Reply to Why is it hard for some privileged people to realize that saving is hard?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]For me, I make $18/hr. thats about $2880/month (after taxes, it's more like $2500) if I work 40 hrs a week. I don't always get 40 hrs, so this is a rough estimate.

Rent: 1200
Food: 400
Utilities: $300
Phone: $100
Internet: $50
Car Insurance: $150
Health insurance: $200
Gas: $100

That comes out to about $2500. 
No, I'm not going out to eat, getting fancy coffee, or getting my nails done. I'm paying bills. I don't feel poor...  I feel comfortable but if there is any type of emergency, I'll be SOL. 
[/quote]

You can’t afford to live alone. Your rent is too high. Also if you had a roommate you could share  utilities and cable. I had a rooomate until I was married. And what car are you driving? In va dh and I pay $400 every 6 months combined. We have two 2008 camrys. [/quote]

OR, I understand your struggle. This was me, too, until I was @ 31. I had a roommate until I was 30. I think the PP is giving good advice. If you want to make your money go further, I would get a roommate, cut down groceries by shopping at an ethnic market (I did, travelling to shop in another neighborhood, to get to some), and switch to Cricket or another budget cell phone company (my DH and I use Cricket). Then take the money saved and put it into an Emergency Fund (build up to 3-4 months of expenses). Once you have that, start saving in pre-tax retirement (if your employer has this) or an IRA. It took me a long time to do that but, once I had that foundation, it provided a safety net for me.

To the OP's point, saving can be extremely hard if not impossible. You can do all the right (super frugal, delayed gratification, forward thinking) things that are typically recommended, yet have one bit of bad luck (a job loss, graduating during a recession, an illness, an unplanned pregnancy, a landlord deciding to evict for more money, parent/sibling/other family member that need to be supported or cared for, a car issue, a busted water heater, a jump in health insurance costs, and so on) and still end up broke. You might have to work 2 or 3 part-time jobs because you cannot find an employer to hire you full time despite a college degree. Sure, there are lots of new little expenses that are a part of modern life, but that's not why people are strapped. Not making excuses for people, just laying out the reality.

That said -- and maybe because I grew up poor in the projects -- it's very important to find some way to save even a little bit. I think the Dave Ramsey advice to save a beginner Emergency Fund of $1000 is very important, because many emergencies could be saved with just having that much set aside. It's probably primarily because I have this mindset of save save save that I have the job I have (pursued because of stability and benefits), retirement savings, a house, a rental property, an Emergency Fund and sinking funds for home maintenance, and some 529 savings for two kids. My family and I splash out a bit regularly but I still act like I might need to switch to survival mode at any moment. I think that's the only way we have gotten ahead. (That, and extreme luck.)[/quote]

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