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I will be getting a 80k job soon (22yrs old, 1st year from college). It is an engineering job, so it increases with expierence. I will not be mking 80k/yr forever. This is what I plan on spending:
Housing - 1200
Utilities (internet/gas/electricity) - 436
Food - 450
Groceries - 225
Health Insurance - 250
Electronics - 200
Saving - 1100
Gas (car) - 180
Car Insurance - 120
Car payment - 550
Total: 4711
My Monthly take home after tax: 4882
Nothing for entertainment, or is that the food budget? If you find a girlfriend, she is going to nick you for at least a couple bills a month, if not twice that. Dinner, drinks and a show will set you back over $100.
Nothing for clothing? Sooner or later you are going to have to graduate out of sweats and sneakers and start dressing like a professional. It's not a big expense, but you should figure $1k a year.
Nothing for gifts? Laundry? (washer and dryer will set you back at least $1k) Vacations? Savings are not savings if you turn around and spend the money. Be honest and change the name of that item to "incidentals".
$80k is not a huge income. You will be astonished at how fast the money flies away. It may sound like a lot, since you have been an impoverished student, but stick to your frugal ways until you have 6 months income in savings. At that point you can expand a bit, but $80k is not enough to live large in a major city.
Nothing for entertainment, or is that the food budget? If you find a girlfriend, she is going to nick you for at least a couple bills a month, if not twice that. Dinner, drinks and a show will set you back over $100.
Nothing for clothing? Sooner or later you are going to have to graduate out of sweats and sneakers and start dressing like a professional. It's not a big expense, but you should figure $1k a year.
Nothing for gifts? Laundry? (washer and dryer will set you back at least $1k) Vacations? Savings are not savings if you turn around and spend the money. Be honest and change the name of that item to "incidentals".
$80k is not a huge income. You will be astonished at how fast the money flies away. It may sound like a lot, since you have been an impoverished student, but stick to your frugal ways until you have 6 months income in savings. At that point you can expand a bit, but $80k is not enough to live large in a major city.
80k is plenty to live well in Houston. It can be blown easily as well but let's not downplay 80,000
$675 for food and $200 for electronics? If you have no student loans I'd just be saving $2500 a month so I could begin my future out of debt. $550 car payment? Yikes.
Already on a wrong path...
Although I say that now at the age of 45. I too was making money like that at that age and did way worse, I had to learn it the hard way though.
you have high standard young man. Live a little frugal and save a little more in the long run. $550.00 is too much for a car...granted you're young and want to drive a nice car but this payment eats a lot of your $. Depending on where you live, 80k for a 22yr old is very very good. the $675 is probably eat out food and $200.00 is way off. You can do a lot to save a lot. I am 32 and paid off my mortgage...working toward a new house now. To each their own. You can be who want to be but I personally think to have a good life for yourself and your future wifey and kids, you need to start saving now.
Houston evacuated for hurricane Rita (the largest evacuation in US history). Although the storm was less damaging than feared, it was a massive storm and Houston was lucky. Rita caused $12B in damage (total, not just Houston).
I lived in Houston during hurricane Alica in the early 1980s. Houston is subject to extraordinary rain rates and high winds even if it doesn't get the brunt of a hurricane.
How much damage to residential structures was there after Alica?
you have high standard young man. Live a little frugal and save a little more in the long run. $550.00 is too much for a car...granted you're young and want to drive a nice car but this payment eats a lot of your $. Depending on where you live, 80k for a 22yr old is very very good. the $675 is probably eat out food and $200.00 is way off. You can do a lot to save a lot. I am 32 and paid off my mortgage...working toward a new house now. To each their own. You can be who want to be but I personally think to have a good life for yourself and your future wifey and kids, you need to start saving now.
I think OP is basing spending on the (however unreasonable) assumption that income will increase a lot without expenses doing the same, and that there won't be a time when the profession is in less demand than now.
I certainly would be more frugal in OP's situation - because what a lot of people forget is that once you have a family your costs are higher. A friend of mine (who is a couple years out of college) is making the same mistake, only worse than OP by far. He saves nothing at all, and makes the excuse that his income will increase. At the same time, he willfully forgets that his expenses will rise also, in particular, when he has kids and a mortgage.
Looking only at income going up without considering expenses going up is, I suspect, a common error that people make when they get out of college and the dough starts to roll in.
But also, I've never been so into cars that I even so much as fantasized about going so far into debt.
I think OP is basing spending on the (however unreasonable) assumption that income will increase a lot without expenses doing the same, and that there won't be a time when the profession is in less demand than now.
I certainly would be more frugal in OP's situation - because what a lot of people forget is that once you have a family your costs are higher. A friend of mine (who is a couple years out of college) is making the same mistake, only worse than OP by far. He saves nothing at all, and makes the excuse that his income will increase. At the same time, he willfully forgets that his expenses will rise also, in particular, when he has kids and a mortgage.
Looking only at income going up without considering expenses going up is, I suspect, a common error that people make when they get out of college and the dough starts to roll in.
But also, I've never been so into cars that I even so much as fantasized about going so far into debt.
I wouldn't say it's unreasonable, since most people do see income increase without expense increases from the time they get their first job up until they do have kids. Statistically these days, that's usually a couple years away. With most people waiting until about 30, that's almost a decade of increasing income without children.
If the OP has a different plan, then I agree he needs to change his budget, but for the majority of people in their mid twenties, children aren't really a surprise. If they've made it this far knowing how to avoid getting pregnant, they can usually continue doing so.
How much damage to residential structures was there after Alica?
Does it matter if it was 1 or 10,000? Is the purpose of the low cost insurance escaping you? If there was only 1 property damaged and it was your property it would be irrelevant how many others were damaged. You really should stop focusing on singular threats when the insurance covers many of them
Does it matter if it was 1 or 10,000? Is the purpose of the low cost insurance escaping you? If there was only 1 property damaged and it was your property it would be irrelevant how many others were damaged. You really should stop focusing on singular threats when the insurance covers many of them
Is the purpose of not over-estimating risk escaping YOU?
Not all of us care to put money every month towards something that has a 0.005% chance of happening in a given month.
I apologize if this seems irrational, but I live with probabilities, not possibilities. I mean we could just all stay in bed all day to avoid the .0001% chance of being murdered on the sidewalk at 9am, but to what end?
Is the purpose of not over-estimating risk escaping YOU?
Not all of us care to put money every month towards something that has a 0.005% chance of happening in a given month.
I apologize if this seems irrational, but I live with probabilities, not possibilities. I mean we could just all stay in bed all day to avoid the .0001% chance of being murdered on the sidewalk at 9am, but to what end?
There is a difference between overestimating and blatenly disregarding the scenarios. Even more so renters insurance is cheap, realitively speaking except for people who don't own anything such as yourself. You can build strawmen around other scenarios that simply don't apply here.
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