Family budget if your income is around $180-200K

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No one has accounted for the summer months when thousands are spent on summer camps.

I posted above and did account for camps. My childcare budget includes daycare for one, aftercare for 9.5 months and camp for 2 months (totaled and the divided by 12).

[Anonymous]

So few of these budgets list funds for travel. Are people really not vacationing, or they just don't budget for it? We are a bit higher at $240k, but considering some career changes that would bring us into this range. But I would still want to travel!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So few of these budgets list funds for travel. Are people really not vacationing, or they just don't budget for it? We are a bit higher at $240k, but considering some career changes that would bring us into this range. But I would still want to travel!!

I'm a pp with $197K HHI, and it was $167K previously. We plan out vacations, but do not have a monthly line item for it. We are going to Bermuda for a milestone birthday. We save some of the cash from each week over a period of time, and used some of our tax refund (first time not owing now that we finally bought a house!) Next year, we will stay local. The year after that we will do a bigger trip. But, yes we travel!

[Anonymous]

Our HHI is in this range and we only take big trips every 3 years. Otherwise it's 4-5 days in Delaware at the beach or the like. It's enough to live on, save some, but for us not enough to take international vacations annually or anything like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So few of these budgets list funds for travel. Are people really not vacationing, or they just don't budget for it? We are a bit higher at $240k, but considering some career changes that would bring us into this range. But I would still want to travel!!

Ours is at $190k this year and no, we haven't taken a real vacation in ages.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have a HHI between $150k and $180K depending on the annual bonus. Our budget is based on the $150k.

We donate 5%
We save 10% off the top and whatever is left (5-10% more).

Our Mortgage is low at $900 per month, but we pre-pay $700 and pay our taxes twice a year which equates to ~$700 per month. $2,250 total.

We spend around $1200 per month on food (groceries and eating out).
We spend around $500 per month on therapies for children, insurance covers some too. It used to be more, but we have graduated from a few.
Utilities are around $500 per month (water, sewer, electricity, gas, phone....)
Cars: gas and maintenance is around $300 per month and growing as our cars are aging. We may be adding a new car soon. I expect this to grow to $500 per month soon.

We have ~$1.5 million in 401ks/IRAs which will help supplement the pension
We have ~$250k in college savings (DCs are teens)
We have $70k in cash reserves

Wow. I am seriously impressed.

Me too.
The low mortgage payment helps of course but you have an incredible savings balance. Well done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our HHI is in this range and we only take big trips every 3 years. Otherwise it's 4-5 days in Delaware at the beach or the like. It's enough to live on, save some, but for us not enough to take international vacations annually or anything like that.

This is a realistic post. I'm tired of the posters who claim they are taking a family of 5 on fabulous vacations every year on this HHI, and anyone who is just getting by is stupid and can't manage their money.

[Anonymous]

I will play along (2 adults, one teen)

HHI: 180K

Gross Pay: 15000/mo
Detuctions: Taxes, FICA, Medicare, Health, life ins., 401k, repaying 401k loads: about 7K/mo

Take home: 8500/mo; will increase to 9000/mo in July when 1 load is paid off.

(I had to borrow from 401K for medical expenses; paying that back)

Mortgage: 2300K
Food: 1.2K
Utils: 600 (gas, electric, cable, telecom)
Debt service: 1500 (medical related)
Ongoing medical: 500/mo (down from 900/mo)
Car payment: 500
School expenses (public, but there are costs): 200
College saving: 500/mo

I have no safety net/savings; I used to have about 80K, but thanks to medical issues, that went away: cancer does that when you only earn 60% of your salary for a year while the expenses go up.

Assets:
House: 400K equity
401K: 900K
Misc: 20K


Years until I can access my 401K: 6

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So few of these budgets list funds for travel. Are people really not vacationing, or they just don't budget for it? We are a bit higher at $240k, but considering some career changes that would bring us into this range. But I would still want to travel!!

We do a big vacation each year...international, Hawaii, Caribbean, something like that. Cost for family of 4 is usually around $4,000 because I use miles for flights and hotels.

