Same here - we decided to have 2 checking accounts and divide the bills - guess whose bills never got paid? So I took the job back. How can such an intelligent man… uh, never mind…
I handle all the bills. I’m not good at balancing the checkbook (it never goes as smoothly as it did in personal finance class), so I’ve “hired” my mom, who’s a bookkeeper, to do that part for me. My mom always kept the books for the family businesses as well as handled the family’s personal fianances.
Unfortunately since I am the only adult in my household I have to take care of all the bills. Blech! 
I am horrible with my checkbook, couldn’t balance it if my life depended on it. When I eventually marry I will be handing over everything to my husband to take care of. I do not want to be completely clueless though just not responsible for balancing and mailing bills off on time. I cannot wait until that day.
The same person who brings home the paycheque… me!
by common agreement (I’m very shitty with personal finances) mrs beagledave and Intuits’ fine product Quicken 98 handle the bill chores…we use online banking also…
btw Sue and you damn europeans…the word is “check” not “cheque” 
When I met my husband, his method of paying bills was to throw the mail on the table every day, then once a week, look to see if any of them were second notices. Guess which one of us pays the bills now. :rolleyes:
Mrs. Tonk pays the bills in our home, mostly by default. When we met, I was a poor student with little income and few expenses. She was already pretty well established, having been on her own for many years.
And she can spend money like a drunken sailor. But she makes over 10 times what I do…
Here in Japan the banks have a nifty service which allows you to have all your bills automatically deducted from your account. No messing with checkbooks and licking envelopes. Paychecks are also deposited directly into your account. I’ve wondered why such a service has not become more common in the States.
As for who handles the family’s finances, it is almost invariably the wife. Even if she doesn’t work, which is in most cases, she has complete control over the family purse strings. The husband gets a small allowance, usually only a couple hundred bucks a month, for making personal purchases.
I’m getting married to a Japanese woman soon and this system scares the hell out me, but I’m sure it will help get my finances in order. She has a Ph.D. in economics.
He pays for his car insurance/car tax, fuel & anything he picks up from the DIY store & gives me a flat amount per month towards the bills. I pay for all other household expenses. He pays for his credit cards…I pay off mine. Guess why I do the finances…
Teach, we have a similar system in the UK - called direct debit. Most of our bills are paid by direct debit each month or quarter, I just check my bank statement to make sure it tallies with what I should have been billed…
My wife pays the bills. Mainly because when I did it I would get stressed and we would argue about finances. It seems silly, but I always want to sock away more for a rainy day, and she always wants to spend, so we split the difference and set up a good, but not excessive, budgeted savings plan, and then she does the bills and I get to be dumb and happy. It really cut down on arguments.
I used to pay the bills. I new how to and my husband did not. He had been forced to hand over all money he earned to his mother to handle. It took years to teach him how to handle the finances, but now he does. We talk about them at least weekle and discuss all decisions.
Teach: It is quite common in the US to have direct deposit of paychecks and direct payment of bills. I use direct deposit (it’s very difficult not to with my employer, but I would anyway, I get paid earlier and don’t have to worry about getting to the bank).
I do not choose to use direct payment of my bills though. In most cases I find there’s a fee that outweighs the money I spend on stamps. More importantly however, I don’t like the idea of people making withdrawals from my account each month without my express recognition of how much they are taking. I’d still have to balance my checkbook–which is the tedious part. Actually writing the checks is no big deal to me. I like to know exactly how much money is in my account at all times so that I know if it’s a good time to transfer money between accounts, if I can splurge on a new computer, etc. etc. Perhaps I’m just a control freak, but the less people that have direct access to my account the better.
I think the problem for many isn’t the actual process of paying the bills, it’s the issue of budgeting and having money to pay the bills. Direct payment doesn’t solve either of those problems.
My husband and I actually take turns paying the bills. We’re both good at it, organized, etc., but neither of us likes it very much.
He’ll pay all the bills, do the checkbooks, etc., for several months, and then I will do it for several months. Been doing that for years.
trisha
I make all the money and my husband pays the bills. We have a joint checking account, and he has a degree in accounting, so it just makes sense. Plus, I’m not very organized. But I could do it if I had to. I was single once upon a time, and even balanced my own checkbook.
The Cat!
<wink>
I pay for all of the house bills, ie eletric, water, plus car insurance, and some of the credit cards while Mrs Head takes care of her car and one credit card since it’s at the bank thats near her.
My wife and I have an agreement. I get paid, she spends all the money, then I don’t have to pay bills because there’s no money left.
It works out quite well, really.
I pay all the bills now except for her Jeep payment. I also
do the grocery shopping, the cooking, and 50% of the dishes,
laundry. She does the cleaning. I hate yard work, so she
does the bushes, flowers, etc, and I pay a man to cut the
grass.
We set up our accounts through a single bank. We have a set amount that transfers into our joint account. From there, we have certain amounts that get automatically paid to our bills. The only check we write is for the rent (since we just drop it off in the manager’s box in the building). He maintains a spreadsheet to keep track of expenses, but this is a joint thing. I’ve been taking care of my own bills for over 15 years now; I’m not about to let it all go and not maintain a clue as to what’s happening with my money. No way!
Tally-Ho said
Yep. Exactly.