(NC)-If you are planning to change your last name after you get married, don’t forget to make all the necessary name changes on your important documents. Advise your financial institutions (such as banks and insurance companies) that your marital status has changed so that they can update your records. It’s important to review all your different types of insurance policies, including life, accident, health benefits, automobile and home to make sure they reflect your changed status. For example you may wish to update your beneficiary designations on your registered products (RRSPs) and insurance policies and include your spouse as a dependent in various health benefit insurance plans. Further, for added protection, you might want to consider having Wills prepared for you and your spouse as you build your wealth and life together.

Changing your bank accounts

Now that you’re a couple, you may decide to continue to have separate accounts, consolidate into a joint account, or a combination of both. Some husbands and wives, particularly those who both work outside the home, like to keep separate personal accounts for spending and hold a joint chequing account for household bills and a joint savings account for emergencies. It’s one way for each of you to retain some spending freedom and still cover your shared monthly expenses, but it isn’t thrifty if your bank charges you a hefty fee to maintain each account.

If you do decide to open a joint account for day-to-day banking, CIBC offers the Unlimited Chequing Account. It lets you bank as much as you want, without limits, for one flat monthly fee and no monthly balance requirement (additional fees will apply on any withdrawals at non-CIBC bank machines). For more information, talk to your CIBC advisor, visit your nearest CIBC branch, call 1 800 465-CIBC (2422), or visit www.cibc.com.

Be credit card smart Review your credit card accounts and make the necessary name change, if appropriate.

Instead of having a large number of credit cards, why not retain just one or two and add your spouse as an authorized user. It will be easier to keep track and you’ll also cut down on the time it takes to manage multiple bills and statements.

To help you stick to your budget, look into CIBC’s new CIBC CreditSmart features. CIBC Visa is the only credit card in Canada to offer this revolutionary array of features, to help you track and manage your card spending. CIBC CreditSmart gives you the information and tools to make confident credit decisions that are right for your married life.

With CIBC CreditSmart you’ll get an enhanced monthly statement where you can track and manage your monthly and year-to-date spending in 10 common spend categories. You can set up personal budgets for each of these categories online and spend alerts to notify you when you’ve exceeded your budgets, or if you’re coming close to your credit limit. You can also create your own spend categories, to track areas that are of particular importance to you, or ones that you want to keep an eye on. And that’s not all: you get increased security protection at all times with Credit Report Alerts, Fraud Alerts, and Identity Theft Assistance.

How you use all the CIBC CreditSmart features is totally up to you, and best of all they’re available on CIBC credit cards at no additional charge. For an in-depth look at CIBC CreditSmart and our CIBC Visa Card options visit: www.cibc.com/visa or cibccreditsmart.com or call 1 866 438-2422.

Credit: www.newscanada.com

Trackback URI | Comments RSS