73 percent of men in the Netherlands say they are satisfied with how their partner handles money. Of the women, 67 percent is satisfied with this and 9 percent thinks that their partner handles money poorly. 40% of couples do not always agree on money matters. Women are more conscious about money than men. They more often check whether depreciation is correct (82 versus 74 percent of men), compare prices more often (61 versus 53 percent) and check whether they can afford it before making a purchase (86 versus 77 percent). Women are also more likely to make a shopping list:76 percent versus 64 percent of men. In 31 percent of couples, the partners think differently about the way in which you can handle money. This is apparent from the fact sheet Money and Relationship 2018, in which Nibud has listed how men and women deal with household finances.
In 40 percent of couples, the partners do not always agree on money matters. They usually disagree on the following four topics:
Behaviour:one person thinks that the other spends too much or too little money
Priorities:what do we spend money on, what is important?
Power:who is responsible for the finances, who decides what?
Distribution:who contributes what amount and who pays what?
In almost 70 percent of households, one of the two partners is responsible for the financial administration. This involves storing important documents in an orderly manner and paying all bills on time. In couples older than 50, the man does this more often than the woman. For all couples, e-mail messages about fixed costs – from, for example, the energy company, internet provider or insurance company – are sent to the man's e-mail address twice as often. Two in ten couples have a joint email address where all mail comes in. 45 percent of couples receive e-mail messages from parties with which contracts have been concluded at different e-mail addresses.
