Welcome back to our blog series: M³ - Marriage Money Mistakes.  The first financial mistake for married couples we discussed was to close all credit cards after you get married; this is a mistake because doing so will lower your credit score substantially.

Continuing our blog series, here is the second mistake we'll discuss:

On average, about 50% of all US marriages end in divorce, with one of the top causes being money. So whether you're a newlywed, nearly dead, or somewhere in between, it's not too late to strengthen the financial foundation that is vital to a successful marriage. Here is the first in our series of blog posts on financial mistakes made by married couples, entitled "M³ - Marriage Money Mistakes":

Mistake #1: Closing all credit cards so you can open brand-new joint accounts

Marriage introduces a life filled with newness: you get rid of the worn-down, not-sure-if-I-even-want-to-sit-here, bachelor-pad sofa, and get a cool, black leather one. You’ll throw out your mismatched plastic cups and replace them with a set of crystal glasses from Macy’s. And your Star Wars bed sheets just don’t seem to go as well with your sleek bed frame as 1500 thread count Egyptian Cotton sheets. As you get rid of the old and embrace the new, make sure you don’t apply this same rational to credit cards—closing out all individual cards and opening new accounts jointly. Doing so is completely unnecessary and guarantees a nosedive in your credit score.

The economy, in its current state, is definitely not handing out any favors to businesses, small or large. Getting a business credit card is more difficult than ever. Not only are major credit card issuers limiting the amount of credit extended to business owners, but some issuers (like Advanta) are even closing their doors indefinitely! So how are business owners to handle their day-to-day business spending without a credit card or with a credit card with a low limit?

One of our favorite business credit card issuers, Advanta, has decided to cease lending to its business credit card holders. Whereas other credit card lenders are simply ceasing to lend to new customers, Advanta will also shut down all existing accounts for future use. So if you have an Advanta credit card, you'd better start looking for another way to pay for your business expenses.