Transportation includes gas, car repairs, parking fees, registration and dues, etc. 10 Things You Need to Know Before Buying Your First Home.However, most people don’t stay in the double income no kids situation.Īdd in a couple kids, a stressed mom who decides to go part-time, sports and school activities, medical emergencies, and suddenly that mortgage payment starts to sink your ship, leaving no room to save or invest. When you’re first married and have double income no kids, it might be easy to make a mortgage payment that is 30-40% of your total take-home pay. If you don’t stick to this rule, it might not be right away, but at some point you will start to become a slave to your mortgage payments.
Your mortgage (or rent) and other housing items should not be more than 25% of your total TAKE HOME pay.
Housing is rent or mortgage PLUS real estate taxes, insurance, repairs, and any HOA or other dues/fees.īeware! Housing is the hole that is sinking most families incomes. We cut the cord on cable, and have DirectTV now, which is about half the price!Īdditionally, we bum off my parents Netflix account… we’re millennials ? HOUSING (15-25%) This is relatively straightforward, but if any of the expenses in this category are busting your budget (like cable TV), then find a way to make these expenses as low as possible. Utilities includes expenses such as trash, electricity, water, internet and cable. The Best Money Saving Grocery Tip for Busy, Frugal Moms.See the resources listed below for more information on how I save thousands every year on groceries! I use a meal planning service called $5 Meal Plan to help me stick to my grocery budget.Įvery Friday I get a custom tailored meal plan delivered right to my inbox! If I don’t like that weeks meal plan, I can login to the site and build my own. We spend only $300 per month on groceries/household items. My LEAST favorite budget category is groceries, but it is the area that we improved the most! Groceries should not eat up more than 10-15% of your income every month.ĭo not estimate this number if you are not on a budget, because I can say with 90% certainty that you’re best guess is way off ?