High stakes

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When the credit crunch first took hold it was reported that a wave of unhappy wives of highly paid men went gushing into divorce. This was apparently with a view to minimising the negative effects of slashed bonuses, falling stock market prices and widescale redundancies and maximising the chance of obtaining a lucrative divorce settlement (27 May 2008, www.sky.com).

Now that the economy has slumped further into decline it is rumoured that wealthy wives en masse are making the hard-headed business decision to remain with their husbands under sufferance until their flagging stocks and shares start to recover. Reports like this are a depressing indictment of the unfortunate way in which modern relationships can work.

Safe as houses?

While at first blush such deliberate financial planning may sound like good business sense, there are potential snags. In the last year property prices have fallen 9.2% nationwide and the number of sales has dropped almost four-fold forcing many sellers