fat 0Date: 3/29/2009 8:41:22 PM
Author: lovegem
DF, what does ZIPPO mean?
Monarch, I don''t know how much other people save, that''s why I am asking. I believe we are able to save so much now is because we paid off all our student loans last year. We weren''t saving much before that.
Wow! That''s amazing! I don''t think many people can save 60% of their income. Good job!Date: 3/29/2009 6:23:54 PM
Author:lovegem
We have talked about a lot about spending, but how much do you save per month?
We spend ~20% of our pay (after tax) on rent, ~8% on food. Maybe 6% on entertainment and 3% transportation. The rest goes into saving. So that''s about 60% saving.
I hear youDate: 3/29/2009 11:26:37 PM
Author: Mara
Not enough.Esp with 2 mortgages right now.
Date: 3/30/2009 12:54:15 AM
Author: swingirl
Let''s see. 2 kids in college...that puts me pretty close to zippo, too!
Date: 3/29/2009 6:23:54 PM
Author:lovegem
We have talked about a lot about spending, but how much do you save per month?
We spend ~20% of our pay (after tax) on rent, ~8% on food. Maybe 6% on entertainment and 3% transportation. The rest goes into saving. So that's about 60% saving.
That's what I was thinking....we do a monthly budget and have everything broken down into several categories that I don't see here, but maybe she doesn't have these expenses like utilities, cell phones, insurance, gifts, clothing, charity, taxes, etc.Date: 3/30/2009 6:31:19 AM
Author: swimmer
Date: 3/29/2009 6:23:54 PM
Author:lovegem
We have talked about a lot about spending, but how much do you save per month?
We spend ~20% of our pay (after tax) on rent, ~8% on food. Maybe 6% on entertainment and 3% transportation. The rest goes into saving. So that's about 60% saving.
Wow, you don't have any utilities or taxes? I'm impressed. Heating bills kill us.
If she's renting an apt, she probably doesn't have garbage/water/sewer, but still there's got to be other expenses, such as clothes and a telephone (of some sort - landline or cellphone). I take the 3% transportation means bus fare? So no car insurance? Though it's wise to have renters' insurance. What about internet?Date: 3/30/2009 8:42:30 AM
Author: steph72276
That's what I was thinking....we do a monthly budget and have everything broken down into several categories that I don't see here, but maybe she doesn't have these expenses like utilities, cell phones, insurance, gifts, clothing, charity, taxes, etc.Date: 3/30/2009 6:31:19 AM
Author: swimmer
Date: 3/29/2009 6:23:54 PM
Author:lovegem
We have talked about a lot about spending, but how much do you save per month?
We spend ~20% of our pay (after tax) on rent, ~8% on food. Maybe 6% on entertainment and 3% transportation. The rest goes into saving. So that's about 60% saving.
Wow, you don't have any utilities or taxes? I'm impressed. Heating bills kill us.
We are saving 10% into a money market acct. and then 15% into investments. We are also funding our son's education. Then if we know we are doing a big purchase (new furniture, car, etc.) we will save on top of that for those things.
Date: 3/29/2009 6:23:54 PM
Author:lovegem
We have talked about a lot about spending, but how much do you save per month?
We spend ~20% of our pay (after tax) on rent, ~8% on food. Maybe 6% on entertainment and 3% transportation. The rest goes into saving. So that''s about 60% saving.
Date: 3/30/2009 3:04:13 PM
Author: lucyandroger
Well 10% is automatically taken out and put into my 401K. Then I've been putting $3,000/ month into a joint house fund with SO (he's doing the same).
So I guess I've been saving about a third of my gross income.
P.S. - About transportation costs, I just did a rough calculation of mine and they are less than 3% of my take home pay. I take public transportation to and from work everyday. I own a car with SO - our insurance is less than $100/ month, we bought it cash so no car loan, and since we only drive on the weekend, we don't spend that much on gas.
All that to say, I don't think it's crazy to have transportation at 3%.
Date: 3/30/2009 3:46:02 PM
Author: lovegem
Date: 3/30/2009 3:04:13 PM
Author: lucyandroger
Well 10% is automatically taken out and put into my 401K. Then I''ve been putting $3,000/ month into a joint house fund with SO (he''s doing the same).
So I guess I''ve been saving about a third of my gross income.
P.S. - About transportation costs, I just did a rough calculation of mine and they are less than 3% of my take home pay. I take public transportation to and from work everyday. I own a car with SO - our insurance is less than $100/ month, we bought it cash so no car loan, and since we only drive on the weekend, we don''t spend that much on gas.
All that to say, I don''t think it''s crazy to have transportation at 3%.
Lucy is right. Actually, we are lucky that we live a city life. We have good public transport system. That''s why we spend less than 3% on transportation. I also put a big blanket on my calculations re. spending. Our rent includes heat and water, but we pay for electricity which comes to ~$70 per month on average (we are heavy AC users in the summer). That''s part of the 20% (renter''s insurance etc etc are all included). Health insurance and retirement plan contributions are deducted from our paychecks every month. Yes, we do have internet and two prepaid cell phones. No cable TV though.
Actually this is the first year DH and I start to really save. That''s why I want to know how much other people are saving. It is really never a thread meant to make people uncomfortable.
fleur-de-lis, I wish we earned as much as your calculation based on our transportation.