How can we save with this breakdown

[Anonymous]

Where did OP say the house was inherited? I only saw him say it's paid off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Take home $6500 a month on $142k salary after maxing out retirement and doing FSA - 1 income, 1 kid. Age 50.

18 umbrella policy
65 insurance - 2 cars
75 home insurance
667 Fund 529
10 hoa community
53 verizon internet
100 donation
500 groceries
225 classes, therapy (swimming needed as therapy for child etc)
150 meds, vitamins, protein powders etc. for all
100 household (toilet paper, detergent, dish soap, soap, toothpaste, shampoo/conditioner, cream etc.)
200 medical including labs/co-pays/procedures/therapy/dental - most likely more, spouse has chronic health problems.
300 lawn exterior/interior repairs maintenance
800-1000 travel, vacation, clothes, haircuts, dining, entertainment, gifts
150 gas
150 2 oil changes per car
80 2 cell phones
8 safe deposit box
5 video cloud storage
2000 Private school
200 electricity - old home
80 water/sewer
25 trash
40 mowing averaged out
500 real estate property tax
65 car property tax

We have nothing left over

Stop complaining - private school if child is school aged is optional. You don't get oil changes monthly. You can mow your own grass, the home repair/lawn you can do yourself, stop donating...

We are not doing oils changes monthly, that would be crazy. Just every 6 months on two cars averaged out. That was the one line item I did fix. I explained the school situation. It’s like in the bottom 10 list, if there was one, in the NoVA. We didn’t choose to buy here, inherited this place.

This is where the OP says he inherited the place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Take home $6500 a month on $142k salary after maxing out retirement and doing FSA - 1 income, 1 kid. Age 50.

18 umbrella policy
65 insurance - 2 cars
75 home insurance
667 Fund 529
10 hoa community
53 verizon internet
100 donation
500 groceries
225 classes, therapy (swimming needed as therapy for child etc)
150 meds, vitamins, protein powders etc. for all
100 household (toilet paper, detergent, dish soap, soap, toothpaste, shampoo/conditioner, cream etc.)
200 medical including labs/co-pays/procedures/therapy/dental - most likely more, spouse has chronic health problems.
300 lawn exterior/interior repairs maintenance
800-1000 travel, vacation, clothes, haircuts, dining, entertainment, gifts
150 gas
150 2 oil changes per car
80 2 cell phones
8 safe deposit box
5 video cloud storage
2000 Private school
200 electricity - old home
80 water/sewer
25 trash
40 mowing averaged out
500 real estate property tax
65 car property tax

We have nothing left over

Stop complaining - private school if child is school aged is optional. You don't get oil changes monthly. You can mow your own grass, the home repair/lawn you can do yourself, stop donating...

We are not doing oils changes monthly, that would be crazy. Just every 6 months on two cars averaged out. That was the one line item I did fix. I explained the school situation. It’s like in the bottom 10 list, if there was one, in the NoVA. We didn’t choose to buy here, inherited this place.

This is where the OP says he inherited the place.

Ah, thanks.

Sounds like OP is used to a pretty cushy lifestyle and isn’t inclined to sacrifice any of those luxuries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op is doing way better than most people! His cars and house are paid off. He appears to have no student loan or consumer debt. He is maxing out his retirement and has FSA. He is setting aside a nice amount of money in his child's 529 every month. He has a SAH wife AND his kid is attending private school.

He and his wife also travel to visit parents and help them out.

Op is doing pretty darned good. Op should be telling DCUM how to do it!

OP inherited his house. If he had a mortgage he would be doing a lot worse and wouldn't be able to send his kid to private (or his spouse would need to work.) Also, given that OP has 401K and 529 contributions, he is saving, so I don't really understand the premise of this query. If he wants to save more, spouse can work or cut the private school. This is not rocket science.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since child is in school full time, why are you waiting until next year for her to get a parting job?

To even say private school isn’t a choice, shows you aren’t easy to cut things. It IS a choice.

Get rid of safe deposit box. They have safes on amazon for about $20. What is in there that you need at a bank?

Stop funding 529.

Stop donating. Your spouse can volunteer if she wants to give back

Shop at Aldi.

The classes and therapy are very high. You can drop some, I’m certain.

