[XYR03]

this thread actually motivated me a bit. I think the first and biggest move I should make is to stay off of this forum to stop buying car parts which seems to be the biggest amount going out after my mortgage. yikes!

[Simple5]

Same boat.. I opened up a savings account at a local credit union and every time I get paid I funnel money in there and forget about it. Now when I spend money I dont feel so bad because I am putting money off to the side

[NAV8TT]

Originally Posted by XYR03

this thread actually motivated me a bit. I think the first and biggest move I should make is to stay off of this forum to stop buying car parts which seems to be the biggest amount going out after my mortgage. yikes!

same here, now every pay check is minus 20% which goes to my savings. I need to work more on the weekly spending though

[kevinbahnz]

Since we're on the subject of money, I have a question and It may depend on many variables but how long would it take to save up $100,000. Lets say a combined $100k net income , 2 kids, with little to no debt. approx. $1500/rent and utilities. How long would it take that family to save up $100k?

[double_j]

Originally Posted by kevinbahnz

Since we're on the subject of money, I have a question and It may depend on many variables but how long would it take to save up $100,000. Lets say a combined $100k net income , 2 kids, with little to no debt. approx. $1500/rent and utilities. How long would it take that family to save up $100k?

Lesson 1 in money management. Learn to think for yourself. There is no one size fits all magic formula.

Figure out how much you can realistically target to save per month. Divide that by 100,000. That's how long it takes to save 100,000.

My random guess...you'll never save 100,000 if you live what's become a normal lifestyle nowadays, 10 years if you can force yourselves to drive 'basic' cars and to deprive yourselves of some 'necessities', 5 years if you live a lifestyle that would have your neighbors thinking of you as 'the poor people' in the neighborhood.

[Comet]

Originally Posted by ONE-77

same here, now every pay check is minus 20% which goes to my savings. I need to work more on the weekly spending though

seriously, use my technique... it'll work
try it!

[XYR03]

Originally Posted by Comet

seriously, use my technique... it'll work
try it!

Read your technique...pretty interesting. I might run it for a week see what happens.

[NAV8TT]

Originally Posted by kevinbahnz

Since we're on the subject of money, I have a question and It may depend on many variables but how long would it take to save up $100,000. Lets say a combined $100k net income , 2 kids, with little to no debt. approx. $1500/rent and utilities. How long would it take that family to save up $100k?

If you are able to save the minimum which is 10% of your income, you will be able to save that amount in 10 yrs as long as you stick to the plan. Thing is, money is not buying what it used to buy years ago, I guess because of the economy. Hence, I don't know what a $100,000 will buy in 10yrs.

[JasonCSU]

Originally Posted by Comet

The problem with cards is that you don't actually see your money disappearing. But with cash, end of the night, when you go home, and look inside your wallet, you know exactly how much you spent.

This is true, however I still prefer using a card for benefits like cash back and miles. There is also the benefit of being able to download your credit card transactions and import them into a money management application to track your spending habits.

Originally Posted by Comet

Coke is like 5$ here.. I eat out 2 times a day. 5$*2*7=70$ on fucking Pepsi! It doesn't seem like much, but take the appetizer too
15$*7*2=210$

280$ saved per week by cutting out useless gluttony.

280$*52=14,560$ PER YEAR on fucking pepsi and chicken fingers!
3,640$ of it being Pepsi! that's a nice business class ticket to Europe man!

I started doing this years ago with soda while eating out too. The expense may not seem like much at first to most people, though it certainly adds up like your example shows. There's also the benefit of cutting out all that extra sugar from your diet.

[bga23]

Originally Posted by kevinbahnz

Since we're on the subject of money, I have a question and It may depend on many variables but how long would it take to save up $100,000. Lets say a combined $100k net income , 2 kids, with little to no debt. approx. $1500/rent and utilities. How long would it take that family to save up $100k?

We're missing more info on your other spending - food/groceries, gas, car payments, clothes, travel, etc...

Without this info one can't say how long it'll take.

[Seminole]

For those interested, here is a budget workpaper I had made a while back. Should be self explanatory.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/72984322/Bud...Workpaper.xlsx

[kevinbahnz]

Originally Posted by bga23

We're missing more info on your other spending - food/groceries, gas, car payments, clothes, travel, etc...

Without this info one can't say how long it'll take.

I know. I just wanted to see how long does an average middle class family of four takes to save up the first 100k and see if I am on track. I was unemployed from 2009-2010 and spent all my savings, I just started making some real money and paid off all my debts including the car and now putting back into my savings.

[Comet]

Originally Posted by JasonCSU

This is true, however I still prefer using a card for benefits like cash back and miles. There is also the benefit of being able to download your credit card transactions and import them into a money management application to track your spending habits.

Cash in hand is money management on the fly
Cash back & miles is great, but what's the point of them if you can't afford being in a new country with those miles because you can't manage your cash properly.

[JasonCSU]

Originally Posted by Comet

Cash in hand is money management on the fly
Cash back & miles is great, but what's the point of them if you can't afford being in a new country with those miles because you can't manage your cash properly.

Haha, that's a good point. I suppose the perks of the card aren't worth it if the card holder doesn't have the willpower to use it responsibly.

[IFX]

Much of the problem is prioritizing.

I see tons of people driving 10', 11' and 12' vehicles and coming out of the rental apartments down the street from me. And most of them are IS250's, 328i's etc.


Let's assume their leasing, (which most likely is the case nowadays) their tossing out at least 400 bucks a month on a car they don't need. Then, rent, which is about 1000.

That's 1400 dollars a month for two things you won't ever own, nor will you be able to liquidate it at any point down the line.

I would personally rather jump into a house and drive pos beater, then to be leaving in an apartment. (I mean no disrespect to anyone)

I just feel 40k millionaires rule the U.S nowadays. Or maybe they always did and I wasn't old enough to realize it? lol

It's all about need vs want.