My BF (32 M) refuses to take a vacation with me GF (28 F) because I can invest the money on him.. Hence my questions, what's fair in a relationship? We have been dating for 5 close to 6 years.

OP, it sounds to me like your larger issue here is: the two of you aren't clear about how to manage finances together.

That applies for specific choices ("Do we have money to spend on a vacation right now?") and also for much broader issues ("Is this my money or our money?", "Can BF handle budgeting and planning responsibly?", etc.).

There's no right or wrong answer here. You may be overjoyed to be able to support your BF during a very rough time, or you may be frustrated that he relies on you so completely, or both. You might consider the money "both of yours," or yours to decide over, or both of yours as long as BF acknowledges your own passions as also worth spending money on.

Money can be a really tough topic. It has a LOT of immediate real-world consequences -- but often, a couple doesn't really figure out in advance how to make that kind of a decision.

It sounds like you need to, though. Figure out both what your own personal red lines are, what kind of management or decision would be absolute deal breakers (e.g. "BF doesn't find a job for one years," "BF lays claim to all my money to pay off his debts"), and also talk to BF about how the two of you see making financial decisions together (safe, practical examples can be a real help here -- stuff like "how would we decide what kind of house we can afford," "how do we keep an eye on our expenses every month).

This might give rise to any number of other issues. Maybe he feels you're too loose with money, or too stingy. Maybe you don't respect each others' financial priorities. These can be really tough conversations -- but, they can help sync you up. Figure out what's important to each of you; articulate it clearly. At very least, you'll know where each of you is at, you'll agree on most stuff, and you'll have learned what the remaining areas of disagreement are.

/r/relationships Thread