You most certainly can. You just aren't going to have a bedroom for every kid, two shiny new cars in the driveway, cell phones for everyone with dataplans, name brand clothing and the ultra deluxe 400 channel satellite package.
We've been bombarded with services, subscriptions, and designer products. Yes...you can live without those. And many people can and do...and with a family on a reasonably modest income.
Cars are the crux of the middle class. Instead of putting $400 a month into a Roth most people are putting that into a car payment. Even splitting the difference between a $200 a month car payment and $200 a month into a Roth would leave them in halfway decent shape in 30 years.
My sister and brother in law are in that situation. Neither are college educated, they probably make $50k a year combined, rent an apartment but have $600 or more in car payments. No savings other than what he'll get for a modest military pension (he's low end grunt level coast guard). They want kids now and will never make it over the hump.
When I was fresh out of college I was in that same mentality...slowly came back around. Now my wife and I have two cars worth a combined total of probably $15,000 and have another 5 years of low cost use out of one and 3-4 out of the other.
That's closer, still seems boldIt's closer to $40k a year we're shoveling into long term retirement accts.
Yes you can survive but your not saving.
I'm glad your world happens to be perfect where life never hands you anything unexpected. :thumbsup:
Continue to ignore the fact that a household 40-50 years ago could easily be sustained on a single income. Today it just cannot.
Lets just assume also in your perfect world anyone earning less than 40k couldn't have kids.(china style) What would that do to our population/economy and everything else?
You most certainly can. You just aren't going to have a bedroom for every kid, two shiny new cars in the driveway, cell phones for everyone with dataplans, name brand clothing and the ultra deluxe 400 channel satellite package.
We've been bombarded with services, subscriptions, and designer products. Yes...you can live without those. And many people can and do...and with a family on a reasonably modest income.
Yes you can. Hell just taking your child credit each year at the end of tax season and dropping it in a Roth IRA for the next year will put you in halfway decent shape.
Please note that I talk based on midwest cost of living. Not a coast. I can buy a completely liveable 3BR house here for under $100k.
This a million times over. For example, I'm married, no kids. We rent a townhome, we own one car outright (worth maybe $5000 now). Our monthly budgeted expenses (not including retirement, savings, or giving) comes out to just about $2200. That includes, gas, electricity, water, internet, two cell phone plans, health insurance, car insurance, life insurance, groceries, home repairs, and a decent sized "fun fund." And I'd say we are living pretty well, we eat out a few times a month, take vacations, etc. If money were tighter we could squeeze out a few hundred a month and live more conservatively if we needed, and a few hundred more if we rented a smaller place.
We live in the far suburbs of Chicago (cost of living is around the national average we where are). $2200*12=$26400. And I'd be comfortable saying that we could live fairly well as two people on $26400.
This is completely idiotic. This is why we need more financial education.
Why is it a surprise you are living comfortably on a dual income with no kids?
...
And of course the gov't isn't helping, constantly coming to the rescue of the stupid. Look how much of the federal budget is going toward the elderly now, and that's only going to go up. Now there's talk of means-testing Social Security, so all you smart people who decided not to spend ALL your money now and actually put some away might lose SS so it can go to those who chose to live for today and not worry about the future. But thanks for paying into the system anyway!
I don't know midwest at all. Here that would get you a dilapidated shack. Or something so far in the woods, the commute to your 40k job would cost you hundreds in gas per month.
Regardless of how you spin it, having a kid when it is financially cancerous to your family is an idiotic decision. There are adequate birth control and abortion clinics available to where any child you have is definitely a conscious decision.
You can have a child on a 40k/year income, you just won't be able to live the same lifestyle you had before (this is true for any income). Especially if you were already living a lifestyle you could not afford.
lol you do live in a fairy tail land. What if my xyz family member dies in a horrific car accident....am I going to see their kids(my blood family) goto state care and be apart of the abusive foster system? Hell no.
LIFE HAPPENS AND ITS NOT ALWAYS A CHOICE.
One person could easily make $26400 in a year, that's hardly the average dual income earning household. The point being that if needed, we could live off of less than my wife's income (she's a second year teacher).
Why save when the government is printing so much money your savings will be worthless by the time you get around to using it?
http://www.fsbolocal.com/viewPropertyAd.htm?id=15271
That's in a great community with excellent schools and is about a 10-15 minute drive from one of the larger cities in Central, IL
One person could easily make $26400 in a year, that's hardly the average dual income earning household. The point being that if needed, we could live off of less than my wife's income (she's a second year teacher).
That's why you have life insurance to the tune of 10x your yearly income. So if you die, you don't leave your family in financial hardship. Term life is so cheap its simply irresponsible for someone with a family not to have it.
Perfect world again where everyone is rich and has huge life insurance policies.
I had $50,000 saved by the time I was 30, but now I'm not adding to it (although I do have a pension as well).
I used to save 15% of each paycheck until day care came around. Now I'm living paycheck to paycheck, and then I have to start saving for the kid's college which will be ridiculously high I'm sure.
I have $400k on me for an outrageous and back breaking price of $18/month, with that price locked in for 20 years.
Granted I'm fairly young and healthy, but still, term life is really really cheap
The cost of day care is pretty much the most ridiculous thing ever.
*edit* I've got it. The government should force anyone who is receiving social security to become babysitters. Anyone receiving welfare should be forced to perform community service.
QFMFT. The first place we had our daughter at was $1200 a month for infant care. $1200 a month. My first mortgage was only $610 a month with P&I.
We've since switched out to a place that's subsidized by our employers and it's now down to $750 a month...but still. That's just an assload of money a month going out.
It's not cost effective for my wife or I to go part time/single income since we make much more than that a month, but it's real easy to see why so many people chose to go that route.