Is This Comfortable?

[imamomx2]

Hello Ladies!

I'm really hoping that be able to stay home with my kiddos.  My daughter has one more year before she goes to kindergarten, and I am realizing more and more how much I dread working!

I work part time, and after daycare is taken out, I clear about $750.  I work a half hour away, do tend to eat out more (this is awful, I know), and so there are other expenses I'm not taking into consideration when looking how much I actually clear.

This is dh's salary.  Let me know if you think this budget seems doable/comfortable:

Income: $3600 (this is with 8% going into 401k, after insurance, HSA is taken out)

Mortgage: $770 (includes taxes, insurance)

Food: $400

Tithe: 350

Gas: $180- 200 (not sure how  much this will go down to after I quit - dh only works a couple miles away, so it should be fairly significant since I drive to and during my job)

Utilties: 200 average (includes electricity, trash, heat)

Spending: $125

Cell Phone: $80

Cable/Internet: 65

Insurance: 150

Gifts: 50

Personal: 50

Clothing: 50

House Maintenance: 100

Car Maintenance: 100

That leaves about $900.  My dh is looking forward to me quitting so he can pick up extra hours at work (his time and a half is 2.5x my hourly wage, so it makes sense).  Still, I'm not counting on that.  Our savings is very, very minimal, as we've thrown all of our money at getting rid of my student loans.

Do you $900 extra a month is comfortable?  I don't want to regret any decisions because I acted too quickly. ...

[stephbrownthinks]

You clear $750 per month or week after daycare? How much are you spending on daycare? It you are bringing home $750/mo after paying for daycare, plus driving an hour everyday and eating out... it seems like you would be saving money by quitting your job. Your gas bill would go way down, spending/eating out, plus no more daycare costs. And you said your husband can pick up extra work too? $900/month seems comfortable. There are some categories missing from your budget, but it still seems like you could quit and you guys would still be able to put money away.

[LifewithSage]

It looks totally doable.  However, is there anyway you could attempt to continue working for a few more months and bank your salary?  That way, you'll have a nice savings when you decide to quit AND you'll have proven to yourself that you can live off of his salary alone.

[gumshoegirl007]

I think having $900 extra a month is sufficient (we have about $400 after accounting for all of our expenses).  We also have an emergency fund.

That being said, you mention student loans and I don't think I saw anything for repayment in there.  Also, you may want to consider putting aside money for savings, an emergency fund, one-time expenses, your kids' education, vacation, etc.  What do you need to save today to meet your future goals? 

[Carson]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LifewithSage 

It looks totally doable.  However, is there anyway you could attempt to continue working for a few more months and bank your salary?  That way, you'll have a nice savings when you decide to quit AND you'll have proven to yourself that you can live off of his salary alone.

Agree - you say you were paying off your student loans - but were you paying off >$1600/month (your net + projected remainder)?  You say you have $900 left over on paper of DH income.  I know from our finances that what we have leftover on paper is a lot different than where things actually end up.  I can look at where that money goes and see that some of it we could rein in, some of it was a true need.

So I agree - I would keep working for a little bit more and pad your savings account.  I know that you can't just plan for every emergency, but even with projected $900 savings, a major repair/emergency could hurt you financially.

[LifewithSage]

I also have to ask if you're using a dependent care account?  I just noticed in your OP that your daycare is automatically taken out of your paycheck?  if you're using a dependent care account or take the dependent care credit on your tax returns every year, you may need to look at your tax withholdings to ensure that your DH is having the proper amount taken out so that you aren't blindsided with a particularly large tax bill at year end.  The credit and daycare savings is most likely going to be offset by the decrease in income and therefore the decrease in income taxed owed, but it is certainly something to look at.

Also, you might want to look into a spousal IRA so that you are saving for your retirement as well.  We can never be too protected when it comes to our retirement years. 

[imamomx2]

Originally Posted by stephbrownthinks 

You clear $750 per month or week after daycare? How much are you spending on daycare? It you are bringing home $750/mo after paying for daycare, plus driving an hour everyday and eating out... it seems like you would be saving money by quitting your job. Your gas bill would go way down, spending/eating out, plus no more daycare costs. And you said your husband can pick up extra work too? $900/month seems comfortable. There are some categories missing from your budget, but it still seems like you could quit and you guys would still be able to put money away.

