So Who Controls The Purse Strings?

[berniefromny]

In the beginning I would turn over 20,000 baht per month to her and let her pay for the basics. But as the months passed (now 2+ years) I realized some of this money was going for reasons I could not get comfortable with, so now I pay for everything and it works best. I'd rather have it the other way but I didn't like seeing so much money going as handouts to the family or being spent unwisely.

just wondering. how can you live like this? must be a bitch! you pretty much saying THAI WAY sucks , you both must feel a bit put off!

[meom]

My wife and I don't have a "yours" and "mine" in our relationship and I wouldn't want it any other way, she is my wife after all.

Same here.

I'm a giver and she's a taker so we sort of complement each other which makes for a harmonious relation.

[Dakhar]

In the beginning I would turn over 20,000 baht per month to her and let her pay for the basics. But as the months passed (now 2+ years) I realized some of this money was going for reasons I could not get comfortable with, so now I pay for everything and it works best. I'd rather have it the other way but I didn't like seeing so much money going as handouts to the family or being spent unwisely.

just wondering. how can you live like this? must be a bitch! you pretty much saying THAI WAY sucks , you both must feel a bit put off!

Yea, it is hard to fathom that there are people out there that refuse to pay for scooter mods and beer

[gvallee2]

i send about 60 000 every 2-3weeks in her account and she deals with everything and gives me money when i ask for it.

free personal accountant/atm

[WinnieTheKhwai]

I basically hand it all over to the Mrs, and keep my own allowance for personal expenses (most of them beer related. )

She's much better with money than I am.. (She actually cares enough about the stuff to keep track, organize & plan.

You're lucky Winnie. I have seen little evidence that money "planning" existed here from those I've been around. Many Thais spend money like kids. As long as there is money in the mobile and a beer and a cigarette covered, not much more matters.

Yes. I think that's because most Thais (%-wise out of the entire population) have known nothing but living hand-to-mouth, never having to 'worry' about what to do with extras, savings, investments, planning for bigger expenses in the future, etc. It's changing fast though, as the middle class gets bigger.

Same here, she is so tight fisted with money it is really pathetic. When I was in the states I gave her total control of the money. Now in Thailand I keep 20K for pocket money and she gets the rest (around 80K). I retain some money because Thailand is a cash based country and I have to spend a lot of money on fuel costs, and I was really getting tired of having to as "momy" for some more of my money!

Oh, asking for more doesn't bother me. Inevitably I end up using some of my allowance on family stuff, or as 'unexpected' expenses, so when I'm out then I just ask for more. It's annoying sometimes because she tracks every single baht in Excel, whereas I don't really remember what I spent it on other than that it's no longer there in my wallet.

Edited January 8, 2010 by WinnieTheKhwai

[Orac]

I agree a rough budget for the year with my wife to include all our expenses in Thailand including holidays, house improvements or a new car and then transfer this into her bank account.

[gvallee2]

Wife takes care of all the money I dont even ask she could be bankrolling Osama Bin Laden for all I know she gets about 80k a month.

Do you need a chauffeur, I am available

if 80 000baht makes you wet, i need someone to scrap the dog poo + pee smell from my pavement every day. ill pay u 6000 a month and an extra 1000 if it smells like anyking of flower and an extra 2000 if there's no flies around.

im serious

[robblok]

I make the money, I spend the money.

I flick my missus 200b a day for whatever she does whilst im at work, when the bills come in i give her the money to square them up.

I let my wife beg on the steet and when i get home i give her a bowl of rice and take the money.

So beat that

Hey Rob, don't tell anyone I told you, but it ain't "begging" she's doing on the street. And, she is holding out on you with what she makes.

Thanks ill giver her a good beating and make sure she wont hold out anymore

In reality we have separate checking accounts, we both work and so we share in the cost of the house. Be it that i with the bigger salary contribute more. I have done this in the past with Dutch gf's and it seems to be the best way for me. I can be good with money if i need to. She is good with money too but likes to spend it on other things then me. She recently bought an iphone (fair to say a phone lasts her 4/5 years and she uses it a lot for work). I would never spend that on a phone but i did spend a lot of money of money on a big bike and im looking to buy some stuff fromt he US later in the year.

