Steve Harvey on Money and Relationships

Sept. 10, 2009 — -- As one of the best-known comedians on the planet, Steve Harvey knows a little something about how money can put a stress on your life and on your relationships.

"My life was crazy for a long time," said Harvey, who has been married three times. "I love the idea of being married. Now have I blown it? Yeah."

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Now living with his third wife Marjorie and with seven children between them, Harvey said it took him time to "learn that my wife was an individual."

"And because I'm the main breadwinner in the house, I can't come in and treat her like a child. She's an adult. She's as big a part of this family as I have," he said.

But the stress Harvey felt between love and money is a common one.

Toni Langdon, 32, and Wayne, 38, from West Chester, Pa., feel like they don't communicate well enough about their money. Toni is a stay-at-home mom for their six-month-old child and says that since Wayne handles all the finances, she's out of the loop.

According to Harvey, couples should separate some money to give each individual independence, but spend and save jointly on necessary things.

"Every couple should have four bank accounts," Harvey said, two individual spending money accounts and two joint accounts for essential spending and saving. The savings account, he said, should require two signatures to move the money.

"I think that sounds like a great idea," Wayne said.

Leon Thomas, 32 and Cameo, 28, of Detroit, Mich., have three kids under five years old.

Leon has been unemployed for three months and Cameo is still in nursing school. The couple is struggling to cut back and sometimes argue about how to spend the money they have. Cameo doesn't mind cutting back on herself, but she refuses to change the way they spend on the kids.