Anonymous wrote:When I was unemployed I cut my expenses to around 900 bucks a month

This was in 2014

My budget was

500 for a room in a shared house
Food 225ish around 50 bucks a week at the grocery store
Car/Insurance/Gas 100 bucks a month
Cell Phone 50
Internet/Shared Utilities 75
Misc 100

Saving isn't hard it's about choices and discipline

Even on a very modest 45k income you can save over 1,500 a month like this

What’s your magic formula when you have kids, a modest mortgage, health insurance, student loans, etc?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

I don’t get this. Why are you living in such a high COL area when you make such a low salary? You can get an $18/hour job literally anywhere in the country and you could cut your rent in half. That’s your problem here...it doesn’t make any sense.

Here's what I don't get: who do you think is going to take the jobs that are <$18/hour in high COL areas, if they can't live there or nearby? Do you think it's possible to have a functional community where no one works at restaurants, as a janitor, delivery person, a store clerk, etc.? It doesn't make any sense.

Whenever I read people complaining that those who don't earn enough to be able to afford a place to live should just get a different job I want to scream. WHO DO YOU THINK IS GOING TO PICK UP YOUR GARBAGE?????

You're probably the same people who vote no to raise the minimum wage.

Jeesus. There are many types of jobs that need to be done for society to function, not just hedge funds management. Ideally all those jobs would be paid a living wage so that people who work them can afford a place to live and to buy food and insurance.

You aren't supposed to live off the minimum wage idiot

It's an entry level for the bottom of society. Anyone with any brain at all gets raises and moves up and out

If you are making under 15 bucks an hour after 10 even 5 years working the problem is you. That's plenty of time to be some type of supervisor/manager type role of whatever job you are at

SoPP is fine with those who aren’t as smart as they are having a difficult life, struggling to feed themselves and keep housing, and PP is probably the type of person who is into eugenics and thinks anyone who “isn’t smart” (read: doesn’t test well bc that mostly ensures it’s poor black people) shouldn’t be allowed to have kids. Except what PP doesn’t see is that they’re an idiot who only has what they do because of privilege.

When I was unemployed I cut my expenses to around 900 bucks a month

This was in 2014

My budget was

500 for a room in a shared house
Food 225ish around 50 bucks a week at the grocery store
Car/Insurance/Gas 100 bucks a month
Cell Phone 50
Internet/Shared Utilities 75
Misc 100

Saving isn't hard it's about choices and discipline

Even on a very modest 45k income you can save over 1,500 a month like this

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You should reduce your expenses then because if that’s the case you’re only one emergency away from bankruptcy or total poverty. It’s simple math, people!

You seem to lack simple math skills if you cannot figure out that many people's salaries only cover rent, utilities, food, gas.

Don't be such an a**hat.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only 2 percent of those who follow these three rules are in poverty:

1) Finish high school (at a minimum)
2) Get a full-time job
3) No marriage or children before age 21

https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/three-simple-rules-poor-teens-should-follow-to-join-the-middle-class/

Wow, I like this statistic

I have read this before and it speaks volumes. It’s not that hard - finish high school, get a job, and don’t get married or pregnant too young. Most middle class teenagers know this without being explicitly told. How do we impart it to everyone else?

There should be an advertising campaign to mount this message on subways and buses.

OK, that's your perspective. There are teenagers for whom that first one is very hard, either because they've been promoted along by failing schools with no family support, or because they have to work to support their household, or or or. And #2, well, how's the job market for someone with a HS degree and no additional trade school/apprentice time? There are mythical tech manufacturing unicorns out there that will pay for your training, sure, but you have to have the wherewithal to move yourself to Bumf**k, wherever (on what savings?!) to train and then eventually start working for real money. #3, as PPs have pointed out - we have a real class disparity in terms of access to health care, comprehensive sex ed, and abortion.

This is a lovely 3-point principle that seems to work, given the statistics. But to imply it's "easy" for everyone to follow is false.

I love how the main reason for poverty is "poor life choices." As if people of means don't make terrible choices. The difference is the results. Put trust-fund son into fancy rehab + get attorney if he gets caught overdosing vs. locked up for long sentence, with no rehab assistance. Or "get pregnant in high school = sneaky abortion (kids at my high school went to "europe" for a week, back in the day) vs. have kid in high school. Etc. etc. Everyone makes poor choices at some point - it's what support is already around them that makes for a very different result.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The modern redefining of luxuries as necessities makes it hard to see that saving is doable for many people who claim that they can’t save a dime (while typing away on their smartphones).

Bingo. You can get a really low cost pre-paid cell phone to use.

I dumped my cable TV and saved well over a grand a year, and thats AFTER signing up for a streaming service! Which itself is still a luxury.

Perspective please: For a lot of low-income people (meaning actual poor people, not recent college grads who are broke but will eventually get there, not people making decent money who spend too much) a smart phone is their ONLY internet access, and internet access is required for a lot of things (including stuff like applying for unemployment benefits when you get laid off, applying for food stamps or Medicaid, applying for a LOT of low-end jobs). Email is also a requirement for many purposes these days. Public internet access in a library is useful and important, but not all that accessible in a real sense.

You can apply for unemployment online but not medicaid or food stamps or wic.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

I don’t get this. Why are you living in such a high COL area when you make such a low salary? You can get an $18/hour job literally anywhere in the country and you could cut your rent in half. That’s your problem here...it doesn’t make any sense.

