Does anyone here live very well on very little?

[Anonymous]

The bottom line is, you prioritize what you really want out of life, and you go frugal on the rest. Then you can live very happily on a middle-class budget. The middle class has to make financial choices, unlike the wealthy.

Family of 4 on 100K.

Organic food.
Tiny house, in an expensive neighborhood with good schools and a 5 minute commute to work.
No impulse purchases and no spending on consumables, like eating out and cinema, etc.
International vacation once a year.
Expensive extra-curriculars for the kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Echo PPs. You make saving a priority, and spend as little as possible. For me, that means $1.99/lb chicken, and frequenting the sale bins for half-price fish. I never buy anything I can make at home, and only eat out when I'm with friends and enjoying the experience (rather than the convenience).

Yes! I never, ever eat out unless it's to be with friends. Dh and I love to cook so it's not a burden.

Oh and I like how you got the price right on chicken PP! $1.99! Not the $4.99 someone posted upthread.

$4.99 is what I pay for organic chicken when I find it on sale, and that's what I buy. I've given up on regular chicken, it's so unappealing I'd rather be a vegetarian.

Costco organic chicken, people! I also don't eat regular chicken , and I am a poor by DCUM standards.

[Anonymous]

Ugh. I haven't read all the comments but what I have read makes me a bit sick, because so much of the living well here is defined in monetary terms. Growing up on the wrong side of the tracks, I always felt we lived well. Sure, every month there were decisions about where our precious dollars were being spent, but I wouldn't change it. Going out to eat was a great treat, and we actually enjoyed it. When we saved up enough to buy a computer, we were thrilled. When it broke down we took it apart and rebuilt it. We really liked it. It makes me sad to see how many people don't appreciate what they have and even seem bored by it. With all they have, they don't seem to be living well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Low fixed expenses = low stress
Discretionary expenses are such an individual preference. I like to allow for, what I call, the luxury of forgiveness. Forgiving myself for not being perfect, for the occasional bad decision or mishap.

Low fixed expenses is the secret to happiness. We have a modest mortgage of $2,500 a month, taxes included. No other debt. That's the key.

Where do you live, if I may ask, and do you have children?

Au park. 2 kids. We bought a $900K house and put down $500.

Umm, how did you save $500k in cash if you have 'modest' income of around $100k??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought OP meant below 50k, even by dcum standards six figure income is not "very little".

Right? I'm the one with the t-shirt from sixth grade, and I earn $73k. I don't feel miserable or pinched or anything. I grew up cutting out coupons every Sunday, and stocking up on non-perishables when they go on sale, and checking to see if the dress I liked had gone on sale yet, so this is all second nature to me.

I bought a new car once (Hyundai) before realizing how much of a waste it was and I've only bought used since. I feel zero need for a fancy car. Zero. I feel zero need for a Gucci purse or whatever rich people have. That's not what makes me feel good. A huge part of why I "live well" is my perspective. Yesterday I took a long walk along the water and took pictures for an hour. It was tons of fun! To me, THAT is living well. I don't want for spas or manicures or whatever. I want to cook with my daughter, and spend time outside, and spend time with family and friends. To me, that is living well. I save 25% of my take-home pay, at least. So I feel like I have plenty.

Peoples money is consumed by housing costs to afford short commutes (so they can take those lovely walks) and decent schools. Not purses or fancy cars. Where do you live, how long commute, and how are your public schools? That is the secret sauce and if you managed to not compromise on those you did something right.

I live in SF in a rent-controlled building where I got in before the latest housing boom, my commute is about 25 minutes (whether I walk or take the bus), and DD is at a public charter that's considered among the best (which granted, isn't great, but she'll be fine).

Being sanctimonious b/c you bought before the bubble is one thing, but being sanctimonious b/c of rent control takes it down to a whole 'nother level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you talking about trying to get by on 150K?

Yes, $150,000 or less.

Then the answer is - "Yes!!" Own our home, kids go to excellent schools, I SAH, we take an annual 2 week trip to the beach (even stay oceanfront, just our little family), we save $$ for college and retirement....

We do not eat out that much. No fancy cars. No yacht. So we do have to rough it a bit.

Get a grip. People are not stretched b/c they are buying fancy cars. Or yachts. It's about housing. If you have SAH on $150k, what is your mortgage, commute for your DH?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you talking about trying to get by on 150K?

Yes, $150,000 or less.

Then the answer is - "Yes!!" Own our home, kids go to excellent schools, I SAH, we take an annual 2 week trip to the beach (even stay oceanfront, just our little family), we save $$ for college and retirement....