Protein powders amount should be reduced or buy a cheaper Brand

100 for household items is a lot for 3 people. A tube of toothpaste, some toilet paper and paper towels, 1-2 bottles of shampoo, one of conditioner, soap, etc doesn’t cost this much for us. Are you buying cheaper brands? Tide pods?
lawn exterior - do it yourself

Cut down on gifts to both your parents

The wife going back to work might not make sense if that also would add child care expenses, work wardrobe, dry cleaning, increased wear/tear on a car, higher gas expense etc to their expenses.

He already said she’s going back to work next year part time. I’m asking why they are waiting til next year. I could see waiting til summer ends to starts but not more than that.

They aren't exactly in dire financial straights with a paid off house, paid off cars, no consumer debt, no student loan payments, no childcare expenses, fully funded retirement accts, FSA and an amply funded 529 for their one kid.

I am assuming that she is going back to work because she wants to and she is choosing a time to do it that works best for them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hate DC - can't wait to get out - similar salary for the 2 of us together and 2 kids but we are in in our late 30s

Not sure how their budget would be different in a different city; their expenses seem low, except for private school (which at $2000/mo is also reasonable for most cities)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op is doing way better than most people! His cars and house are paid off. He appears to have no student loan or consumer debt. He is maxing out his retirement and has FSA. He is setting aside a nice amount of money in his child's 529 every month. He has a SAH wife AND his kid is attending private school.

He and his wife also travel to visit parents and help them out.

Op is doing pretty darned good. Op should be telling DCUM how to do it!

Yes, I'm not clear what OP is asking about. OP *is* saving. I guess OP wants to save more, but I am not sure for what purpose.

OP, are you on track for retirement? IIRC, one rule of thumb is to have 4 times your gross income by the age of 50 in retirement accounts. Is that where you want to add to your savings? If yes, you can fund a spousal IRA (traditional or Roth) up to $5500/year, and you can also contribute $5500/year to a Roth IRA for yourself.

The main place to cut back is the private school, but I gather that it's needed for your SN kid. Is that correct? Otherwise, you can cut here and there as other PPs have suggested.

[Anonymous]

How old is your kid/what grade is s/he in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, given how little you’ve engaged in this discussion, I question how important this really is to you. We can’t make money appear for you, reality is that if you want to save, you need to cut back on your spending. With $142k in annual income and no mortgage, there’s really no excuse not to be saving. You’re just choosing not to because you prefer a more expensive lifestyle than you can afford.

I barely posted today. And came back to respond to the first page of comments. We already do Costco for gas and bulk. The private school is not by choice as I explained. What helped by posting here was the reiteration to cut back or stop the 529 and donations. Also to save the $2K a year on vacations. I am not at all handy around the house but have looked at you tube videos and done several things. But some, just can’t do. Also I have back issues hence the mower. But can certainly do that at a slow pace. Definitely some takeaways for me.

What about the previous question about selling your house and moving to one with better schools?

Okay. How would the cost of moving/buying/and selling help their financial situation? Plus, how would the unicorn fantasy of finding a house with a mortgage no more than their 2k tuition actually happen?

Whether they should be paying tuition or not is a different discussion, but the idea of moving is a non-starter not even worth responding to, IMO>

[Anonymous]

Seems like your choice is either take the kid out of private school or just grind through it for another 10-15 years (depending on age of child), and hope for some income growth to alleviate the pressure. Dropping the private school would free up a lot of money. But, if you're intent on keeping private school, it seems like you're doing fine even though money is tight. You're maxing your 401k, saving in a 529, and still travelling, going to restaurants, etc. What's so "bad" about it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, given how little you’ve engaged in this discussion, I question how important this really is to you. We can’t make money appear for you, reality is that if you want to save, you need to cut back on your spending. With $142k in annual income and no mortgage, there’s really no excuse not to be saving. You’re just choosing not to because you prefer a more expensive lifestyle than you can afford.

I barely posted today. And came back to respond to the first page of comments. We already do Costco for gas and bulk. The private school is not by choice as I explained. What helped by posting here was the reiteration to cut back or stop the 529 and donations. Also to save the $2K a year on vacations. I am not at all handy around the house but have looked at you tube videos and done several things. But some, just can’t do. Also I have back issues hence the mower. But can certainly do that at a slow pace. Definitely some takeaways for me.

What about the previous question about selling your house and moving to one with better schools?

Okay. How would the cost of moving/buying/and selling help their financial situation? Plus, how would the unicorn fantasy of finding a house with a mortgage no more than their 2k tuition actually happen?

