One month has passed since we decided to make a go at living off of a single high school teacher's salary. We started this challenge for two main reasons: the first, was to see how it would be for us to live if only one of us worked. The second, was to show how difficult it is for single income families. One thing to remember when looking into this budget we do not have a house payment or any other loan payments. It definitely did not leave much of a cushion for us and luckily we do have a second income coming in to provide that safety net. When you really look into the numbers, it makes total since why so many people struggle to get ahead financially. Here is a look into what we budgeted for March and what we actually spent for the month:
We feel that our first month of the challenge was a success coming out with $42.47 left in our pockets at the end of the month. We know that if we only had one source of income we would still have to make some major cuts, because $40 doesn't go very far when you need to pay for a car repair of something else breaking down in your home. In our case we do have another income and by sticking to the budget we were able to save every penny of our other income. This month we received a small tax refund too, which we were also able to save. So for the month of March we were able to put back over $6,800! Most of the money will be put towards replacing our home furnace and a/c unit. We are going to continue to challenge ourselves in April and see if we can continue to stay on a one income budget. We will post our April results at the end of the month.
2017 Goals Update Goal #1 Max out our 401k ($18,000).
We are well on our way towards maxing out our 401k account. At the end of March we have
contributed $6,726. This puts us at 37.3% of our goal which is well ahead of the game!
Goal #2 Invest $250 a week for a total of $13,000 for the year.
We have saved $3,633 in our investment account so far this year. This puts us at 27.9% of
our goal, just slightly ahead of schedule.
Goal #3 Saving $200 a month for purchasing an automobile.
We have put back $200 each month for a total of $600 this year. Right on pace to reach this
goal, although we may have to accelerate our savings in the near future as the old pickup has
seen better days.
Goal #4 Saving $400 a month for home repairs.
We have saved $1,200 for home repairs and we may need to use the extra money we have
been working to save this last month to replace our furnace and a/c unit in our home.
Goal #5Save $3,600 to take a two week vacation to California.
So far we have saved $800 towards our big summer trip. We have started looking into some
of the things we would like to do on the trip and we can't wait until the time is here!
There are times for all of us when it is difficult to stay on track. You question whether you are doing the right thing when you are saving large percentages of your income and doing without something that you may really enjoy today. We are proud to be completely debt free, but that does not mean we are completely against any type of debt. There are many situations where debt can help you to reach goals. Some examples would be to grow a business or purchase rental property. The key is to manage your debt and not be in a situation where you have no cushion. It relieves tons of stress knowing you have extra money when unexpected circumstances arise. We are writing this blog not only to help us stay on track, but to also show people that if you do the work and keep track of your finances, everyday people can get out of the paycheck to paycheck life!
Stay tuned to see how the month of April goes for us and let us know how you budget!
