Does anyone know how much of your income you should be stuffing away into savings?

Question

I have a 403B, and I put 10% into it from payroll deductions, but its not accessible until I am old. If I need money right away for something like a roof leak or a car part. I have a savings account thru my credit union, but I don't know how much I should be putting into this account. I make $26. per hour.

I have about 3,000 dollars in credit card debt. I single parented 2 teens with no child support, my 2nd just graduated, and moved out. I would like to pay of the credit card debit over the next 6 months. I have a 3500.00 a month car payment and still insure 2 teens to drive the thing to the tune of about $270 a month. Hope that helps.

No house payment. Its paid for except for upkeep and yearly taxes

350. a month car payment.

Answer 1

There are too many unknowns to answer that well. I try to do this:

I try to keep my "must haves" to about 40%, rent, car, food, etc.

I put 15% into a retirement account

10% into a general savings fund (when I can)

The remaining 35% is for the rest to "I can live without it but don't want to" and "have fun".

If you have high credit cards, instead of %15 to retirement, put 10% and use the other 5% to get rid of the cards.

Once I started using the percentages, I found I could stop using my credit cards except for emergencies and felt SO much better!

My percentages are estimates and some months are different, but I always try to stay in that general area.

Good luck!!!

Answer 2

Shoes..... has the right idea. Make a budget and see where your money is going. Look for ways to slim some of the items down just bit and add a savings spot in the budget. Put the money in the saving account on each payday.

How much should the emergency fund be? Somewhere between 3 and 6 months take home pay. That's just a suggestion and should be addressed in terms of what risks you might have like a 10 year old car, a child with medical problems, job security, etc that might make you want to have more or less saved.

Answer 3

The best financial advice that I can give is pay yourself first. Treat your savings account as if it were one of your creditors and make a payment to it every paycheck. I'd recommend 15% but since you're already putting 10% in your 403b, then put an additional 10% in the account. When you get enough balance, buy a high yield bond or cd and start over again. You'll be surprised how quickly it'll add up.

Answer 4

I would be putting away about $75-$100 out of each paycheck. I only make about $12/hr and I stash away $25-$50. It really saves your but if you have an emergancy come up. It's also nice to have a little extra money for vacations or upcoming parties you might have.

Answer 5

Save about $100-200/pay period. Some people say that after some time, one should have about 6 months worth of savings for a good cushion in case of unemployment. If you are earning $26 and are careful with your spending you should be able to save pretty well.

Answer 6

How much are your monthly bills? Put enough away to save for problems, but not so much that it interferes with you paying what you need to.

At $26/hr. working at least 40 hrs/week I would put away at least $1000 per month into your savings account.

Answer 7

As much as you can. Create a budget of essential needs, then manipulate your incidental spending such as entertainment so you are not starving yourself of basics needs but are still able to save money. The more you save, the more interest you will earn as well.

Answer 8

Set a certain amount out of your check such as a $100 a week or less to set aside in your account for emergencies.
If you can afford more than put more in.

Answer 9

A good rule of thumb is to have six months worth of bills in savings. That allows you to pay for the unexpected things as well as have a "warchest" in case you lose your job.

Answer 10

I believe it is 10%