commitment but also mutual trust. Discuss first, would both of you feel happy to know each other's spending habits? Does your spouse have to get your approval first before using the money in the joint account, and vice versa?
Jago’s Shared Pocket as Your Joint Account with Spouse
After discussing the four things above with your spouse, you can create a joint account in the Jago application to make it practical.
As soon as you complete the Jago account registration (your spouse must also have a Jago account), you can immediately create a Pocket that serves as a joint account. When you invite your spouse to join, the Pocket will automatically become a Shared Pocket.
Benefits of Using the Shared Pocket as Joint Savings with Your Spouse
There are many benefits of creating a Shared Pocket with your spouse. You can have more than 1 Shared Pocket. In other words, you can create a lot of savings with your spouse for different purposes. For example, you can open savings for household needs, savings for holidays and education savings for your child. Create a separate Shared Pocket for each goal.
Another benefit is that by creating a Joint Pocket, you and your spouse can access these savings from your respective cellphones. The Shared Pocket(s) will appear in the owner's and member's Jago application.
Apart from that, you can add money to the Shared Pocket easily and practically without needing to remember the Pocket number (account number). Simply move money from another Pocket that you choose as a source of funds.
How to Create a Shared Pocket in the Jago App as a Joint Account
To be able to save or manage expenses together with your partner, follow these simple steps.
- On your Pockets tab, choose the Pocket you wish to change into a Shared Pocket.
- Find and tap the Invite button on the top of the screen.
- Choose your partner’s name from your Jago Contact or your Phonebook.
- Select a role for your partner.
- Once accepted, your Pocket will automatically change into a Shared Pocket.
You can set your role and the role of your spouse, as a viewer or a spender. If you want to stay on track with your plans and control your expenses, you can also set a spending limit for the Shared Pocket. Then as members of the Shared Pocket, both you and your spouse can view transaction history to maintain transparency.
