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The following story is about a married couple who clashed when one spouse didn’t believe it was fair to share her extra income. Let’s dive in and see if love and understanding can bridge this couple’s divide.
Balancing Roles
The original poster (OP), who we’ll refer to as Ruby, is married to her husband, who works full-time.
They’re scraping by financially, but Ruby is still able to be a stay-at-home mom.
A Dual Income With Strings Attached
However, twice a week during the school year, she works at a daycare. All of Ruby and her husband’s money goes into a joint account, and they each receive an allowance after each paycheck.
From Hobby to Income
With some free time on her hands, Ruby does commissioned artwork a few times per year. However, Ruby doesn’t consider this “income” because it isn’t consistent.
This belief about her commissioned art not being classified as “income” would eventually spark a debate.
The Occasional Commissioned Artwork Dilemma
One day, Ruby’s husband requested that she split her art commission since “he doesn’t have a hobby that gives him extra income.”
Ruby didn’t think this was fair because she used the extra income for art supplies to continue her hobby.
Joint Finances, Separate Hobbies
Ruby’s husband proposed that they split the commissions 50/50 or that 80% would go to Ruby’s art fund to continue her hobby, and they could split the remaining money 50/50.
Ruby wasn’t happy with this suggestion either, as she only receives $25–$50 per commission.
Navigating the Division of Extra Income
On the contrary, Ruby’s husband believed it wasn’t fair that she had extra money to spend while he was stuck with the same amount each paycheck.
While it seemed selfish that Ruby’s husband wanted a portion of her commission, his full-time work gave Ruby extra free time.
Perspectives Clash on Sharing the Additional Income
Ruby clarified that this wasn’t a heated discussion. However, she did notice her husband brought up this topic a few times, so they decided to have a talk.
What People Really Think About Principles
“…The amount is irrelevant, the principle is that you both support each other financially. He contributes 100% of what he earns, you want to contribute only what you consider income, and art commissions aren’t income. But they are income even if they are not consistent (btw many jobs are commission only and inconsistent like that).
“Anything you earn is income, by excluding your art you are essentially stealing from your joint account.”
A Closer Look at Joint Accounts
“He puts everything he earns into the joint fund even though he earns much more than you do. You both get exactly the same amount of spending money out of the joint fund. He doesn’t penalize you for making less than he does.”
More Truth About Relationship Principles
“She’s making $20–50 maybe four times a year. If she’s selling her commissions for that low then she’s barely covering the cost of supplies, and she certainly isn’t paying herself any kind of hourly rate.
“IDK. Maybe given their established financial split it’s ‘fair’ to divvy up whatever’s left after art supplies, but it hardly seems like a healthy attitude in a partnership to quibble over this amount of money, especially when OP essentially isn’t even paying herself for her time.”
Resolving Financial Tensions in a Marriage of Diverse Hobbies
Though the extra money Ruby earned from her art commissions wasn’t much, people online argued it was the relationship principles that were at stake.
Ruby’s husband earned more than she did and contributed 100% of his income to their joint account. However, Ruby didn’t feel it was fair to share her commission. The good news is that money didn’t break this couple apart, right?
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