Would you dump someone with too much debt?

We're talking about relationships and managing debt with Ruth Hayden, personal finance educator and consultant, at 10:20 tomorrow on The Daily Circuit.

We wanted to talk about this issue after an NPR piece which featured Portland, Maine art teacher Rachel Bingham. She was dumped four months into a relationship and her boyfriend cited her $80,000 student loan debt as one of his reasons.

"He said it scared him," she recalls, "that it really made him anxious. And he just did not want to take on my responsibility."
That made Bingham angry because she had never asked for his help. She says she has been very responsible, diligently making her loan payments.

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Although you aren't liable for your spouse's student loan debt, it could still hold you back financially from the things you might want sooner rather than later: a house, children, vacations.

Have you thought about the debt of the person you're dating? Do you discuss financial issues before things get serious? Is it enough to end a relationship?

Share your stories and ask any questions you might have about relationship debt. Hayden might answer your questions on air tomorrow.

--Emily Kaiser, associate digital producer

Would you dump someone with too much debt?

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