One-third of couples don’t talk about finances until after marriage, according to a recent survey of 1,000 adults by Western & Southern Financial Group.
This is especially alarming because, as it turns out, people do have financial deal breakers when it comes to seeing someone as a potential partner.
When asked what amount of debt or how low a salary would make a potential partner undateable, survey respondents had some surprising answers. Here are two financial deal breakers, according to the study.
Salary deal breaker: Less than $29,878
This is well below the median annual salary in the United States, which is $37,522, according to 2021 data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Salary was the number one financial trait that respondents wish they had talked about sooner with their partners.
More than one-fourth, 27.2%, of those surveyed said they only talked about salaries after getting married. And 18.7% said they talked about salaries after getting engaged.
Student loan debt deal breaker: More than $28,076
This is below the average amount of student loan debt someone with a bachelor’s degree has, which is $37,574, according to data from Education Data Initiative.
Men are a little more forgiving of debt than women, the survey showed. For men, $31,179 was a deal breaking amount of debt. For women it was $22,901.
Personal loans and credit card debt were also a source of friction while dating, according to the survey.
Ask your partner these 5 money questions
