How many people here live paycheck to paycheck?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We do. HHI around $250k. I won't cut retirement, but will the 529s. After having kids I have no money.

If you are contributing to retirement, you are not living paycheck to paycheck.

[Anonymous]

We are pretty close. Our emergency fund seems to cover medical bills, of which there are many because our "outstanding" medical coverage blows. DH and I both have chronic pain issues, I have another chronic health problem, and DD has mild SN most likely as a result of in uterine exposure to my meds.

We are the family driving premiums for the 23 year old brogrammer at my company up through the roof.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Live on half your salary for a few years. And if that means living an extremely frugal life, so be it.

We did that when we were a young couple. We lived in a one room apartment in a safe but cheap area. Rarely ate out, had only one second-hand car, DH carpooled, we did not buy clothes etc unless necessary and lived on 30K, while having 42K HHI. Basically, we lived like how majority of college students live. Our furniture was second hand and most of our stuff was from salvation army.

When we reached a HHI of 75K (within 5 years of marriage), we saved 35K in one year and that was our down payment to our SFH worth 350K.

We have not looked back after that. We now have a HHI of 300K, and we still live on 120K a year. Our cost structure is very low because our mortgage is very low. We are the millionaire's next door. Our retirement, insurance, and college funds are top notch. My kids have got full ride on merit scholarships to college, and we have instilled in them the lesson to live below their means.

I think you were looking for the "Unable to answer a simple question" forum. Not everyone has enough left over to live on half.

Can you live on 30K or 40K if you need to? Are you making 50K? If you are, then you will save 10K a year. The point of my post is that when we started here as immigrants we had $200. And a lousy pay of 42K a year. We saved even on that salary.

If you are not willing to compromise and scrimp and save for even a few years, then you will always live paycheck to paycheck. This situation is entirely of your making.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC people live in a bubble. Unless you live outside of that area, you never experience what normal people experience.

http://www.offthegridnews.com/financial/you-wont-believe-how-many-americans-are-living-paycheck-to-paycheck/

A full 43 percent of US households would not be able pay their bills if they went one month without a paycheck

ONLY 43%? I would've assumed it was well over 50.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do not and this is the primary reason I don't own a home. I don't want to be living paycheck to paycheck. Rent is $700 a month cheaper than owning the same home and that does not include unexpected repairs.

I want to applaud you. You seem to be one of the few sensible ones on this thread. Everyone wants a luxurious life and then they wonder why they are living paycheck to paycheck.

Owning a house is a luxury, owning or leasing two new cars is a luxury, vacations are luxury, eating out is a luxury, private schools is a luxury, getting your mani-pedi-facial-bikini wax and coloring your hair in a salon is a luxury, buying brand name anything when generic is available is a luxury, buying new furniture when second hand furniture is available is a luxury, having electronic devices for entertainment is luxury, having cable and magazine subsription is a luxury, keeping a non-working pet is a luxury.

So, if you are unable to dial back on any of your luxurious spendings then you should not think that you are living paycheck to paycheck. You are just blowing away your retirement and children's college funds, because you want a luxurious life now.

[Anonymous]

Try living on a bare bones budget for one month, and see how much you save.

1. Only pay your bills (rent/mtge, utilities, phone, cable).
2. Pay for gas, but limit your driving.
3. Grocery store: only the bare minimum. No meat (or very little). No organic. No extras (no toiletries or cleaners..use what you have at home).
4. No eating out unless it's unavoidable...and then eat cheap (pizza).
5. No booze or beer.
6. Don't go to target or costco or any stores. Stay out of the mall. Don't buy anything for one month.
7. Carry a small notebook with you to write down any purchases (although there really shouldn't be any).

Try it. Most don't have the requisite self-control, but if you do, you'll see a savings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do, but that is after savings comes out. I make sub 6 figures and have a child.

I'm not sure I understand this. If you have savings, particularly savings that are growing, you aren't living paycheck to paycheck. You're simply living within your means.

