Woman charges her husband $600 a month if he doesn't do his household chores

A wife invoices her husband for the chores he forgets to do and claims that it 'keeps the peace'.

Jess Wright, 32, first billed her husband, DJ, 33, four years ago when she started to get frustrated with him forgetting to tidy up and leaving dirty clothes out.

DJ, a real estate investor, was 'taken aback at first' but says it now really helps him keep on top of his fair share of chores.

The pair, who share three children, split chores equally and decide week by week what they each take on.

Jess will tally up DJ's missed chores through the month, marking a small annoyance such as leaving the toothpaste out at $5.

A moderate frustration - for example, forgetting to do a chore such as the laundry - will cost DJ $10 to $20, while a major offence, like forgetting to switch out the car seats, will set DJ back between $25 to $50 depending on Jess' mood.

DJ's invoice can vary between $30 to $600 depending on the month.

Jess Wright and her husband and DJ have been married for seven years (SWNS)

Jess, from Atlanta, US, said of her unconventional way of getting her hubby to keep on top of his chores: "I'm being compensated for it [picking up the chore]. There is less resentment."

Surprisingly DJ doesn't mind his wife's techniques. He said: "Ultimately, we wanted to keep the peace. It's unorthodox. I like the system. She's not yelling. I just pay it and that's it."

You know how the saying goes: happy wife, happy life.

Jess and DJ, who live in Georgia, have been together for eight years and married for seven. Jess said: "When I first met him he told me he was neat. I didn't find out that he wasn't until we were stationed out in Texas together.

"I kept having to all these conversations, why have you left your glass out or your shirt out? He's very forgetful."

Jess decided to cash in on her husband's forgetfulness (SWNS)

But when chores tripled as their family grew, Jess found herself becoming more frustrated and decided to make a tally and send a bill to her husband out of the blue.

Jess said: "I was putting in more energy to talk to him about it. Once you start adding kids there is a lot more to talk about than these petty conversations."

"I decided to pull on his strengths — money motivation," she added.

DJ said of the first time Jess did this: "I was a bit taken aback at first. It definitely does work, it's not that I never do the chores. I never do it on purpose."

He went on to admit that one of his weaknesses is his untidiness, something which can see DJ literally pay the price.

DJ claims he doesn't mind his wife's unorthodox way of keeping track of chores (SWNS)

As to how Jess keeps an eye on it all and if DJ is falling behind, she keeps a tally in an excel spreadsheet and the pair keep track of chores in a calendar.

She insists that they keep things 50/50, however.

Jess said: "There is not a huge expectation on him to complete it all and vice versa."

But if something is left out by DJ instead of being put away, Jess will tot it up instead of complaining to her husband and causing an argument.

She said: "It's big for me for everything to have a home; that's a small annoyance fee."

DJ pays the invoice from his separate account to Jess and she uses the money for herself or adds it to savings.

She said: "Sometimes I use it for a TJ.Maxx trip. I treat myself."

I wonder if she adds a service charge on the bills too?