[PattayaParent]

Same here, she is so tight fisted with money it is really pathetic. When I was in the states I gave her total control of the money. Now in Thailand I keep 20K for pocket money and she gets the rest (around 80K). I retain some money because Thailand is a cash based country and I have to spend a lot of money on fuel costs, and I was really getting tired of having to as "momy" for some more of my money!

20k a month on fuel costs??? And she believes you??????

What do you drive?

Mine's 5k a month max. which is a full tank once a week.

[Spoonman]

When im day trippin to BKK i can easily spend 20k a month on fuel.

[Dakhar]

Same here, she is so tight fisted with money it is really pathetic. When I was in the states I gave her total control of the money. Now in Thailand I keep 20K for pocket money and she gets the rest (around 80K). I retain some money because Thailand is a cash based country and I have to spend a lot of money on fuel costs, and I was really getting tired of having to as "momy" for some more of my money!

20k a month on fuel costs??? And she believes you??????

What do you drive?

Mine's 5k a month max. which is a full tank once a week.

First of all, I never stated that all 20k was spent on fuel. Initially "OUR" fuel bill was 10K, and it has shrunk now down to 4-5K. It has shrunken due to 2 reasons, we installed an LPG system & the new office headquaters has been finished and the new office is closer to us.

She should believe me, because we drive to the office together. I drive in the morning, she drives in the evening. She is usually the one that tells the service people to "Fill this bitc% up" so Yes, I think she believes me when I say that fuel costs are a large part of our/my budget.

We usually drive a 2.4 ltr Camry, but I drive a humble Nissan Sunny when we are in seperate vehicles.

The fuel costs should shrink dramatically come Feb. when we move in to our new house, that is a 5 minute walk from the office....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH YEA I am really excited about that..... Walking to work.... first time in my life to have that ability. Currently our commute requires about 3 hrs a day. It will be great to have more time for our selves!!!!!!!!!!

But thanks for asking

[scotsman]

I think it will not be long before the other posters on this forum will come on to this thread with reply's to all the posters like me who give there wife/GF an allowance saying that you are buying your wife/GF but I don't care I know its just Trolling. So I will say before they start that I agree with other posters that its a fact that some Thai people don't Know how to take care of money. I don't have much of a choice in the matter of my family purse strings as my pension is paid into the bank in the uk. So I give myself an Allowance for my spending and My wife gets an Allowance for her spending and I pay all the bills from my Allowance. I have a Thai Bank account but its never got much in it as it give's me very little % and I don't trust them with my money very much. My wife has many bank accounts with he own money that she is learning to save for herself. Now this has worked for us now for well over 10 years so I will not be changing it soon. It is up to everyone how they control there family spending and if it works for you then fair play to you.

Regards

Scotsman

[gvallee2]

haha, im renting but when my house is finished i will just use the poop to make my flower and trees grow

[gvallee2]

I think it will not be long before the other posters on this forum will come on to this thread with reply's to all the posters like me who give there wife/GF an allowance saying that you are buying your wife/GF but I don't care I know its just Trolling. So I will say before they start that I agree with other posters that its a fact that some Thai people don't Know how to take care of money. I don't have much of a choice in the matter of my family purse strings as my pension is paid into the bank in the uk. So I give myself an Allowance for my spending and My wife gets an Allowance for her spending and I pay all the bills from my Allowance. I have a Thai Bank account but its never got much in it as it give's me very little % and I don't trust them with my money very much. My wife has many bank accounts with he own money that she is learning to save for herself. Now this has worked for us now for well over 10 years so I will not be changing it soon. It is up to everyone how they control there family spending and if it works for you then fair play to you.