I have always saved for retirement no matter what, starting at 23 and making 30K. I've had debt and a negative net worth along the way as well (though not anymore). I've also saved for emergencies, though there were some years where I used it pretty quickly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do, but that is after savings comes out. I make sub 6 figures and have a child.

If you are saving, then you are NOT living pay check to pay check.

lolol I love that people don't know what "paycheck to paycheck" means. I live paycheck to paycheck except for all of that money I save!

Poor assumptions here. I was making sub 50k when my child was born with a mortgage and daycare that exceeded my income. No mater what, I've always had something going to retirement and a bit to a savings account and then I used credit. I figured at the least, I wouldn't live on cat food in my golden years. I didn't have enough to cover bills month to month. Even now, I'm well under 100K at a point where I make a dent in my debt each month. I'm broke by payday. I will be out of the hole a year from now, with 10 years of retirement saved. Happy with my philosophy. Yes, I live paycheck to paycheck.

[Anonymous]

I sort of do -- after I put 10% away (with match) toward retirement. I used to have a nice (6 mo) safety net, but medical expenses killed it, even with insurance.

With that said, even though, we live paycheck to paycheck (with about 1 extra check in the checking account), we have managed to obtain wealth through our house (mostly paid off, with 600K equity) and 401k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Try living on a bare bones budget for one month, and see how much you save. I LIVE BARE BONES ALREADY!

1. Only pay your bills (rent/mtge, utilities, phone, cable). SOMETIMES NOT ALL CAN BE PAID!
2. Pay for gas, but limit your driving. ONLY GO TO AND FROM WORK, THE GROCERY STORE OR DOCTOR.
3. Grocery store: only the bare minimum. No meat (or very little). No organic. No extras (no toiletries or cleaners..use what you have at home). ALREADY DO THIS.
4. No eating out unless it's unavoidable...and then eat cheap (pizza). CAN'T AFFORD TO EAT OUT.
5. No booze or beer. NO PART OF MY LIFESTYLE.
6. Don't go to target or costco or any stores. Stay out of the mall. Don't buy anything for one month. DON'T GO TO THESE PLACE, AS I CAN'T AFFORD TO.
7. Carry a small notebook with you to write down any purchases (although there really shouldn't be any). THERE'S NOTHING TO TRACK. NOTHING!

Try it. Most don't have the requisite self-control, but if you do, you'll see a savings.

THANKS FOR THE "SAGE" ADVICE, BUT IN MY CASE IT'S WORTHLESS!

[Anonymous]

Poor assumptions here. I was making sub 50k when my child was born with a mortgage and daycare that exceeded my income. No mater what, I've always had something going to retirement and a bit to a savings account and then I used credit. I figured at the least, I wouldn't live on cat food in my golden years. I didn't have enough to cover bills month to month. Even now, I'm well under 100K at a point where I make a dent in my debt each month. I'm broke by payday. I will be out of the hole a year from now, with 10 years of retirement saved. Happy with my philosophy. Yes, I live paycheck to paycheck.

There seems to be a difference between living "paycheck to paycheck" and being poor. Being poor is someone who cannot save and has absolutely no savings at all (retirement or otherwise). A person who is poor has absolutely no recourse for paying bills if they lose their job (no 401K or equity in house to borrow on). Apparently "paycheck to paycheck" means something like using your whole paycheck for expenses (including the retirement fund).

I think that if a person has substantial equity in their house and any savings accumulated, they have a buffer and are not poor. Maybe the question should be more about total net worth . . . like is your total net worth zero or less? ??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try living on a bare bones budget for one month, and see how much you save. I LIVE BARE BONES ALREADY!

1. Only pay your bills (rent/mtge, utilities, phone, cable). SOMETIMES NOT ALL CAN BE PAID!
2. Pay for gas, but limit your driving. ONLY GO TO AND FROM WORK, THE GROCERY STORE OR DOCTOR.
3. Grocery store: only the bare minimum. No meat (or very little). No organic. No extras (no toiletries or cleaners..use what you have at home). ALREADY DO THIS.
4. No eating out unless it's unavoidable...and then eat cheap (pizza). CAN'T AFFORD TO EAT OUT.
5. No booze or beer. NO PART OF MY LIFESTYLE.
6. Don't go to target or costco or any stores. Stay out of the mall. Don't buy anything for one month. DON'T GO TO THESE PLACE, AS I CAN'T AFFORD TO.
7. Carry a small notebook with you to write down any purchases (although there really shouldn't be any). THERE'S NOTHING TO TRACK. NOTHING!

