# 76% of Americans Are Living Paycheck-to-Paycheck



## Capt Worley PE (Jun 25, 2013)

> Roughly three-quarters of Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck, with little to no emergency savings, according to a survey released by Bankrate.com Monday.
> 
> Fewer than one in four Americans have enough money in their savings account to cover at least six months of expenses, enough to help cushion the blow of a job loss, medical emergency or some other unexpected event, according to the survey of 1,000 adults. Meanwhile, 50% of those surveyed have less than a three-month cushion and 27% had no savings at all.
> 
> ...




http://finance.yahoo.com/news/76-americans-living-paycheck-paycheck-045900956.html?l=1


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## Lumber Jim (Jun 25, 2013)

maybe if the Government wouldn't take so much from the weekly paycheck and then take the rest through taxing purchases, I'd be able to get ahead!!


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## Krakosky (Jun 25, 2013)

Yep. This is me. I actually just requested to put my student loan into forbearance so I can put that money into savings over the next year. Can't figure out another way to get ahead.


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## guitarjamman (Jun 25, 2013)

I honestly feel like college has A LOT to do with this. I went to a local state university to try and save a penny, but still left with around $600/month student loan payments. My father makes enough money on paper, but with four kids to feed and trying to keep his business in the green, there was not much left to contribute. He went and paid his way with loans, that is the way we all had to do it. That being said, we did not receive any government handouts - we were above the poverty line and were not a special interest group. The middle class is sucked dry in this country and you are left with people who cannot weather a rough patch in the finances.

How on earth can someone who works a job and makes $35K (average) per year afford to put money in savings when there are kids to feed at home and gas tanks to fill? It costs me around $60 to fill my gas tank once a week, spend around $200 a month on groceries (and that is cheap!), have a mortgage to keep good on, etc...

We live paycheck to paycheck and I am not ashamed to admit it either. There is money in savings but surely not enough to cover 6 months of payments. I am not even trying to keep up with the Jones' either!


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## EM_PS (Jun 25, 2013)

&lt;---- In the 3/4 club

sadly have never been good w/ savings accounts - I think taking out a CD or some such instrument would be the only way to keep the $$ out of my grubby mitts where it could actually have a chance to accrue


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## Road Guy (Jun 25, 2013)

But I need a new car and the iPhone 5, and a trip to Belize, how can I afford to save?

I remember being out if school and making $30-40k per year an somehow we managed. And we even put money away in a 401k...

I was driving 40 miles to commute to be able to afford housing though...

I think if you don't start out taking some money out via your check (direct deposit) so that you don't see it your basically fucked.... It teaches you to live with a little less....


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## mudpuppy (Jun 25, 2013)

By their definition, I am living paycheck to paycheck. Their definition is having enough in your savings account to cover 6 months' expenses. I have maybe enough to pay 3 months expenses. But if something should happen and I couldn't work for that long I would either get unemployment or disability insurance payments. And if things somehow got really really bad, I have enough in retirement accounts to live for at least 7-10 years. I would hope I could find a job in that amount of time.

In other words, their statistics are misleading (imagine that).


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 25, 2013)

^FWIW, unemployment isn't taht much. I maxed out at $269/wk, and I don't believe it has gone up appreciably.

It varies per state, I think, though.


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## Lumber Jim (Jun 25, 2013)

^ The work thing is no problem but if not having kids is the way to get there then the 24 percentile isn't the life for me. Good for you though!


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## Road Guy (Jun 25, 2013)

yeah if i didnt have kids i would have 5 years of savings in the bank..


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## Dexman PE PMP (Jun 25, 2013)

But kids come with tax deductions...


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## Master slacker (Jun 25, 2013)

And that makes it AAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL worth it. :huh:


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## Road Guy (Jun 25, 2013)

Kids still put you in the hole. Don't believe the Dino's ....


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## Dexman PE PMP (Jun 25, 2013)

Yep, just like the tax deductions for mortgage intrest. For every $1 you spend towards mortgage interest, your taxes are reduced by ~$0.30, so let's go ahead with that 30-yr refi...


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## Road Guy (Jun 25, 2013)

It's more like .03

Or it is for us.. We don't even get the full child deduction cause were just so super rich!


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## Dexman PE PMP (Jun 25, 2013)

I just enjoy the fact that MP subsidizes my lifestyle...


