74% of divorced Canadians surveyed consider
their financial status the same or better than when they were
married
TORONTO, Feb. 9, 2022 /CNW/ - TD has released its
second annual Love and Money survey exploring the financial
behaviours of more than 1,700 married, in a relationship and
divorced Canadians. Surprisingly, 2021 survey uncovered that
divorced couples are feeling optimistic about their finances. In
fact, 74% of divorced Canadians polled consider their financial
status the same or better than when they were married.
"Going through a divorce or relationship change can be
emotionally and financially overwhelming—often requiring a
readjustment of financial goals," says Melissa Leong, Personal Finance Author, Speaker
and Television Personality. "But a divorce or relationship change
can also provide an opportunity for the affected individuals to
take stock of their financial futures, including a chance to
level-up their money management knowledge, and maybe even seek out
advice from a financial professional."
Digging Deeper on Divorce and Finances
TD Love and Money survey results further indicate:
- Post-divorce, 52% said they learned a new financial skill like
tracking their spending (28%), making bill payments (24%) and
saving for retirement (23%).
- More than half of those surveyed (57%) say they are spending
less after divorce and nearly half (45%) consider themselves
financially better off.
- More than half (54%) of respondents say it is easier to manage
their finances post-divorce.
The survey results also reveal the downside of not talking about
finances in relationships. Divorced couples polled were less likely
to have regularly discussed money during their marriage, with only
29% of divorced respondents saying they talked about money weekly
with their former partner, as compared to 50% of married couples
polled who say they have the talk weekly.
The Millennial Approach to Love and Money
Millennials approach love and money in their own unique way and
are most likely to manage their banking separately. According to
those polled, millennials are more likely than other demographics
to keep their money separate from their partners, with 49% of
respondents saying they have no common accounts or shared credit
cards (63%).
According to Love and Money, millennials are also less
tolerant of 'red flag' financial behaviours and say they would
leave their partner if:
- They never offered to pay for anything (86%)
- They were secretive about their finances (81%)
- They didn't seek professional financial advice (77%)
"Many millennials are at a point in their lives where they are
hitting those big milestones - getting married, having kids and
buying a house - big financial decisions," says Leong. "It's
important for couples to talk openly about money and possibly seek
financial advice from a professional to help make sure each partner
is on the same page about their financial goals."
Forever over Fun
The survey also shines a light on those in relationships, with
results indicating that committed couples have their own financial
challenges. Interestingly:
- More than a quarter (28%) are keeping a financial secret from
their partner, up from 8% from the 2020 report. Of those keeping a
secret, 64% don't plan to ever tell their partner.
- The survey shows that a secret purchase is the most kept (42%),
followed by a secret bank account (29%)
Additionally, the survey shows that couples polled are choosing
"forever" over "fun" when it comes to spending money. One in three
couples surveyed believe buying a home is a higher priority than
hosting a wedding. "Forever purchases" also seem to be more
important, with surveyed couples saying they've spent more on
engagement rings in 2021 – $2,309
compared to $1,800 in 2020.
Seeking Financial Advice
Consistent with the 2020 Love and Money survey is a
greater need for financial advice, with surveyed couples saying
that they are most in need of help when it comes to how to invest
(20%), pay off debt (12%) and plan for retirement (12%). In
contrast, millennial respondents are looking for advice on buying a
home (19% vs. 9% of others surveyed).
"As Canadians continue navigating the impact of the last two
years, having open and frequent discussions about money and
aligning on shared financial goals remains key," says Scott Belton, SVP, Strategy & Acquisition,
TD. "At TD, our goal is to help all our customers achieve their
financial goals – be they short or long-term, by providing
personalized advice and resources that are tailored to their
individual financial situation."
TD offers several online tools available to assist its
customers, including:
- TD Ready Advice hub has information and articles available
on a variety of financial topics, from how to keep track of
day-to-day expenses to how to navigate the first-time homebuying
process.
- TD MySpend is a mobile app that can help track
purchases and transactions made from personal TD Canadian
dollar savings, chequing and credit card accounts and automatically
group them into categories, to help provide an understanding of how
money is spent.
- 6,600+ TD advisors are available across the country to
help provide personalized financial advice and help customers with
their financial goals.
- TD Stories provides a range of informative articles about
personal finances, budgeting and fraud prevention.
About TD Love and Money Survey
Research company MARU/Matchbox conducted the survey among a
nationally representative sample of Canadian consumers focused on
couples and money. The online fieldwork occurred between
November 10, 2021 and November 18, 2021. A total of 1751 completes were
gathered in Canada and have been
weighted by age, gender and region to reflect the population.
Margin of Error cannot be calculated as the audience comes from a
non-probability sample, however the Margin of Error on a
probability sample of this size would be +/- 2.3%.
About Maru Group
Maru Group is a world-leading customer experience and insights
software and advisory services company. The company, which helps
clients make informed decisions in near real-time by combining
proprietary software, deep industry experience, and access to the
best minds in research is found at Maru Group. Maru Public Opinion
polling services and its gateway to these findings, and other
survey releases, with the accompanying data tables can be found at
Maru Group Polling.
About TD Bank Group
The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively
known as TD Bank Group ("TD" or the "Bank"). TD is the fifth
largest bank in North America by assets and serves more
than 26 million customers in three key businesses operating in a
number of locations in financial centres around the globe: Canadian
Retail, including TD Canada Trust, TD Auto Finance Canada, TD
Wealth (Canada), TD Direct
Investing, and TD Insurance; U.S. Retail, including TD Bank,
America's Most Convenient Bank®, TD Auto Finance U.S., TD Wealth
(U.S.), and an investment in The Charles Schwab Corporation; and
Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the
world's leading online financial services firms, with more than 15
million active online and mobile customers. TD had CDN$1.7
trillion in assets on October 31, 2021. The
Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on
the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.
SOURCE TD Bank Group