[Anonymous]

Our annual income is about $160K (one earner for family of 5)

Our take-home is $8500 (after 401K, health ins., FLEX, fed and state taxes)
Mortgage (PIMI): $2850
Utilities (elec, gas, water): $300
Phone/cable/Internet: $150
Car + umbrella ins: $150
Gasoline: $250
Food: $700
Entertainment/Eating Out: $250
Kids' Activities/Camps: $300
Vacations: $600
Clothes: $100 (some secondhand)
Gifts: $150
Charity: $300
House/Auto Maintenance: $200
College Savings: $500
IRA: $1000
Misc./Overage: $700

[Anonymous]

HHI 220k
Take home 10.8k per month after 5% retirement, union dues, insurance, etc
Three adults, five kids

Mortgage: 4000
School Tuition:2300
Grocery: 1500
Car expenses: 1000
Utilities: 600
Sundry: 400
Medical: 300
Cleaner: 200
Church: 150
Cash savings: 350

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are at about $200k - 15% for 401k

Net about $10k

Mortgage $3600
Aftercare $400
Food $800
Savings $2000-2500
College $500
Activities/camps/insurance/vacations $815
Utilities $300
Misc $1000
Internet $77
Phones $100
Gas $150

I am sure I am forgetting something

you forgot to say how many kids, but given numbers trust only 1 right ? (or you need to tell me what I am doing wrong with my aftercare program )

2 kids - 10 and 14. Only 1 in aftercare right now. 1 in public, 1 in private (full scholarship).

I know what I forgot - CC debt payment of $250/month. 0% interest and should be gone soon.

Costco keeps the food budget really low - used to be over $1000/month.

Interesting - this got bumped and I am the first PP above. This is where we are now: $245-270k income (varies due to H's job). Fully funding 401k ($36k/year). These are the new figures I know off the top of my head:

Mortgage $4250
Aftercare $0
Food $1000?
Savings $800 cash, $1000 investment, IRAs $915
College $1250
Activities/camps/insurance/vacations $815 - no camps, vacations got better; maybe $1,000/month now?
Utilities $300 (has not changed)
Misc $1000
Internet $60 (went down!)
Phones $120
Gas $150? (not sure but does not appear to have changed).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So few of these budgets list funds for travel. Are people really not vacationing, or they just don't budget for it? We are a bit higher at $240k, but considering some career changes that would bring us into this range. But I would still want to travel!!

Vacation comes out of general savings, of which we have plenty.

[Anonymous]

Current HHI - $150k + TBD bonus at end of year (up to 100K) - this is with only one person working; spouse currently looking for job to pay in the $70-85k range
Net per month - $8000

Mortgage - $3300 principle and interest only (taxes and insurance paid upfront)
Daycare for 2 - $3100
Cell phone - paid by company
Utilities - $400
Gas - $150
Groceries $750
Loans - $300
Misc - $700

We are really, really tight right now. Just moved to a new city where cost of living is supposed to be lower, but also took a huge hit on my salary, and daycare went up signficianly (go figure as we thought it couldn't be worse than DC). Luckily bonus will hopefully make up for most of it. Until spouse gets a job, we're in a tough spot. Will max out retirement and add to college savings with bonus, as well as hopefully set aside daycare costs for next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LMAO. "Poor." We make $141K pre-tax. DH puts 11% of his $101K salary into his 401K and I don't save anything out of my $40K salary because I only work to pay for private school and groceries.

Mortgage is $950/month.
Healthcare, I think is about $400/month.
Childcare is $200/month.
Tuition for private school is $1600/month.
Groceries are $1200/month.
Phones (all mobile) are $180/month.
Internet $60/month
Gas is $400/month (we commute)
No gym, no car payments (both cars are luxury cars but are ten years old, bought new back then), no credit card debt or student loans. We're not saving for college; that's why they go to private school, so they can earn scholarships. We'd be comfortable paying the same tuition we do now or even a bit more when the time comes, but if they want to go to a $50K/yr school, they're going to have to help pay for it.

We shop and go out some but don't really keep track. We haven't taken a real vacation in 7 years but will be taking one this summer. We're not rich or anything but I think we're doing okay.

This has got to be fake because otherwise the bolded stuff above is the stupidest thing I've heard today.