Do you live below, at or above your means?

well i can see both sides, you cant take it with you, but you dont want to be bankrupt at 40...the people that are past retirement age i say spend whatever you think you can afford to. at least thats what i expect to do.

 

I live a very frugal life and managed to have a few thousand in a savings account and a few thousand balance in my checking/debit account if I need it. I don't have a credit rating that I know of - never borrow.

I also have the means to bail out family members when they have a cash-flow problem (unemployed and other loss of income the last few years).

For myself, I can enjoy buying DVD's on a whim, take the occasional Caribbean cruise to get away (I take the county bus to the Port of Miami and walk in - it is really cheap if you already live here) or train trip around the country.

My biggest expense is rent on a one-room efficiency $680 a month. But Location, Location - I live on Miami Beach, 4 blocks from the ocean.

I don't own a car and bike everywhere I want to go - and weather permits me to do that year-round.

 

I don't know if this was directed at my situation but I should say....we split the money as I described back on page 2 or 3 but it is less about splitting the money and more about just splitting the responsibilities. The things I'm responsible for taking care of are things I would be more familiar with and vice versa. Whatever each has left is theirs to use for whatever they want. Absolutely no arguments about money.

Hell....she just bought some custom purse/bag that you design yourself and then they make it for you. She didn't tell me about it or ask my permission. She showed it to me when it got here and was telling me about it and I said "Cool....how much did that cost?" She said "You probably don't want to know." I was like...yeah...whatever then. I don't give a shit because she can spend her money however she wants and it doesn't affect me at all.

 

We don't overspend, but we probably over save if that makes sense. Sometimes it feels like we're living paycheck to paycheck, but when I look at what we're putting into savings, retirement, excess house payments, and so forth, I realize our issue is more about saving than spending.

If we want something we can afford to buy it. My husband and I both have good jobs. We're doing fine.

By the way, all our money is in the same account. None of this "mine is mine and yours is yours."

 

Off topic, but I really miss biking

 

I have to confess that I never think about what might happen to my company if I die before I retire. I don't have any kids, so it doesn't matter so much to me. If I step in front of a cement truck tomorrow, the survivors in the office can fight to the death over my client list, for all I care. I assume that my husband (if he is still alive) will sell the business, intact, for the best cash offer he receives. That's what I'll do at retirement age.

That sounds like a pain in the ass. Don't forget, it's the fastest growing small businesses that are the most likely to crash and burn. The complexity can easily spiral out of control.

 

yeah that's how i am too. but i'm young, so it makes sense to save a lot now. kids and a house are going to be expensive.

but i just figured out where my paycheck goes. about 44% goes to rent. ugh! and i save about 42% of it. so i have 14% left to spend, which is enough to buy me weed for that month and go on a couple dates with my wife.