Americans Value Financial Stability More Than Looks, Physical Fitness

There may be more to attraction than meets the eye... at least in the United States.

Ahead of Valentines Day, SunTrust Banks, Inc. (NYSE: STI) found in online study that 41 percent of Americans consider financial stability to be among the traits they find most important in a partner.

“People identify financial stability as an important trait because they know money – and how one manages it – impacts a relationship. People often enter relationships with different monetary goals and views. For example, one may want to save more for retirement and can’t understand why a partner is more focused on short-term experiences. The keys to overcoming financial discord in a relationship are communication and compromise," said Brian Ford, a Financial Well-Being Executive at SunTrust.

According to the SunTrust survey, a third of Americans in a relationship believe they're the saver in the relationship and their partner is the spender, while just 21 percent believe they're the spender of the couple.

"The reason for this disparity may be because people don’t understand their significant other’s spending habits. The solution is to make an effort to understand your partner’s personal history. Financial habits are often handed down by parents, so it’s important to understand how he or she was raised," said Ford.

Surprisingly, the 18-34 age range placed the highest importance on financial stability when it comes to picking a potential partner.

“Our survey found that more people between the ages of 18 and 34 - 47 percent consider financial stability to be important in a partner than any other age group. The younger generation lived through the Great Recession during a formative time in their lives, so it's possible they prioritize financial stability higher for that reason.”

Luckily money wasn't the only deciding factor; substance stills reigns supreme when picking potential partners. The most important traits? Personal values remains the most desirable quality in a mate at 78 percent. Over 73 percent of Americans surveyed chose Personality as one of the most important traits in a potential partner.

Some of the most overrated traits? Looks and Physical fitness both came in at just 21 percent.

“People identify financial stability as an important trait because they know money – and how one manages it – impacts a relationship," said Ford.