How to stop living paycheck to paycheck

amother

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 10:15 am

Any advice? I had a payroll mixup last year and my paycheck stopped being delivered electronically and was delayed in the mail twice in a row- we had to borrow cash to make it through the month.

We make around 130k after taxes and insurance and all that. However, between mortgage and other payments we are just breaking even. Has anyone had success increasing their reserves/ savings and giving themselves more breathing room in their budget?

amother

Heather

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 10:28 am

Yes!! Started scrimping and saving. Drastically cut down our food and clothing costs, even though our incomes indicate that we “should” be comfortable in those areas. (Hand me downs from sister in laws, we eat what’s on sale, etc) BH we’re much more comfortable now, it’s a state of mind (for me) we look more poor than we are, but much prefer that over looking wealthier than we really are.

amother

Lightcoral

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 10:39 am

Sure we have. Some of what we did:

- find a better paying job
- take on extra work/ second job
- cut spending. This takes creativity but is very doable if you really want to

Beyond that I'm not aware of any magic solutions. Once you have some emergency savings you can start a second account for other savings and invest it for a real boost. But you'll need your own cushion first.

amother

Fern

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 10:41 am

In the past, we've managed to put away a nice amount every month. Since inflation hit, we've basically been living paycheck to paycheck. We live very frugal. But everything costs so much. It's crazy.

amother

Lilac

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 11:41 am

We cut down on our expenses dramatically within the past few years simply by moving OOT to a much more affordable community, that also has school vouchers.

We've saved over $30,000 since 2020 just by that alone.

amother

Seafoam

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 11:42 am

Really it all boils down to what hashem decides. You could work 4 jobs and still not make ends meet because of the expenses that pop up. And you could land an amazing part time job and be very comfortable. Not much is in our control past hishtadlus. That being said, my husband and I each work about 6 hours a day and make ends meet through our job but wouldn’t necessarily have extras or enough to put away.
My husband has a small side gig (which seems to just lose money so far, but I’m staying quiet) and I have a side business as well that bh really adds. This year I made an extra 50k from it. We work hard and therefore are able to have the lifestyle we live.

amother

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 11:43 am

amother [ Lilac ] wrote:

Wow! We actually live OOT but I still find that our expenses are probably comparable to those in NY/NJ. In what ways did yours go down?

amother

Almond

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 11:43 am

Follow the Dave Ramsey method along with the every dollar app. Someone taught it to us fir like $100-$200. One of his baby steps after paying off debt is to create an emergency fund so these things don't happen

amother

Snapdragon

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 1:02 pm

I voted live paycheck to paycheck but overall we're a little more comfortable than that.

We have a savings account for simchas. Money goes in here weekly, automatically from our main account.
No wriggle room though. It's tight month to month.

amother

Lemonchiffon

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 1:13 pm

What is this business?

amother [ Seafoam ] wrote:

amother

Jetblack

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 1:16 pm

Yes, when we got married my paycheck didn't cover basic food.
I didnt have a high earning potential, but we created a basic budget for all our needs and I started job hunting.
I got a job, but the pay was at least 10k BH BH more than I budgeted and we counted every penny and put away as much as we could. I got raises and any extra money that we received such as birthday or chanuka money tax refund etc were put away as well.
Only when we hit 100k in savings did we start breathing a bit.
Everyone around us thinks we're poor, but they were definitely scratching their heads when we paid cash for a car, etc.
At this point, we save for retirement and some basic savings, but due to our specific situation are not saving much more than that temporarily.

We never had any debt I just ran through my pre marriage savings, but I did follow Dave Ramsey.

amother

Blonde

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 1:48 pm

Having a variable stream of income helps for many reasons besides for salary.
Wether it’s an investment, service, side gig or whatever

It gives extra income.
And from a haskafic viewpoint having a variable income stream ‘allows’ Hashem to adjust your income bderech tevah.

amother

Hotpink

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 2:27 pm

amother [ Lemonchiffon ] wrote:

Stop being frum 😖

Eh.
I compared every camp in Brooklyn, the frum camps for 8 weeks are about $1800, while the Aviator or Prospect park day camp are closer to 4k.
Frum daycare is about $650 a month, mainstream Brooklyn daycare is closer to $1000.
Rent and transportation costs are same.
Liebers chocolate chips are less than $3. The equivalent size package in a mainstream grocery in my neighborhood is $4.
Kosher chicken and meat is pricey but not the difference in price people make it to be.
I can go on.
You can say to move to a cheaper neighborhood.
(I do recognize tuition as a huge expense, but frum private schools are a lot cheaper than other private schools in NYC.)

amother

Lilac

Fri, Jun 10 2022, 3:02 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Wow! We actually live OOT but I still find that our expenses are probably comparable to those in NY/NJ. In what ways did yours go down?

Our rent went from $2700 to $1250 per month by moving OOT. Single home, same square footage. Our tuition costs went from around $8k per child to under $4k per child, with state vouchers. Granted we make a little less, kosher food costs a bit more, but we are still waaaaay ahead compared to where we once were.