Regards

Scotsman

I think its fairly old news that in the east and west, people who cant manage money are just from the poor/gangster side of life

I have never heard of someone coming from a decent family ever have trouble managing money, besides a couple guys in the west who become ceos, buy islands then go broke

[mmushr00m]

I basically hand it all over to the Mrs, and keep my own allowance for personal expenses (most of them beer related. )

She's much better with money than I am.. (She actually cares enough about the stuff to keep track, organize & plan.

Yep same here and my own mother told her to control me even more when it comes to money. But luckily when she lets me out for a night with the lads, she makes sure to top up my allowance

[Beardog]

I remind her the boss is always the one who pays the bin or at least it always was when I lived in the U.S. no need to change it now.

Was that back in the 1940s perhaps?

AAAAh 2004 when I left. I wouldn't let anyone decide my finances for me. It is easier to control the funds that way. Otherwise I can't by Jack shit & I like to have some new toys. My gals in the U.S. always carried their own weight . It is a little different here but I still don't see any reason to change. Still the same same though. She pays stuff through her allowance & gets to buy what ever turns her on (within the budget) But like always the man gets to kick in the extras & pay more. I never had a housewife & wasn't around the 40's more like a 60's hippy era where everyone contributed to the pot

[gregb]

I just give the wife everything I make every month. I only need a few hundred baht a day for incidentals. And then she is responsible for paying the bills. Saves me alot of headaches.

Better yet, I don't have to listen to her overly active imagination decide that I have a mia noi. Since she controls all the money, she knows I couldn't possibly pay for one. You only get into trouble when you try and hide the finances from the Mrs. Just find a girl who you trust to take care of your money and turn it all over to her. Lots of problems go away after you do that.

The stress of doing it the other way around just isn't worth it.

[chriswatson]

Every month we used to do this:

I earn. We discuss. We agree I am right in how much we spend and what on.

After a few years I'd worked out our cost of living in detail and so give my wife a monthly allowance to buy groceries and pay for our kid's clothes etc. I pay all the bills myself and spend or save the rest in a way that ensures we can have as good a time as we can afford. I don't care how she spends her allowance so long as our child is well dressed, we can eat when we want and I don't get asked for more money (unless it's for a good reason, obviously). If she wants some new shoes or clothes I give her the cash.

When she visits relatives in her homeland I give her "spending money" and "gift money".

I think if I left it to my wife the house and fridge would probably be overflowing with "discounts" and "buy one get one free". If I gave her money ad hoc, our cost of living would go through the roof. I'm always concerned that someone with such an eye for a bargain can spend money like there's no tomorrow.

Edited January 9, 2010 by chriswatson

[thaiozy]

In the beginning I would turn over 20,000 baht per month to her and let her pay for the basics. But as the months passed (now 2+ years) I realized some of this money was going for reasons I could not get comfortable with, so now I pay for everything and it works best. I'd rather have it the other way but I didn't like seeing so much money going as handouts to the family or being spent unwisely.

Well I`ve done a monthly checklist & worked out the bills & 10,000 bht for her (including mum) & came up with a figure of 30,000

This does not cover yearly car & health ins.

[Fred Sanford]

The Thai girls that I have met don't seem to know how to be responsible with money.

I used to think there were all like that until I met my wife. She's a uni grad and amazing with cash. Far better than I

[MJP]

The Thai girls that I have met don't seem to know how to be responsible with money.

I used to think there were all like that until I met my wife. She's a uni grad and amazing with cash. Far better than I

That's education. My sister-in-laws the same, college grad, awesome with money, very clever.

[thaiozy]

The Thai girls that I have met don't seem to know how to be responsible with money.

I used to think there were all like that until I met my wife. She's a uni grad and amazing with cash. Far better than I

That's education. My sister-in-laws the same, college grad, awesome with money, very clever.

Well I`m sorry to say fellows, the other half doesn`t really have to be a grad student.

there are a lot of women in thailand that are very street wise with their money (especially the poor ones in factories)

My wife is very good with money, but they have this fad about shoes & i think shirts.