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## Road Guy (Jun 25, 2013)

X2


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## YMZ PE (Jun 25, 2013)

ngnrd - PE said:


> Except for her car insurance, I fully support my mother, who has lived with us for the past year.
> 
> ...
> 
> _We have no children._ Don't want 'em. Never did. Discussed it early before my girlfriend became my wife.




How are you not getting nagged every day about giving your poor mother grandchildren? That's what impresses me most about your situation.


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## sycamore PE (Jun 25, 2013)

I'm in the 24% and I have one kid. I plan to have more. My husband and I are both engineers and both graduated with no debt. We both had scholarships, worked while in school, and got help from our parents. We drive older cars that we bought cash, and we live in a low cost of living area where our daily commute is less than 3 miles total. We can go weeks without moving a car when the weather's nice.

We're pretty happy and spend a lot on travel. Having 2 engineering salaries definitely makes it easier to be in the 24%.


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 26, 2013)

Biblical scholars say me having children (they cruelly refer to them as spawn....but, whatever) would be the fifth sign of the apocolypse.


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## EM_PS (Jun 26, 2013)

ngnrd - PE said:


> But, we _have_ been a single income family for the past 7+ years.
> 
> _I work my butt off_ for 60-80+ hours a week during the construction season, and actually get paid to work those hours (not on salary). And when my wife was working, she did the same.




Just curious, with no kids, why does your wife not work?


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 26, 2013)

^Staying home with the mother, I'd guess. That's a full time job in itself.


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## mudpuppy (Jun 26, 2013)

I think it's silly for someone like me to keep 6 months of expenses in a savings account. With inflation, savings accounts have a negative return right now. I do have some money in a brokerage account I could get to quickly if I needed to.


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 26, 2013)

^You could also lose a good percentage of it at a shot, and you'd (not you in particular, but folks in general) be likely to raid the fund for a silly impulse purchanse.

Everything is a tradeoff. Your approach is better for the disciplined.


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## Lumber Jim (Jun 26, 2013)

At 30 years old, I don't think we should have a huge savings account. I see us as still in the building and paying off debt stage.

As long as job security is good anyway...


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## csb (Jun 26, 2013)

What's this "job security" you speak of?


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## Flyer_PE (Jun 26, 2013)

The only job security that exists is what you bring to the table for you NEXT employer. Anything else is purely an illusion.


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## envirotex (Jun 26, 2013)

Sometimes I think we are getting ahead, but then we have to get a new AC, or new roof, or pay deductibles because Tex Jr. broke another bone and needs surgery...Then we start over.

We don't use credit, and I put money into our retirement funds every paycheck, but I does seem pretty hard to build up as much savings as I think we need for a cushion and maintain it.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Jun 26, 2013)

I'm in the 75% too, but I know full well I'm there by choice. I don't NEED the car I drive, or the large house, and even the fact I have kids was a choice Mrs Dex and I made. My wife chose to go back to school to get a 2nd degree (her 1st degree was essentially useless).

I don't ever think we've ever considered ourselves in a position where we're "getting ahead".


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 26, 2013)

Only a 1% raise since 2007 is beginning to catch up with me. Started grocery shopping at Walmart this year to make up for the 2% increase in payroll taxes and insurance increases.

Don't buy new books from Amazon anymore and wait for the to get down to a penny or so before I pull the trigger with the Amazon resellers.


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## wilheldp_PE (Jun 26, 2013)

You'll be able to get ahead in 2014 when health care finally becomes "Affordable."


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## YMZ PE (Jun 26, 2013)

envirotex said:


> Sometimes I think we are getting ahead, but then we have to get a new AC, or new roof, or pay deductibles because Tex Jr. broke another bone and needs surgery...Then we start over.
> 
> We don't use credit, and I put money into our retirement funds every paycheck, but I does seem pretty hard to build up as much savings as I think we need for a cushion and maintain it.




This is us too. My husband and I recently got enormous raises from promotions and changing jobs. We thought we'd be able to save up for a new car over the next few months before Baby YMZ starts preschool in the fall, but sh!t keeps happening and we lose the extra income.

On the other hand, we're contributing the max to our retirement funds and a few thousand each year to college savings for the kids, so I think we're doing okay in the big picture.


