When It Comes to Financial Opposites, the Answer Is No

When asked which personal traits have helped sustain their relationships, the American public is twice as likely to choose financial responsibility (22%) over sexual compatibility (10%).

Opposites may attract, but I wouldn't put my money on a relationship of financial opposites. Instead of asking your potential mate what their astrological sign is, find out their ?financial? sign... in other words, their?Credit ?score. A big part of staying together is having an appreciation for making the right financial moves together. 
Suze Orman, author and host of The Suze Orman Show on CNBC-TV

Financial Woes = Relationship Stress

myFICO's survey also found that few things can put more stress on a relationship than financial woes. A third of respondents said that a lack of financial responsibility hurt their relationships more than not being faithful (22%), a lack of affection (21%), or a lack of a sense of humor (16%) (view chart). Problems paying bills late was cited as often as problems with in-laws or relatives as the most stressful situations that put pressure on a relationship with a significant other.

Watch Your Financial Habits, Know your Scores

How you handle your money clearly sends strong signals to others, especially significant others. For peace of mind, millions of consumers check their own FICO credit scores to learn what signals their money handling habits have been sending to banks and other creditors. Knowing and improving your FICO scores might just help your most important personal relationships, too.

Honesty? Yes. Openness? Maybe.

Although half of the respondents (52%) consider honesty one of the most important qualities for sustaining a relationship, the survey also found that Americans guard their personal financial information closely. While two-thirds of respondents (62%) had been told or seen a report about their credit score, a third of this group (33%) admitted they would be reluctant to share their credit score with a significant other (view chart).

According to survey results, more married people (63%) would tell their score to their significant other than would single people who have never been married (52%) (view chart)

Before Romantic Commitment

Before becoming romantically committed, friends recommend learning about humor, jobs, and credit.

Clearly, romantic commitment needs to be about more than the kissing. Humor, jobs, and credit history rank ahead of learning about relatives, interest in children, education, kissing, and a clean driving record as things people counsel others to learn about before becoming romantically committed. On another question, people said they would counsel a friend to learn about potential obstacles to romantic commitment such as marital status, jail time, romantic commitments, gambling, and credit problems. (view chart)

Wonderfully Romantic ? or Financially Foolish?

While a surprise international trip is seen as wonderfully romantic, shopping sprees and extravagant gifts are not. (view chart)
Almost everyone (93%) indicated ?Took you on a shopping spree that maxed out a credit card? would be considered ?financially foolish.? In addition, eight out of ten (82%) specified ?Opened a new credit card account to buy something you wanted? as ?financially foolish.? Conversely, almost everyone (94%) believed ?Took you out to a nice dinner? was ?wonderfully romantic.? And four dozen roses (just because) fits into the wonderfully romantic mindset of most Americans (69%), including most men (66%). More than half think it would be wonderfully romantic if their significant other booked tickets for a surprise international trip (57%).

Personal Shortcomings

A lack of honesty and a lack of financial responsibility bring pressure and stress to a relationship. (view chart)
Thinking about their relationships, adults selected up to two important personal shortcomings which put the pressure and stress on their relationships with their significant other. ?A lack of honesty? (36%) and ?a lack of financial responsibility? (33%) led the list.

Stressful Situations

Paying bills and in-laws are reported as leading pressure points in personal relationships.

Problems with paying bills (30%) and problems with in-laws or relatives (30%) tied as leading stressors in relationships with significant others, selected more often than a lack of affection or intimacy (21%) and politics or religion (10%). One-fourth of adults surveyed selected work-related situations (24%).

The survey of Americans' attitudes toward relationships and credit was conducted by Opinion Research Corporation during the period from January 13 through January 15. The 1,022 people surveyed by telephone are representative of the adult American population. The sampling error is plus or minus three percentage points.