Somtimes i say RIGHT we buy good shoes so no buy again BUT TO NO AVAIL

But she is good & tells me all so we can discuss considering our finances good luck to all. I`ve been around for about 3 years & don`t know a great deal in comparison to some but hope this makes good reading for new commers

[way2muchcoffee]

My wife is terrible with money. In one hand and out the other. At month end I transfer money from my personal bank (payroll direct deposit) to our joint account to cover the bills. She takes care of the bill paying. I'll usually add a bit over the bill money and don't ask where it goes. Then I put what I can into savings. Other than that I leave 300 bt daily to cover her lunch costs and our dinner costs. If she has something to do in the day or needs to do major grocery or household shopping I leave more. She'll usually squirrel a bit of that away too and use it for whatever. When she goes out with a friend or visits her sister or whatever I'm fairly generous, knowing my wife's sister is always skint. When the wife needs something extra she gets it, if it is within budget and reasonable. Over the course of a month she gets about 60% of our discretionary income and I use about 40%. It is my responsibility to make sure we stay on a budget that will get us through the month without having to dip into the savings. On holidays or when we go out she likes to hold the cash as she's quite sensitive about anyone seeing me hand her money in public.

Edited January 9, 2010 by way2muchcoffee

[Gary A]

I give my wife 25,000 baht every month. She pays everything including buying our clothes and my cigarettes. Whatever she has left over goes in her bank account. I pay the vehicle insurance policies, my health insurance and big ticket items. It works out quite well for us.

[Reasonableman]

I wrote this somewhere else. My wife works, but I had to take control of our money in order to avoid to become the proud owner of a mountain of shoes

Yes! and handbags!!!...and and the little reusable plastic boxes takeaway comes in...and and the little straws from cartons of milk...hmmm, and plastic knife-fork-spoon sets....hundreds of these...OMG wot's with all the hoarding???!

Sorry, off topic. My wife also works and we share the expenses, to a degree. She takes care of her mother with her income, which means all major expenses and any overrun end up being mine...it's ok

Edited January 10, 2010 by Reasonableman

[mca]

.OMG wot's with all the hoarding???!

Anybody want to take delivery of a batch of those little sachets of tomato ketchup and chili sauce you get from KFC and Pizza Company?

I know the phone number of an airfreight company that operates converted 747s if that'd help. Might have a bit of trouble landing in my soi though

[Reasonableman]

.OMG wot's with all the hoarding???!

Anybody want to take delivery of a batch of those little sachets of tomato ketchup and chili sauce you get from KFC and Pizza Company?

I know the phone number of an airfreight company that operates converted 747s if that'd help. Might have a bit of trouble landing in my soi though

Yeah, forgot to mention those, and the little plastic sachets of sugar and dried chilly. And a refrigerator-full of tiny plastic bags of black goop sealed up neatly with rubber bands, that stay there from year to year [to year] unused....all of which are treasured and cannot be chucked out. And frozen chicken bones for mama's dog, which (the dog) we haven't seen in 6 months...Maybe we can share a container?

[mca]

Maybe we can share a container?

Only if you agree to take the Lake Superior's worth of those vile tasting Brand's Veta beverages I've got that people give you as a gift for New Year or when you're ill.

[bangon04]

Well I`m sorry to say fellows, the other half doesn`t really have to be a grad student.

there are a lot of women in thailand that are very street wise with their money (especially the poor ones in factories)

My wife is very good with money, but they have this fad about shoes & i think shirts.

Somtimes i say RIGHT we buy good shoes so no buy again BUT TO NO AVAIL

But she is good & tells me all so we can discuss considering our finances good luck to all. I`ve been around for about 3 years & don`t know a great deal in comparison to some but hope this makes good reading for new commers

Shoes and HANDBAGS. The advantage of a monthly allowance is that the phrase "up to you" comes in very handy. The mountain of shoes is rweducing slowly, not growing....

[phil2]

I pay for everything and it works best. I'd rather have it the other way but I didn't like seeing so much money going as handouts to the family or being spent unwisely.

That's exactly what I do.