I’ll share something that surprised me. When we dropped the proportional system and simply combined our income, it brought us closer together that same month. It was amazing to see how changing the set-up changed the way we felt.

RAMIT AND CASSANDRA’S RULES ON TIPPING AND EATING OUT • Tip at least 30 per cent at restaurants. We can afford it and we love being generous. • When staying at a hotel, leave £15 per night, minimum, for housekeeping.

make it a point to ask couples what money messages they remember hearing as children. Here are some of the most common answers. Do any resonate with you? (Mark any that you grew up with.)

“You might as well stop working since all your income is going to childcare.” (Mums’ wages are often the first to go without truly considering the effects on women’s careers later on.)

“Men should provide for their family.” □ “Your job is to be the rock. Men don’t worry about emotions.”

Here’s where having three to five savings accounts comes in handy. Without those, you’ll just put all your savings in one place – essentially a junk drawer – and then forget what the money is for. In my experience, this money then gets tapped and eventually absorbed into the random expenses of life. On the other hand, if you create too many savings

The key is choosing the right level to save for. Think big items that require one to five years of saving. Add a savings account for a five-year anniversary trip, but not for a meal at Wagamama. Or one for a home renovation or a car or special seats at a concert, but not for a four-pack of new coffee mugs.

If and when you buy a house, don’t buy the biggest one you can. This is advice from my parents, who told me that if you get a big house, everyone goes into their own rooms and they don’t spend time together. Consider the non-financial aspects of the house you buy, like encouraging your family to spend time together – even if that means less space.

There’s a common saying in the personal finance world: “Personal finance is personal.” The implication is that we’re all so different, so unique, that one-size-fits-all advice does not apply. I don’t love this saying, which gives people an inflated sense of individuality and encourages an endless search for bespoke advice. I prefer a different