It's $750/month.  I wish it was weekly... that would much more tempting to keep working, for sure. :)

Originally Posted by Carson 

Quote:

Originally Posted by LifewithSage 

It looks totally doable.  However, is there anyway you could attempt to continue working for a few more months and bank your salary?  That way, you'll have a nice savings when you decide to quit AND you'll have proven to yourself that you can live off of his salary alone.

Agree - you say you were paying off your student loans - but were you paying off >$1600/month (your net + projected remainder)?  You say you have $900 left over on paper of DH income.  I know from our finances that what we have leftover on paper is a lot different than where things actually end up.  I can look at where that money goes and see that some of it we could rein in, some of it was a true need.

So I agree - I would keep working for a little bit more and pad your savings account.  I know that you can't just plan for every emergency, but even with projected $900 savings, a major repair/emergency could hurt you financially.

I didn't put my student loan in there, as I won't quit until that is paid off... and we still have until May, I think.  We are definitely putting at least $1500/month on my student loans, a little less this month because I took some vacation time in December. 

Agreed that $900/month isn't going to save us from every emergency.  I guess my mind is in quitting mode (and dh's too), so it's been difficult waiting to get this darned loan paid off, and THEN we start saving.  I wish we made more money! :)

[imamomx2]

Originally Posted by LifewithSage 

I also have to ask if you're using a dependent care account?  I just noticed in your OP that your daycare is automatically taken out of your paycheck?  if you're using a dependent care account or take the dependent care credit on your tax returns every year, you may need to look at your tax withholdings to ensure that your DH is having the proper amount taken out so that you aren't blindsided with a particularly large tax bill at year end.  The credit and daycare savings is most likely going to be offset by the decrease in income and therefore the decrease in income taxed owed, but it is certainly something to look at.

Also, you might want to look into a spousal IRA so that you are saving for your retirement as well.  We can never be too protected when it comes to our retirement years. 

We are just in the process of doing our taxes for the year, and we are getting much less back this year than in other years.  We made more this year (though we doubled our daycare expenses).  I will double check on this, and see how that would change if I quit mid-year.  In a "typical" year if dh was the sole provider, we would have gotten $5000 back, but since that is not the case for the year, I need to see things will change.
 

[GirlBoyGirl]

Um.. yea. We would be sitting pretty on that budget. I WISH we were that comfortable!! I don't know why you haven't stayed home sooner!

[Norabella]

Originally Posted by GirlBoyGirl 

Um.. yea. We would be sitting pretty on that budget. I WISH we were that comfortable!! I don't know why you haven't stayed home sooner!

[imamomx2]

Originally Posted by Norabella 

Originally Posted by GirlBoyGirl 

Um.. yea. We would be sitting pretty on that budget. I WISH we were that comfortable!! I don't know why you haven't stayed home sooner!

I know that some people have even less than this, but I just want to be pretty prepared - a large car or house repair, and we'd be up the creek.  Maybe it is attitude though...

[matey]

Originally Posted by GirlBoyGirl 

Um.. yea. We would be sitting pretty on that budget. I WISH we were that comfortable!! I don't know why you haven't stayed home sooner!

No doubt. I thought the replies were going to be like "of course" I can't believe that didn't seem like enough to people. Made me realize how poor we are. $900 extra!! I mean, I know I am coming from the land of no-extra-money-and-cross-your-fingers-things-will-work-out but that seem so doable. Your gas cost is going down, you have a category called "gifts" that you are budgeting for, plus the $900. Seems like you'll be all right. I dont mean to sound blunt ot rude about it, so I am sorry if that's how it seems. I just can't fathom having that much money and being concerned that it wasn't enough.

[texmati]

I dunno... Does your budget include everything? DH and I are considering going to similar income; and we have a similar mortgage payment, and we are scratching our heads to see if we can make it. What about home insurance, auto insurance? Medical copays (or is that covered by the HSA)? Travel-- (not just vacations, but any other travel)? Do you already have a cushion for emergencies?

Just comparing; I guess maybe our utilities are higher; and we spend a lot more in the 'spending' category.

