Why is saving money so hard?

[Safeway]

Hey, this forum needs someone like him to get traffic up again.

It's been a long time since I have posted here regularly. A long time. Back when JokerSmoker only posted Text. Enjoy. and RossMAN posted way too frequently.

Maybe I left long enough to form some unpopular opinions and to lose touch with the user base here.

 

[brianmanahan]

Maybe I left long enough to form some unpopular opinions and to lose touch with the user base here.

at ATOT, we all make over 100$k but save at least half of that. that way we can doublebrag about our income AND our thriftiness :biggrin:

 

[Safeway]

at ATOT, we all make over 100$k but save at least half of that. that way we can doublebrag about our income AND our thriftiness :biggrin:

Hey, I can do that. Wait, I did already.

 

[Mai72]

Found $20 laying on the payment yesterday.

I visualized I was going to make money, and walla!!

 

[Jumpem]

$10k net per month should be living, and saving, very well in Texas. I live quite comfortably on less than half of that in monthly expenses in high tax NY. I have a small home in a good neighborhood, a new car, and kids in daycare.

 

[brianmanahan]

and walla!!

* voila

 

[Safeway]

$10k net per month should be living, and saving, very well in Texas. I live quite comfortably on less than half of that in monthly expenses in high tax NY. I have a small home in a good neighborhood, a new car, and kids in daycare.

In my hypothetical, the $2500/month put towards loans could also pay for 2 additional children in daycare (or, a cheaper alternative, a nanny), two brand new BMW 750Li leases, etc. That $2500/month would buy some luxury.

 

[ponyo]

I don't think Safeway numbers are that way off. Looks pretty reasonable to me.

 

[Ns1]

I don't think Safeway numbers are that way off. Looks pretty reasonable to me.

says the dude that drops 20k so his wife and kid can play in Asia.


nothing wrong with that btw.

 

[SketchMaster]

Safeway,

I think at this point I'm just going to say that we can agree to disagree. I also came from a low income home, and watched my Mom struggle to raise a family of eight on a fixed income of 50K/yr from my Dad’s disability check.

You feel that 10K a month is what it takes to raise a family, live comfortably, and still pack away money. That's your pain tolerance, and that's fine because you have the means to live like that. If you gave me 6K to go on top of my 4K I take home each month, I'd say thank you very much and keep living the way I live; because I'm comfortable giving up some of the things that you aren't willing to give up. Sure I'd adjust when a kid comes into the equation, but I'd still have more than I needed.

I used to feel that no matter how much money I made, it just wasn't enough. That drive did get me into an awesome career with just a GED because I was always more hungry than the person next to me, but it also made me lose touch with reality. I was so caught up in looking at what others had, and wanting to have what they had, that I didn't realize chasing some imagined lifestyle was making me miserable.

"I need more money so I can have nicer things!"
"I make more money, now I can get better things!"
"I have better things, but that person has something better… I need more money to get that thing!"

And so on. Until I was stressed the hell out and up to my eyeballs in debt when I tried to take the easy way to the lifestyle I wanted. Even after all that, I still felt like I didn't have enough. Then about a year and a half ago something clicked while a friend chastised me for the way I burnt money, and I stopped chasing things and started chasing something else: Freedom. I stopped caring about how others lived, dressed, ate, or traveled because I only cared about one thing: Paying off my debt and finding out what made me happy.

Am I there yet? Well, I’m debt free and feel a hell of a lot better with the direction I’m going with my life. The friend that helped me get my act together is now my steady girlfriend, and may end up moving in with me in two months. I know I care about eating well, having a reliable car, a safe home, improving myself by continuing my degree, and being in a healthy relationship; but everything after that is gravy.

TLDR:
It’s fine to say that 10K is the ideal take home money to raise a small family, but realize that your wants/needs are not the same as everyone else. Also realize that it is very much out of reach for a lot of people in their current situations.

P.s.

Also. Please do not imagine me as one of those unbearable Austin 20-somethings preaching to you in a bar about how they totally have life figured out. I'm still a grumpy New Englander at heart and dress like actually have work to do so I can pay taxes.

And I have no idea what the hell I'm doing.

 

[JackBurton]

I'd just like to clear up the statement, Dallas is Dallas. In this context, not true at all. You have South Dallas and North Dallas. The part Safeway is referring to is North Dallas. South Dallas is a whole different world. And by "world" I mean huge ghetto. You don't want to step foot in South Dallas. North Dallas is the nice part, and yes, real estate has definitely been on the rise in the last 2 years. That being said, most of it is made up of people with varying income, but most are just "average people". The crazy rich are in a small neighborhood called Highland Park which is part of North Dallas. There are other really nice neighborhoods in N Dallas, but that is like the Beverly Hills of Dallas.

 

[brianmanahan]

at ATOT, we all make over 100$k but save at least half of that. that way we can doublebrag about our income AND our thriftiness :biggrin:

Hey, I can do that. Wait, I did already.

 

[Engineer]

LOLOLOL....that's perfect!!!

You win ATOT....for tonight! :biggrin:

 

[Safeway]

Which one am I? Hopefully the less round one.