Try it. Most don't have the requisite self-control, but if you do, you'll see a savings.

THANKS FOR THE "SAGE" ADVICE, BUT IN MY CASE IT'S WORTHLESS!

I doubt it. My sister kvetches about being broke and bristled at my suggestion to eliminate all spending and write everything down. She said she doesn't spend wildly. But she tried it, and realized that she in fact was pissing away money...little bits here and there. It's very difficult to not spend anything beyond monthly bills and groceries.

[Anonymous]

Nope. Never have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do not and this is the primary reason I don't own a home. I don't want to be living paycheck to paycheck. Rent is $700 a month cheaper than owning the same home and that does not include unexpected repairs.

I want to applaud you. You seem to be one of the few sensible ones on this thread. Everyone wants a luxurious life and then they wonder why they are living paycheck to paycheck.

Owning a house is a luxury, owning or leasing two new cars is a luxury, vacations are luxury, eating out is a luxury, private schools is a luxury, getting your mani-pedi-facial-bikini wax and coloring your hair in a salon is a luxury, buying brand name anything when generic is available is a luxury, buying new furniture when second hand furniture is available is a luxury, having electronic devices for entertainment is luxury, having cable and magazine subsription is a luxury, keeping a non-working pet is a luxury.

So, if you are unable to dial back on any of your luxurious spendings then you should not think that you are living paycheck to paycheck. You are just blowing away your retirement and children's college funds, because you want a luxurious life now.

Except over the long haul, owning a home is one of the best ways to build wealth. For me, 16 years ago, DW and I were living in a small apartment. We bought a house -- much bigger than the appt, and (after taxes), cost the less -- by about 25%. Granted, we had repairs to deal with. Now, the house is mostly paid off. Our rent in the same apartment would have gone up 40%. Looking at it over the 16 years, if we had rented, we would have spent at least 350,000 in rent. Our net (after tax) payments for the house have been about 292K. So, there is an extra 60,000 in our worth from improved cash flow -- far more than our repair bills. The big difference, though, is we now have assets equal to equity in the house. If the house had stayed the same, we would ave 180K in equity. But, because of luck, we have almost 600K in equity.

The net result is that, had we rented, my total assets would be my 401K, which is 750,000. Instead, today, it is about 1.35 mil. bear in mind, YMMV

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try living on a bare bones budget for one month, and see how much you save. I LIVE BARE BONES ALREADY!

1. Only pay your bills (rent/mtge, utilities, phone, cable). SOMETIMES NOT ALL CAN BE PAID!
2. Pay for gas, but limit your driving. ONLY GO TO AND FROM WORK, THE GROCERY STORE OR DOCTOR.
3. Grocery store: only the bare minimum. No meat (or very little). No organic. No extras (no toiletries or cleaners..use what you have at home). ALREADY DO THIS.
4. No eating out unless it's unavoidable...and then eat cheap (pizza). CAN'T AFFORD TO EAT OUT.
5. No booze or beer. NO PART OF MY LIFESTYLE.
6. Don't go to target or costco or any stores. Stay out of the mall. Don't buy anything for one month. DON'T GO TO THESE PLACE, AS I CAN'T AFFORD TO.
7. Carry a small notebook with you to write down any purchases (although there really shouldn't be any). THERE'S NOTHING TO TRACK. NOTHING!

Try it. Most don't have the requisite self-control, but if you do, you'll see a savings.

THANKS FOR THE "SAGE" ADVICE, BUT IN MY CASE IT'S WORTHLESS!

No point in trying to reason with these rude, smug people anymore. This has turned into a "ways to be frugal while living on $250k a year" thread, as is typically the case with DCUM.