[imamomx2]

Originally Posted by texmati 

I dunno... Does your budget include everything? DH and I are considering going to similar income; and we have a similar mortgage payment, and we are scratching our heads to see if we can make it. What about home insurance, auto insurance? Medical copays (or is that covered by the HSA)? Travel-- (not just vacations, but any other travel)? Do you already have a cushion for emergencies?

Just comparing; I guess maybe our utilities are higher; and we spend a lot more in the 'spending' category.

Our medical co-pays are paid with our HSA, and our insurance is taken out already.  We don't have a cushion for emergencies... that's part of the issue.  Our savings is minimal as we've been throwing any and all extra money toward my student loans.  I won't quit until those are paid off.

I'm wondering about our spending category.  We typically budget $200 since we tend to eat out more with me working, but I'm wondering if dropping it to this much will feel really tight.

[Smithie]

God won't mind if your tithe money goes into keeping you at home with your preschooler. Truly. I just asked Him and He said it was OK.

That said, if you can commit to building an emergency fund once you have those loans paid off in May, then I think you can be comfortable and happy living on your DH's income even if you don't feel you can stop tithing for a year or so.

[GirlBoyGirl]

Originally Posted by imamomx2 

Originally Posted by Norabella 

Originally Posted by GirlBoyGirl 

Um.. yea. We would be sitting pretty on that budget. I WISH we were that comfortable!! I don't know why you haven't stayed home sooner!

I know that some people have even less than this, but I just want to be pretty prepared - a large car or house repair, and we'd be up the creek.  Maybe it is attitude though...

Yea but what are you preparing for? Armageddon?? I think after even a few months of saving your extra $900/month will give you a nice emergency fund. My attitude is that I would do anything to stay home with my kids while they are tiny and so I would just try not to worry about it and be loving my extra $900/month!!

[mamaofthree]

seems really good to me. dh makes just a bit more then that and our out going is WAY more then that and we have 6 kids. lol. we have about maybe $300.00 extra each month. if you bank that $900.00 a month in a couple of months it is a few thousand. seems great to me. 

heck i don't even think with me working we ever had an extra $900.00 a month. lol good luck no matter what you choose. :)

h

[Smidge]

Originally Posted by Smithie 

God won't mind if your tithe money goes into keeping you at home with your preschooler. Truly. I just asked Him and He said it was OK.

That said, if you can commit to building an emergency fund once you have those loans paid off in May, then I think you can be comfortable and happy living on your DH's income even if you don't feel you can stop tithing for a year or so.
 

LOVE the bolded :)  If we were clearing that much money every month we would be sitting pretty.  I too stay at home and have since my first was born.  I wouldn't trade it for the world.  We struggle a lot in the dh's slow season, but I have never once thought of going back to work.  For our family, being a SAHM is the most important job I will ever have :)

[imamomx2]

Originally Posted by GirlBoyGirl 

Originally Posted by imamomx2 

I know that some people have even less than this, but I just want to be pretty prepared - a large car or house repair, and we'd be up the creek.  Maybe it is attitude though...

Yea but what are you preparing for? Armageddon?? I think after even a few months of saving your extra $900/month will give you a nice emergency fund. My attitude is that I would do anything to stay home with my kids while they are tiny and so I would just try not to worry about it and be loving my extra $900/month!!

Ahhh!  I know!  Dh has been asking me the same thing!  Maybe I have money issues.  Or control issues.  Or money and control issues. :)  Thanks, mamas.  You guys are helping me to shake myself back to reality. :)
 

[imamomx2]

Originally Posted by Smidge 

Originally Posted by Smithie 

God won't mind if your tithe money goes into keeping you at home with your preschooler. Truly. I just asked Him and He said it was OK.

That said, if you can commit to building an emergency fund once you have those loans paid off in May, then I think you can be comfortable and happy living on your DH's income even if you don't feel you can stop tithing for a year or so.
 

LOVE the bolded :)  If we were clearing that much money every month we would be sitting pretty.  I too stay at home and have since my first was born.  I wouldn't trade it for the world.  We struggle a lot in the dh's slow season, but I have never once thought of going back to work.  For our family, being a SAHM is the most important job I will ever have :)

Thanks for reminding me that money is NOT the most important thing.  I've got two kiddos sitting next to me who would love to stay home with me. :)