Mature answers Only..how can I start to save towards my future?

Question

house if after i pay my bills i have about $200- 250 left to myself..i plan on leaving NY to purchase my house in the near future...i am part owner of a house right now..and it took me about 16 months to save what i needed to purchase this house..mainly because i was living with my sister and i wasnt paying any rent..i was basically saving all my income..but now i am paying half mortgage which takes up most of my pay check..then i have my light and gas.food shooping..my daughter..basically i have only one income...whats a good portion of $250.00 to put aside for my next house...

Answer 1

the 10% to yourself is correct. They left out;

pay yourself first. Put your 10% away first, THEN pay your bills. If you wait to pay yourself until LAST you'll never have the money. Once you adjust your budget around this you find that you can live within your means easily. Each time you get a raise you have to change the amount you pay yourself.

Answer 2

All of this is assuming you have no consumer debt, no credit cards, car payments, and other loans but your part of a mortgage. So pay off debts before saving for a house.

A lot of answers say what you should do "pay yourself first 10%". While we all know this to be true as what to do, it doesn't tell you "how" to do it with your current income to cost situation.

The hard part........You really need to look at every bill on it's own, every expense, every cost, from the power bill to pocket change. How seriously you cut each one of these is how serious you are about purchasing another home in 16 months.

So i would start the first month by trying to squeeze $50 out of all your other bills and expense's. Add $150 from your $250 and save at least $200 1st month. Every month after that squeeze and cut till you can get to at least $300 preferably $350.

Notice I still left you with $100 a month or $25 a week. For most people, if they don't have a little pocket change. they will save well for months then fall apart and blow it all.

Lastly where to put the money
www.emigrantdirect.com is 5.05% for savings, your money isn't tied up as you have access with in a few days rather than months or years like a CD.

Answer 3

These answers are all logical, and perfectly fine, yet they are the results of small thinking.

Paying yourself first will not get you rich. I am guessing you would like to maximize the earning potential for your $250, and at the same time have risk as low as possible.

If you live in the states, you have a few issues,and potential problems to consider. Saving for your future via money market funds, ie:

401k
Ira
rrsp's (canada)
stocks
mutual, or other funds

These methods of saving are going to be very dangerous in the near future. Huge national debt, coupled with 75 mill baby boomers retiring, globalization, oil prices rising, the dollar falling etc..
I could go on all day. The point is that those investment vehicles that were once considered "iron clad" will no longer be so.
Medicare, and all government assistance will be obsolete as well, it is simple economic cycles.

So what do you do? If you have $250 per mo. to spend on investing, there is only 2 ways to save for your retirement in this country with out getting wiped out later on...

1. Your own business
2. Real estate

The first one involves more time, and effort than realestate, but is foolproof if you take the time to learn and get good. If you can manage to build one successful business, you can always make another(and sell it etc...)

Real estate will never die. People will always need a place to live. If you can put enough money away per month in a mutual or savings plan for now, until you have enough to buy a condo or house to rent out, you will be laughing in some years time. Maybe pool other investors or friends together, but buy and hold property, and you will stay rich no matter what the market is doing.

Real estate has their up's and downs, but in the long term, value is always rising.

Any more questions, please feel free.
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Answer 4

There are two main roads to improving your personal finances: increasing income, and cutting costs.

Increasing income is the harder road to travel. After all, you can't always get a raise or a new job when you need one.

But cutting costs, that's a different story!

You're in complete control in this area. And all it takes is some imagination and discipline-both of which are free.

Below are five major ways to save money in the basic areas of food, shelter, clothing and transportation. They're major expenses in your life - and places for major savings.

1. Home Cooking

Food is a major expense in everyone's budget.

But, in today's convenience food society, it's easy to overlook how much money can be saved by cooking meals at home. Plus, it's fun, creative, and healthier to make your own meals.

The key is to cook in "bulk" to stretch the food you buy over several meals.

If you're a busy person with little time to spare, a good investment is a slow cooker (or crock pot). Generally, they run from $20 to $80, depending on the size.

With a slow cooker, you can set aside some time on the weekend to cook stews, soups, and other delicious meals that can be frozen for weekday use.

After a hard day at work, all you have to do is pop the meal in the microwave!

More than likely, you'll enjoy an additional benefit - your taste buds will wake up from mass produced food and thank you for the delicious taste of a home-cooked meal!

2. Drive less, exercise more

Is owning a car expensive?

You already know the answer to that question, don't you?

Gas, maintenance, insurance costs. Plus the mental aggravation of being caught in traffic jams!

Why not carpool or take public transportation-the bus, train, or light rail?

Or, if you live close to work, walk or bike. You'll lose weight, lower your blood pressure, and see the world at a


slower pace.

And, oh yes, you'll save a couple of thousand dollars in the process.

3. Cut housing costs

This is an easy and fun way to cut costs.

Instead of paying a contractor to come in to make changes or repairs, make them yourself.

Local hardware stores love your business and will help you with tips and tricks on home repair.

Also, do your own decorating and painting. You get two benefits by doing your own changes and repairs - you get the pride of accomplishment and you save money.

4. Cut clothing costs

This can be another major area of expenses, especially if you have a family.

So, try buying used clothing... dry clothes on the clothes line instead of in a dryer... learn how to mend clothes...

...well, you get the idea!

5. Quit your addictions

Okay, so this is not really an easy category, but if you enjoy cigarettes and a drink, this is where you can realize some major savings.

Assume you're spending $5.00 a day on cigarettes. Added up over a year, that's an expense of $1825.

As for liquor or wine, we all know how expensive that is.

Assume you buy one bottle a week at $10 to share with family members or friends. That's $520 a year.

Add both amounts up, and the total is $2,345!

That's money that could be paying down your debt or going into savings.

And don't forget the health benefits.

You probably have many other ideas on how to save money in the five areas.

If it seems hard at times to cut costs in these places, remember one thing - you're on the road to keeping more of your money in your own pocket!

As the old saying goes: "Money saved is as good as money earned".

Answer 5

If you have $250 after paying your bills, why not save all of it? Or at least $200 and spend the $50 as 'mad money."

Answer 6

You should put 10% of every pay check in savings!

Answer 7

You should pay yourself 10% of your net income. Just as you pay all of your creditors, your should pay yourself. You shouldn't work just to pay bills, you should work to pay yourself also. I suggest you read "The Richest Man in Babylon" by George S. Clason.

Answer 8

i agree with most of the answer..10% of your income should be place towards your savings