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## Guest (Jun 26, 2013)

mudpuppy said:


> I think it's silly for someone like me to keep 6 months of expenses in a savings account. *With inflation, savings accounts have a negative return right now.* I do have some money in a brokerage account I could get to quickly if I needed to.


QFT



YMZ PE said:


> envirotex said:
> 
> 
> > Sometimes I think we are getting ahead, but then we have to get a new AC, or new roof, or pay deductibles because Tex Jr. broke another bone and needs surgery...Then we start over.
> ...


QFT +1


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## Lumber Jim (Jun 26, 2013)

YMZ PE said:


> envirotex said:
> 
> 
> > Sometimes I think we are getting ahead, but then we have to get a new AC, or new roof, or pay deductibles because Tex Jr. broke another bone and needs surgery...Then we start over.
> ...






Us too. I'll be changing jobs soon, the wife wants to go back to school, and we just found out there'll be another little one in January. We haven't taken from our savings since April but i'm sure this will change soon.

We are not pinching pennies, have some toys that I never had as a child, and overall feel pretty good about our finances.

I can appreciate those that decide not to have kids. Afterall, Christmas time is great when the aunt and uncle show up to open gifts with all their nieces and nephews...


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 26, 2013)

Pimpin' ain't easy.


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## Ble_PE (Jun 26, 2013)

I guess I'm not in the 26% either, but we do have a decent amount saved up for emergencies. I'd say that we have enough to last around 4 months or so. But we are definitely not living paycheck-to-paycheck. I max out the wife and my Roth IRAs and then put about 7% into my work 401k. On top of that, we save a decent amount each year for the kids college funds, so I feel like we're doing pretty good considering we're doing all of this on my salary. The mrs. stays at home with the kids and will continue to do so at least until the youngest is in school full time. Once she goes back to work we'll start saving more.


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## Road Guy (Jun 26, 2013)

I keep around $10K that I can get to in a hurry (money market account) I put the rest of everything else pre tax in 401K's and such and figure if I ever really need the money I will just tap into that and take the tax hit...

I have been doing 15-20% of the salary since I started working full time in 1998.. it had grown to a respectable number, I try and not look at it. I am sure Obama looks at it though and wants to find a way to tax it just for sitting there..

I dont personally see the need to keep $50,000 in checking to be honest...someone write down where MP and I agree


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## EM_PS (Jun 26, 2013)

Yeah, we're def not living paycheck to paycheck, but nor do we have 6 mo. (or even 3 mo.) salary in savings. We both contribute to 401s, are insured to the hilt, &amp; my wife has stock options available once per year which we usually cash in for large chunk debt reduction &amp; for vacay's.


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## YMZ PE (Jun 26, 2013)

Lumber Jim said:


> Us too. I'll be changing jobs soon, the wife wants to go back to school, and we just found out there'll be another little one in January. We haven't taken from our savings since April but i'm sure this will change soon.




Congrats on the new Little Jim!


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## knight1fox3 (Jun 26, 2013)

Savings can be achieved on almost any income level. It just takes some discipline. I've made reference to it before, but following most of the guidelines in Dave Ramsey's "Financial Peace", a lot is possible. Following his models, we were debt free before we bought our first home. Granted we were behind most of our friends who had bought homes 5 years or so prior to us, but we were able to eliminate our debt. Kids can go the same way if planned accordingly. A good base savings can make it so there is virtually no impact to regular spending habits. I have friends who bought homes and had kids all in the same year. Hard to get ahead that way. Financial Peace also talks about having 6 months worth of expenses saved up (or emergency fund), which we also have.

Just my 2 cents.


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## YMZ PE (Jun 27, 2013)

knight1fox3 said:


> I have friends who bought homes and had kids all in the same year. Hard to get ahead that way.




Also us. Thank God people like MP are around to subsidize both of these activities for me.


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## Capt Worley PE (Jun 27, 2013)

knight1fox3 said:


> I have friends who bought homes and had kids all in the same year.




We got married, bought a house, bought a truck, and got a cat all in about a year.

Waaaaaay cheaper than kids!


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## Lumber Jim (Jun 27, 2013)

YMZ PE said:


> Lumber Jim said:
> 
> 
> > Us too. I'll be changing jobs soon, the wife wants to go back to school, and we just found out there'll be another little one in January. We haven't taken from our savings since April but i'm sure this will change soon.
> ...


Thanks!!


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