Fighting over money? Financial planner offers help

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- One of the biggest reasons couples fight is because of money. A financial planner offers his advice in his new book.

Heather Frudakis describes herself as a spender. In fact, in her closet, she still has clothes with the sales tags on them even though she bought them quite a while ago.

Her husband, Jason, used to be a spender, especially when it came to traveling.

"If we wanted to go to Vegas for the weekend, we would go. If we wanted to go up to wine country for the weekend, we would go," he said.

But then they had a child, Austin, about a year ago, and Jason has become more of a saver.

On the other hand, Heather thinks they now need a larger house and more for Austin. As a result, any talk about spending or saving can get a little heated.

This is where they need money advice. Jeff Motske is a financial planner and CEO of Trilogy Financial Services. He recently wrote a book called "The Couple's Guide to Financial Compatibility."

He says when one is a saver and the other is a spender, it's time to have financial date nights.

"Once a month, they should sit down, outside of the home is usually best," he said. "They get together and they discuss their finances."

A major topic to discuss on those date nights is your goals.

"When they have goals in mind, they're far more likely to start doing the actual planning, which means putting a budget together," Motske said.

The book also includes a quiz for couples that talks about the "what ifs" in life.