How Does Debt Work When You Get Married?

Marriage often brings shared lives and shared financial decisions, which can include navigating existing and new debt. Understanding how debt is treated within a marriage is important for couples to manage their financial health effectively. The legal implications of debt can vary significantly based on when the debt was incurred and where a couple resides.

Debt Acquired Before Marriage

Debt incurred by an individual before marriage generally remains the sole responsibility of the spouse who originally took it on. For instance, student loans, credit card balances, or personal loans acquired prior to the wedding typically do not automatically transfer to the other spouse upon marriage. Creditors usually view these debts as belonging to the individual borrower.

However, there are limited circumstances where a spouse might become responsible for pre-marital debt. This primarily occurs if the non-borrowing spouse takes specific actions after marriage, such as formally adding their name to the existing account as a joint account holder. In such cases, they willingly assume responsibility for the debt. Otherwise, the pre-marital debt generally stays with the original borrower, even in community property states.

Debt Acquired During Marriage

The treatment of debt incurred after marriage depends significantly on state laws, particularly whether a state follows common law or community property principles. Most states operate under common law, where debt incurred by one spouse during marriage usually remains their individual responsibility. In these states, a spouse is generally not liable for the other’s debt unless it was a joint purchase or benefited the marriage, such as expenses for family necessities.

In contrast, community property states consider most debt incurred by either spouse during marriage as “community debt,” making both spouses equally responsible. This applies even if only one spouse signed for the debt, provided it was for the benefit of the community. Examples of community debt include mortgages, vehicle loans, credit card balances, and medical bills acquired during the marriage. There are nine community property states: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Community property laws mean that creditors can pursue community assets and income, including those of the spouse who did not incur the debt, to satisfy community debts. This principle holds that marriage is a partnership, and debts incurred during the marriage for the benefit of that partnership are shared.

Joint Financial Liabilities

Beyond state-specific property laws, certain financial actions can create shared debt responsibility for spouses. Co-signing a loan is a primary example, where an individual agrees to be legally responsible for another person’s debt. If the primary borrower misses payments, the co-signer is obligated to make those payments, and the debt appears on their credit report as if it were their own. Co-signers do not gain ownership rights to the property or asset financed by the loan.

Opening joint accounts, such as joint credit cards or joint mortgages, also establishes shared liability. Both parties on a joint account are typically equally responsible for the entire debt. For a joint mortgage, all parties are legally responsible for repayments, and lenders consider the credit scores and income of all applicants.

Authorized users, however, have a different level of responsibility. An authorized user can make purchases with a credit card, but they are generally not legally responsible for repaying the balance. The primary account holder remains solely liable for the debt. While authorized users do not incur legal debt liability, their spending can still affect the primary cardholder’s balance and repayment obligations.

Credit Score Impact

Marriage itself does not merge individual credit reports or scores. Each spouse maintains their own separate credit profile, tied to their Social Security number. Therefore, one spouse’s poor credit score does not automatically “drag down” the other’s.

However, financial decisions made during marriage can indirectly affect individual credit scores. Joint accounts and co-signed debts appear on both spouses’ credit reports. The payment history, whether positive or negative, on these shared accounts impacts both individuals’ scores.

Even if credit scores remain separate, one spouse’s debt-to-income ratio can influence the couple’s ability to qualify for future joint loans, like a mortgage. Lenders consider both credit scores when evaluating joint applications. A lower score from one spouse could potentially lead to less favorable loan terms or even affect approval for joint credit.