Financial abuse often begins subtly and progresses over time. The aim of financial abuse is to gain power and control in a relationship.
A financially abusive partner may:
- Steal money from you or your family
- Make financial decisions without consulting you
- Forbid you from working or attending school
- Overuse your credit cards or refuses to pay the bills
- Prevent you from owning you using credit cards
- Harass you at your workplace
- Report you “cheat” on your benefits so they are cut
- Force you to sign over assets and power-of-attorney
- Make you cash-in property or financial assets you own so that they can share the proceeds
Shelter House, with grant funding from The Allstate Foundation, offers free economic empowerment classes that teach the fundamentals of financial stability, allow individuals to identify what financial abuse is and learn what healthy financial relationships look like.
Topics may include financial abuse, banking, investing, savings, budgeting, mortgages, auto loans, school loans, bankruptcy, taxes, insurance, and more.