Here's what I don't get: who do you think is going to take the jobs that are <$18/hour in high COL areas, if they can't live there or nearby? Do you think it's possible to have a functional community where no one works at restaurants, as a janitor, delivery person, a store clerk, etc.? It doesn't make any sense.

Whenever I read people complaining that those who don't earn enough to be able to afford a place to live should just get a different job I want to scream. WHO DO YOU THINK IS GOING TO PICK UP YOUR GARBAGE?????

You're probably the same people who vote no to raise the minimum wage.

Jeesus. There are many types of jobs that need to be done for society to function, not just hedge funds management. Ideally all those jobs would be paid a living wage so that people who work them can afford a place to live and to buy food and insurance.

You aren't supposed to live off the minimum wage idiot

It's an entry level for the bottom of society. Anyone with any brain at all gets raises and moves up and out

If you are making under 15 bucks an hour after 10 even 5 years working the problem is you. That's plenty of time to be some type of supervisor/manager type role of whatever job you are at

But the reality is that everyone can’t be the manager so people do end up trying to live off minimum wage. I’m a nurse, and there are plenty of older nurses who won’t retire. So now there’s new nurses rolling out of school every year, but if the older ones aren’t leaving, there’s only so many spots. This applies across most jobs.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The modern redefining of luxuries as necessities makes it hard to see that saving is doable for many people who claim that they can’t save a dime (while typing away on their smartphones).

Bingo. You can get a really low cost pre-paid cell phone to use.

I dumped my cable TV and saved well over a grand a year, and thats AFTER signing up for a streaming service! Which itself is still a luxury.

Perspective please: For a lot of low-income people (meaning actual poor people, not recent college grads who are broke but will eventually get there, not people making decent money who spend too much) a smart phone is their ONLY internet access, and internet access is required for a lot of things (including stuff like applying for unemployment benefits when you get laid off, applying for food stamps or Medicaid, applying for a LOT of low-end jobs). Email is also a requirement for many purposes these days. Public internet access in a library is useful and important, but not all that accessible in a real sense.

I love reading the inspiration stories of the people on the mrmoneymustache forum... especially the low income folks. Yes it is possible to build up an emergency fund on a low income (or get out of debt) but it is HARD. It isn't giving up lattes. It's living in a one bedroom apartment with three other people and buying day old bread and almost expired produce.

https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/saving-to-$10k/

Anonymous wrote:
There should be an advertising campaign to mount this message on subways and buses.

Teens need access to sec education (not just abstinence only but actually dealing with birth control); access to reliable birth control, and when that fails, access to abortion services.

*That* is the campaign that will help kids stay out of poverty. Not just words on a billboard.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

I don’t get this. Why are you living in such a high COL area when you make such a low salary? You can get an $18/hour job literally anywhere in the country and you could cut your rent in half. That’s your problem here...it doesn’t make any sense.

Here's what I don't get: who do you think is going to take the jobs that are <$18/hour in high COL areas, if they can't live there or nearby? Do you think it's possible to have a functional community where no one works at restaurants, as a janitor, delivery person, a store clerk, etc.? It doesn't make any sense.

Whenever I read people complaining that those who don't earn enough to be able to afford a place to live should just get a different job I want to scream. WHO DO YOU THINK IS GOING TO PICK UP YOUR GARBAGE?????

You're probably the same people who vote no to raise the minimum wage.

Jeesus. There are many types of jobs that need to be done for society to function, not just hedge funds management. Ideally all those jobs would be paid a living wage so that people who work them can afford a place to live and to buy food and insurance.

You aren't supposed to live off the minimum wage idiot

It's an entry level for the bottom of society. Anyone with any brain at all gets raises and moves up and out

If you are making under 15 bucks an hour after 10 even 5 years working the problem is you. That's plenty of time to be some type of supervisor/manager type role of whatever job you are at

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only 2 percent of those who follow these three rules are in poverty:

1) Finish high school (at a minimum)
2) Get a full-time job
3) No marriage or children before age 21

https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/three-simple-rules-poor-teens-should-follow-to-join-the-middle-class/

Wow, I like this statistic

I have read this before and it speaks volumes. It’s not that hard - finish high school, get a job, and don’t get married or pregnant too young. Most middle class teenagers know this without being explicitly told. How do we impart it to everyone else?

No they don't, they are just as ill informed as other teenagers. Their parents just have better access to healthcare and abortions if needed.

I grew up in an ordinary MC area (not DCUM “middle class”) and yes everyone I went to high school with understood that pregnancy would eff up their life, as would drooping out of HS.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only 2 percent of those who follow these three rules are in poverty:

1) Finish high school (at a minimum)
2) Get a full-time job
3) No marriage or children before age 21

https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/three-simple-rules-poor-teens-should-follow-to-join-the-middle-class/

Wow, I like this statistic

I have read this before and it speaks volumes. It’s not that hard - finish high school, get a job, and don’t get married or pregnant too young. Most middle class teenagers know this without being explicitly told. How do we impart it to everyone else?

There should be an advertising campaign to mount this message on subways and buses.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only 2 percent of those who follow these three rules are in poverty:

1) Finish high school (at a minimum)
2) Get a full-time job
3) No marriage or children before age 21

https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/three-simple-rules-poor-teens-should-follow-to-join-the-middle-class/

Wow, I like this statistic

I have read this before and it speaks volumes. It’s not that hard - finish high school, get a job, and don’t get married or pregnant too young. Most middle class teenagers know this without being explicitly told. How do we impart it to everyone else?

No they don't, they are just as ill informed as other teenagers. Their parents just have better access to healthcare and abortions if needed.