The Official Savings Advice Debt Free Thread

[disneysteve]

Thanks

We have $16k in savings/emergency fund, $2,800/month after expenses and $81k in Roth contributions we can pull from if we both were to lose our jobs at the same time.

So Dave, now that you are debt-free, what are your plans with the money that was previously going to debt repayment? Will it all go to savings? Are you going to treat yourself with some of it?

When I paid off my student loans ($102,000 worth), my "reward" was us finally getting cable TV. I had been paying about $1,300/month on the loans so I figured we could spring for the $11/month for basic cable.

[GoodSteward]

So Dave, now that you are debt-free, what are your plans with the money that was previously going to debt repayment? Will it all go to savings? Are you going to treat yourself with some of it?

When I paid off my student loans ($102,000 worth), my "reward" was us finally getting cable TV. I had been paying about $1,300/month on the loans so I figured we could spring for the $11/month for basic cable.

lol, I got a good laugh on that one. Priceless, Steve.

[disneysteve]

lol, I got a good laugh on that one. Priceless, Steve.

Most people don't know that plan exists. I actually had a patient who worked for Comcast tell me about it. They don't advertise it (big surprise there). It didn't give many channels but it was fine for our needs. I don't know if it is still around as we upgraded a while ago. It's usually called "limited basic" or something like that.

[DaveInPgh]

So Dave, now that you are debt-free, what are your plans with the money that was previously going to debt repayment? Will it all go to savings? Are you going to treat yourself with some of it?

When I paid off my student loans ($102,000 worth), my "reward" was us finally getting cable TV. I had been paying about $1,300/month on the loans so I figured we could spring for the $11/month for basic cable.

We don't have any plans to reward/treat ourselves in anyway. The possibility of me getting displaced is more real than it has ever been, so padding the emergency fund is my #1 goal. Our true monthly expenses are approximately $2k, so we have 8 months covered right now. I would like to increase that to 12 months.

Once that goal is achieved, the money will be split between 2017 vacation fund and our taxable retirement account.

[clatoden99]

A recent search tied to debt repayment led me to this quote from Jeff Bezos, the founder, and CEO of Amazon:

“The one thing that offends me the most is when I walk by a bank and see ads trying to convince people to take out second mortgages on their homes so they can go on vacation. That’s approaching evil.”

Now that’s an attitude! And it made me wonder: Who else shares that attitude?

In my hunt I came across one person who “gamified” her attitude and slashed debt. She wanted to retire at an early age but debt blocked her path.

If you would like to find out how attitude helped her pay off over $100,000 of debt, visit: How Attitude Can Cut Debt to Enjoy Powerful Victory. http://retirecrazygood.com/attitude-can-cut-debt/

It’s a fact: expense cuts remain one of the fastest and surest ways of increasing funds you can use to speed up debt pay off.

If you’re interested in over 40 ways to lower your outflows, download Cut Your Expenses Checklist. Visit this page: Expense Checklist Article and Form. http://retirecrazygood.com/expense-checklist-form/

[StormRichards]

Congratulations Dave!

I wish I could make such an announcement.

We did eliminate our credit card debt in 2015, but still have a car loan and mortgage.

[nadine_doa]

A recent search tied to debt repayment led me to this quote from Jeff Bezos, the founder, and CEO of Amazon:

“The one thing that offends me the most is when I walk by a bank and see ads trying to convince people to take out second mortgages on their homes so they can go on vacation. That’s approaching evil.”

Now that’s an attitude! And it made me wonder: Who else shares that attitude?

I think Jeff is forgetting he's the major shareholder in a very large company that markets and sells a lot of items that no one really needs. Is it evil to take their money?

Of course ads try to convince people. A benefit of a second mortgage could be you could go on vacation. (There are undoubtedly less expensive ways of getting vacay money, true.) It could also be that you use the proceeds to build an in-law suite attached to your house so an aging parent can live with you. That would be a lot less frivolous than a vacation but either choice could be valid depending on your circumstances.

I think people need to be responsible for the decisions they make.

[Nutria]

$2,800/month after expenses

That would be our expenses too, if we didn't figure in COBRA/ACA into "expenses without any paychecks".

My budget has 4 columns. Expenses with:

1. Both paychecks (which has lots of deferred spending for things like Car, Home Repair and Vacation and 401(k)).
2. Mine only (COBRA/ACA for wife, cut back on fun stuff, minimal saving, no deferred spending, still contrib to 401(k)).
3. DW's only (COBRA/ACA for me+kids, cut back on fun stuff, no saving, 401(k), deferred spending)
4. No paychecks (COBRA/ACA for all of us, even steeper cuts).