We do not eat out that much. No fancy cars. No yacht. So we do have to rough it a bit.

Sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you talking about trying to get by on 150K?

Yes, $150,000 or less.

Then the answer is - "Yes!!" Own our home, kids go to excellent schools, I SAH, we take an annual 2 week trip to the beach (even stay oceanfront, just our little family), we save $$ for college and retirement....

We do not eat out that much. No fancy cars. No yacht. So we do have to rough it a bit.

Get a grip. People are not stretched b/c they are buying fancy cars. Or yachts. It's about housing. If you have SAH on $150k, what is your mortgage, commute for your DH?

Not everyone has to have a fancy house and not everyone works downtown. I think sometimes that DCUMers believe the only way anyone lives is in a SFH with one or both spouses commuting into DC. There are jobs and homes in other places, you know. One of the keys to living well on very little is not trying to live like a lobbyist when you're not a lobbyist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We make 160k, dual income, and I'm not deluded into thinking that's "very little." But it isn't a ton for our area. I love our life. We own a small, cute house in NEDC. Our kids go to public school in the neighborhood. I grow a lot of our vegetables and we go out to eat less than monthly. But we do fun things and our kids aren't wanting for much--they have dance and music lessons, etc. We save for retirement and a little for college.

No, that actually is very little for here.

You are ridiculous. Not everyone is a spoiled brat like you or poor at managing their money. Talk about being delusional!

Huh? Again, that is very little money here.

Huh? It is not. Our income is less than $100k and not only are we very comfortable, it's very clear to me that we have a lot more disposable income than many of our peers. I also have a good salary relative to many of my colleagues.

[Anonymous]

Two "hidden" things are housing costs and health.

Housing costs are a huge factor. I have friends living in a very nice home that they owned outright before the age of 40. Also, they have a healthy family and get great work benefits, so they have almost zero out of pocket medical costs.

My family probably makes more than them but it "looks" like they make twice as much.

[Anonymous]

Sure. Don't have kids and you can live very well on little.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you talking about trying to get by on 150K?

Yes, $150,000 or less.

Then the answer is - "Yes!!" Own our home, kids go to excellent schools, I SAH, we take an annual 2 week trip to the beach (even stay oceanfront, just our little family), we save $$ for college and retirement....

We do not eat out that much. No fancy cars. No yacht. So we do have to rough it a bit.

Get a grip. People are not stretched b/c they are buying fancy cars. Or yachts. It's about housing. If you have SAH on $150k, what is your mortgage, commute for your DH?

Not everyone has to have a fancy house and not everyone works downtown. I think sometimes that DCUMers believe the only way anyone lives is in a SFH with one or both spouses commuting into DC. There are jobs and homes in other places, you know. One of the keys to living well on very little is not trying to live like a lobbyist when you're not a lobbyist.

You love the word fancy, eh? Yes you can get by if you have a job in PWC and commute from Manassas and maybe you can find decent schools. But since the center of jobs is DC-Tysons, what do you do when your husbands has to changes jobs and gets his next on in McLean? You tell him to suck up the hr+ commute? Most people except the very wealth have pretty modest homes or town homes; the high cost is location which is all about sane commutes and good schools. Or should I say fancy public schools

[Anonymous]

Where do you live, how long commute, and how are your public schools?

We live at the intersection of Springfield/Fairfax/Burke/Annandale. So, several miles in any direction is similar.
Schools: FCPS, several good pyramid choices.
Commute: 30min VRE to downtown. We prefer VRE. There is free parking. Some families can get along w/1 car. Others prefer the express bus to Pentagon Metro and on from there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Where do you live, how long commute, and how are your public schools?

We live at the intersection of Springfield/Fairfax/Burke/Annandale. So, several miles in any direction is similar.
Schools: FCPS, several good pyramid choices.
Commute: 30min VRE to downtown. We prefer VRE. There is free parking. Some families can get along w/1 car. Others prefer the express bus to Pentagon Metro and on from there.

You stay home, right? Bc your DH commute door to door is not 30 minutes, the train ride is 30 minutes. Then there is getting to station parking, and metro to office unless happens to be on VRE.

Also, a SFH in Burke is like $800k -- you are swinging a 6x income mortgage?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We make do on $300k. It's not that hard to live well on relatively little income. We drive a Honda, I eat out maybe once a week, and we don't splurge on fancy crap in general.
I do blow money on salmon and fish though. That shit is good.

This hardly counts as very little.