六分之一新婚夫妇承认藏有小金库

 The case for prenuptual agreements may have just gotten stronger: According to a new survey by credit-tracking company Experian, 16 percent of newlyweds admit they are hiding a financial account from their spouse¹. 

婚前协议的案例与日俱增。信用监测公司益博睿的一项最新调查显示，16%的新婚夫妇承认，他们瞒着另一半，偷偷藏着自己的小金库。

Of those with secret accounts, about 60 percent were men and 40 percent women. Men and women also differed in how much spending they said they'd be comfortable keeping from a spouse. While female respondents said they'd quietly cough up $383 on average, male survey-takers were willing to spend $1,259 without mentioning it to their better halves. 

这些藏有小金库的人中，60%是男性，40%为女性。而对配偶隐瞒多少开销会让其心安理得，男性和女性也大有不同。女性调查对象表示，她们通常会小心翼翼地跟丈夫少汇报383美元，而男性调查对象面对其心爱的妻子时，认为少报1259美元，仍可以瞒天过海。

六分之一新婚夫妇承认藏有小金库

Overall, nearly a third of people admitted to being relatively² clueless about their husband's or wife's finances before tying the knot. About two in five respondents said they didn't know their spouse's credit score, while about 30 percent were unaware³ of their partner's long-term financial goals or student loan debt. And a quarter didn't even know their spouse's annual income. 

总体而言，将近三分之一的人都坦言在结婚前对另一半的经济情况几乎一无所知。调查对象里有40%的人，表示他们不知道其配偶的信用评分，而30%的人对其配偶的长期经济目标或学生时期贷款债务情况毫不知情。更有25%的人甚至不知道配偶的年收入。

"Obviously, some people do have things they want to hide," said Indianapolis-based financial planner Meredith Carbrey. "But a lot of couples just don't make the time to sit down and talk finances, or one person is hesitant out of fear their partner will judge them." 

美国印第安纳波利斯的理财规划师梅雷迪斯-卡布雷说：“显然，还是有部分人想隐藏自己的小秘密，不过大多数夫妻都不愿花点时间，坐下来聊一聊他们的经济情况，又或者夫妻中有一方害怕坦诚相告之后，会被配偶另眼相看。”

Skipping that hard talk about money before getting hitched⁴ seems to have consequences. While newlyweds said their biggest financial goal was saving to buy a residence, about a third complained that their spouse's credit score has affected⁵ their ability to get a home loan. And nearly 20 percent have actually needed a co-signer for major purchases since walking down the aisle⁶. 

婚前对财务问题避而不谈会造成不良后果。新婚夫妇常说他们最大的经济目标就是存钱买房，但几乎有三分之一的人都抱怨他们配偶的信用评分影响了他们办理住房贷款。而且将近20%的已婚夫妇在购置大件商品时需要双方共同签字署名。

Credit headaches are only one financial problem the survey revealed. While about 40 percent of respondents said credit scores are currently a source of marital⁷ strife⁸, about a quarter cited budgeting and 20 percent blamed debt repayment⁹. One in three newlyweds said their spouse's spending habits are different than what they expected. 

令人头疼的信用评分其实只是该项调查反映的问题之一。40%的受访者表示现在信用评分常常是他们夫妻吵架的导火索，约25%的受访者因家庭预算问题争吵不休，另有20%的受访者因偿还债务而怨念重重。三分之一的新婚夫妇表示，配偶的消费习惯与他们预先的期待完全不一样。

When you are worried about your spouse or fiance's finances, it can be emotionally challenging to broach¹⁰ the topic. But there are ways to get your partner to open up without seeming too critical. Meeting with a financial planner or other professional can help by adding an unbiased third party to the equation, said Carbrey. 

当你为配偶或未婚夫（妻）的经济情况感到担忧时，打开天窗说亮话，未免有伤感情。不过总有方法既可以让你的另一半坦然开口，又能局势看起来不至于太僵。卡布雷表示，理财规划师或其他相关方面专家就可以充当中立的第三方，不偏不倚地帮助夫妇解决问题。

"That can be a good moment to find out about assets and liabilities, and whether they have too much debt," she said. 

卡布雷说：“这是摸清另一半的资产和负债情况，并探明其是否身负巨额债务的最好时机。

Other occasions, such as renting an apartment together, can give you the opportunity to find out your partner's credit score, Carbrey said. 

而合租公寓等场合也是你了解另一半信用评分的良机，卡布雷说。

As it turns out, people don't always practice what they preach. When asked what qualities they prioritize in a spouse, 80 percent of newlyweds said they cared about credit scores, while 92 percent of survey respondents said financial responsibility. 

事实证明，并非人人都能言行一致。当被问及最看重配偶的哪些品质时，80%的新婚夫妇表示他们最在意信用评分，而92%的受访者则在意对方是否具备承担经济责任的能力。

All the more reason to open up a dialogue with your husband or wife early on, said Carbrey. If it makes sense, one solution can be delegating money-related responsibilities to whichever partner is thriftier¹¹. 

卡布雷认为，这更说明了，经济问题越早和另一半说清越好。如果双方可以谈拢，那么有一种方案就是把财政大权交给相对节俭的一方。

Just be careful to make sure both you and your partner know where important documents are kept, in case of an emergency. 

有一点要注意，为了以防万一，一定要确保夫妻双方都清楚重要证件藏在何处。

Vocabulary

prenuptual agreements: 婚前协议

clueless: 无线索的

assets and liabilities: 资产与负债

unbiased: 公正的，无偏见的

all the more reason: 更加正当的理由

1 spouse   

n.配偶(指夫或妻)

参考例句：

• Her spouse will come to see her on Sunday.她的丈夫星期天要来看她。
• What is the best way to keep your spouse happy in the marriage?在婚姻中保持配偶幸福的最好方法是什么？

2 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

3 unaware   

a.不知道的，未意识到的

参考例句：

• They were unaware that war was near. 他们不知道战争即将爆发。
• I was unaware of the man's presence. 我没有察觉到那人在场。

4 hitched   

（免费）搭乘他人之车( hitch的过去式和过去分词 )； 搭便车； 攀上； 跃上

参考例句：

• They hitched a ride in a truck. 他们搭乘了一辆路过的货车。
• We hitched a ride in a truck yesterday. 我们昨天顺便搭乘了一辆卡车。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

7 marital   

adj.婚姻的，夫妻的

参考例句：

• Her son had no marital problems.她的儿子没有婚姻问题。
• I regret getting involved with my daughter's marital problems;all its done is to bring trouble about my ears.我后悔干涉我女儿的婚姻问题, 现在我所做的一切将给我带来无穷的烦恼。

8 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

9 repayment   

n.偿还，偿还款；报酬

参考例句：

• I am entitled to a repayment for the damaged goods.我有权利索取货物损坏赔偿金。
• The tax authorities have been harrying her for repayment.税务局一直在催她补交税款。

10 broach   

v.开瓶，提出(题目)

参考例句：

• It's a good chance to broach the subject.这是开始提出那个问题的好机会。
• I thought I'd better broach the matter with my boss.我想我最好还是跟老板说一下这事。

11 thriftier   

节俭的( thrifty的比较级 )； 节约的； 茁壮的； 茂盛的

参考例句：