Whether they should be paying tuition or not is a different discussion, but the idea of moving is a non-starter not even worth responding to, IMO>

I don't think you're thinking clearly. If they have a fully paid off house, they should be able to find a house where the difference in cost between their current, paid-off house and the cost of the new house results in less than a $2k mortgage. And then that mortgage interest will be deductible. It's not a unicorn or a non-starter to say that a house in a neighborhood with a workable (not best in the area, but not bottom-10 in NoVA either) should exist for $300-$350k more than the value of their current home.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, but I still think that is fantasy land. They have an old house in a bad school district apparently. Combine that with the high costs of moving/buying/selling, yeah. I am not seeing it.

Your'e asking them to take on a 30 year burden when tops, they have 12 years of school to pay for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since child is in school full time, why are you waiting until next year for her to get a parting job?

To even say private school isn’t a choice, shows you aren’t easy to cut things. It IS a choice.

Get rid of safe deposit box. They have safes on amazon for about $20. What is in there that you need at a bank?

Stop funding 529.

Stop donating. Your spouse can volunteer if she wants to give back

Shop at Aldi.

The classes and therapy are very high. You can drop some, I’m certain.

Protein powders amount should be reduced or buy a cheaper Brand

100 for household items is a lot for 3 people. A tube of toothpaste, some toilet paper and paper towels, 1-2 bottles of shampoo, one of conditioner, soap, etc doesn’t cost this much for us. Are you buying cheaper brands? Tide pods?
lawn exterior - do it yourself

Cut down on gifts to both your parents

The wife going back to work might not make sense if that also would add child care expenses, work wardrobe, dry cleaning, increased wear/tear on a car, higher gas expense etc to their expenses.

He already said she’s going back to work next year part time. I’m asking why they are waiting til next year. I could see waiting til summer ends to starts but not more than that.

They aren't exactly in dire financial straights with a paid off house, paid off cars, no consumer debt, no student loan payments, no childcare expenses, fully funded retirement accts, FSA and an amply funded 529 for their one kid.

I am assuming that she is going back to work because she wants to and she is choosing a time to do it that works best for them.

And if she's been out of the workforce for a long time and is only going back part-time, I'm guessing she'll be making $16-20/hour at best before taxes. But I agree with others that OP is saving.

OP, what do you need more money left over for? More saving? Upping the lifestyle? Also, how old is your child? (ie: how many more years of tuition?)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, given how little you’ve engaged in this discussion, I question how important this really is to you. We can’t make money appear for you, reality is that if you want to save, you need to cut back on your spending. With $142k in annual income and no mortgage, there’s really no excuse not to be saving. You’re just choosing not to because you prefer a more expensive lifestyle than you can afford.

I barely posted today. And came back to respond to the first page of comments. We already do Costco for gas and bulk. The private school is not by choice as I explained. What helped by posting here was the reiteration to cut back or stop the 529 and donations. Also to save the $2K a year on vacations. I am not at all handy around the house but have looked at you tube videos and done several things. But some, just can’t do. Also I have back issues hence the mower. But can certainly do that at a slow pace. Definitely some takeaways for me.

What about the previous question about selling your house and moving to one with better schools?

Okay. How would the cost of moving/buying/and selling help their financial situation? Plus, how would the unicorn fantasy of finding a house with a mortgage no more than their 2k tuition actually happen?

Whether they should be paying tuition or not is a different discussion, but the idea of moving is a non-starter not even worth responding to, IMO>

I don't think you're thinking clearly. If they have a fully paid off house, they should be able to find a house where the difference in cost between their current, paid-off house and the cost of the new house results in less than a $2k mortgage. And then that mortgage interest will be deductible. It's not a unicorn or a non-starter to say that a house in a neighborhood with a workable (not best in the area, but not bottom-10 in NoVA either) should exist for $300-$350k more than the value of their current home.

This. OP has had the luck to have inherited a house. We don't know how much it's worth but he can cash out the equity and apply that to a new home in an area with better schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry, but I still think that is fantasy land. They have an old house in a bad school district apparently. Combine that with the high costs of moving/buying/selling, yeah. I am not seeing it.

Your'e asking them to take on a 30 year burden when tops, they have 12 years of school to pay for.

I ran some sample numbers through a mortgage calculator. If OP were to sell his house and be able to roll $500k from that sale into an $800k house, he could potentially get a 15-year fixed mortgage with monthly payments under $1,100 a month.