 

[Safeway]

I'd just like to clear up the statement, Dallas is Dallas. In this context, not true at all. You have South Dallas and North Dallas. The part Safeway is referring to is North Dallas. South Dallas is a whole different world. And by "world" I mean huge ghetto. You don't want to step foot in South Dallas. North Dallas is the nice part, and yes, real estate has definitely been on the rise in the last 2 years. That being said, most of it is made up of people with varying income, but most are just "average people". The crazy rich are in a small neighborhood called Highland Park which is part of North Dallas. There are other really nice neighborhoods in N Dallas, but that is like the Beverly Hills of Dallas.

I grew up in South Dallas. I now live in Lakewood in East Dallas, with a view of WRL.

And, really, University Park <<< Highland Park < Preston Hollow.

 

[JackBurton]

I grew up in South Dallas. I now live in Lakewood in East Dallas, with a view of WRL.

And, really, University Park <<< Highland Park < Preston Hollow.

True.

 

[JMapleton]

Dallas sucks. /thread

 

[kaerflog]

Listen this thread is about "why is saving money hard".
You come in here and talk about your $10K post-tax income.
Most people who have a hard time saving money can't relate to the type of income you're bringing in.
This is why you are out of touch with reality.

 

[WhoBeDaPlaya]

Exactly, and the 'burbs ain't Dallas. I live in Lakewood and can't imagine having to commute further than I currently do.

I _love_ my current accommodations! At Preston and Alpha, ~2.5 miles from work (Belt Line and Midway), close to everything I need (restaurants, Microcenter, Fry's, etc.)

This part is too true, a lot of people think 130K/year somehow corresponds to Scrooge McDuck money pools...

^ This. Hell, I'm single, no debts (student / car / etc) and while I have a bunch squirreled away, I still don't feel "rich" (supercar, supermodel, sipping Dom every night, etc.)
Salaries in my line of work (physical design) have been pretty much stagnant for the past decade. Could have been making more money (even _without_ accounting for inflation) back in the late 90s / early 2000s.

That said, I do appreciate what I have and can't imagine entire families living on a combined household income that is less than what I make now.

 

[brianmanahan]

Which one am I? Hopefully the less round one.

nope sorry, you're the round one

 

[kranky]

Safeway,

I think at this point I'm just going to say that we can agree to disagree...

:thumbsup: Not too many people can recover from consumerism and keeping up with the Joneses. Good for you.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

As others have said - kids are expensive. My wife and I pay ~28,000 a year for daycare for our two kids. Thankfully my son is eligible for public school before and after care next year. That will save me ~9,000 next year.

That said, I found that a great way to spend money is to set up automatic transfers that post the same day or the day after your paycheck. I have ~10 of them which target various accounts. 529 for kids, general savings, long term investments, short term investments, etc. Anything I have in my basic checking and savings accounts I can spend (within reason). This approach is particularly good for people who lack self control, as it moves money out of readily accessible accounts before it can be spent.

 

[rh71]

OP, are you renting or something? That's the biggest waste first of all. A mortgage is also a big cost but there are benefits to doing it.

After daycare, saving became a lot easier for us and should be for most families.

 

[mvbighead]

OP, are you renting or something?

It really comes down to this for me. And when I think of rent, I think of ANYTHING with a recurring monthly balance.

There was a time early on when my wife and I weren't doing very well, and after we spent several months slowly digging away from the debt, we took one major swing at it and wiped away considerable portions of the debt.

We were paying roughly $400 plus per month of two car payments. It's not much, but it adds up over time. My wife was driving a coupe and I had a 4 door sedan. My wife's mother was ill and there was a lot of driving around that had to be done with 3 or more persons. She kept driving my car and I was in her smaller coupe that was not comfortable nor very practical for us at the time. My wife enjoyed driving my car, so I suggested we sell hers, she take mine, and we buy something with cash from her car and use whatever is left over against what debts we had.

It ended up being that we sold her car for $11500 (I think), and bought a $6000 car. We then took the $5500 and knocked out some debt. We then had more money each month to pay off other bills. It was less than a year and we were done.

Looking back at that time, it was fairly stressful and some arguments were had about our debt. We never had much more than 8-10k that I can recall, but that 8-10 can feel like a heckuva a lot.

Now, some 5 years later, I follow the same principle. We do have car payments now, but we are making considerably more than we did then. And we now have more money available to us than we have debt (mortgage excluded). Credit cards are payed off each and every month. We buy random stuff all the time, but we always have the money for it.

If you have an asset of significant value that you could get by with considerably less, that's where I would start. I realize people enjoy nice new cars, but some people really would be better off buying a reliable old one until their financial situation makes a car payment easy to deal with. And if you're living month to month, you probably shouldn't have a car payment if you can avoid it.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

OP, are you renting or something? That's the biggest waste first of all. A mortgage is also a big cost but there are benefits to doing it.

After daycare, saving became a lot easier for us and should be for most families.

No this is stupid. Renting is not a waste. The idea that having a mortgage is somehow this amazing thing is why housing crashes happen. Renting gives you tons of benefits that mortgages strip away.