Money Management: Update
‘If you will live like no one else then later you can live like no one else’ - Dave Ramsey
As we near 3 months of living on one income, saving the other I wanted to write an update. I’ve committed to sharing our journey (by documenting it here for myself) and I want to keep up with that commitment. I shared in this blogpost that we started this challenge on October the 1st. Living on one income based on our expenses which we’ve kept under 25% of the income that we’re living on shouldn’t be hard but I want to confess that it hasn’t been easy either. Blake and I both have made our own money for years, keeping up households and answering only to ourselves for how we spend and on what. Combining and learning to come together on money is an adjustment no matter who you are and how much you make. Our priorities didn’t perfectly align and neither do our interests. For example: I’d much rather buy an item (shoes, a purse, etc) that I will have for a long time so I tend so spend on ‘stuff’ while Blake would much rather go out and have a good time as a couple or with friends, not batting an eye at spending on good food and good times (I tend to think eating our money is less exciting).
Getting married in your 30s has the benefit of giving you more experience with money as well as typically a slightly higher income than your 20s. I’m grateful for that as we rarely if ever fight about money (not to be confused with not disagreeing). As mentioned it’s been an adjustment but not a struggle the way I know it was for so many of my friends when they first got married (most much younger than I was). I haven’t yet taken up clipping coupons but if I don’t continue to cut back on my love of shopping I might have to reconsider that in the future. I’ll admit, we had an expensive couple of months including our honeymoon (thankfully, all of that money came from gifts), Christmas shopping, and because I closed on my townhouse in December we also have yearly property taxes and homeowners insurance due during the most expensive month of the year.
Last weekend we went out on the boat and we cruised the river we hope to buy a home on one day. This dream is the reason we decided to live on one income, save the other. To make our dream of living on the water with a boat a reality, eventually, without taking on debt that will cause us stress. If you’re going to make a big life shift like living on less to save more I highly recommend taking the time regularly to visit the site of your dream, whatever that might look like. Going to see our dream spot renewed my resolve to work our plan. Making our dreams come true is a top priority but I’ll admit somedays it’s tiring or discouraging so going back to our dream spot reminds me why we’re working hard and sacrificing now for later.
If you’re considering trying to live on one, save one here’s a few of my tips from 3(ish) months in:
Dream together. If you don’t both want it, it won’t work.
Celebrate milestones. It’s a marathon, not a sprint so you’ll need encouragement and to reach smaller goals along the way.
Keep your lifestyle consistent, and below your means. Despite changes in income, career roles, and now being married Blake and I have not ‘upped’ our lifestyle. We drive the same (older, paid off) cars we had when we met. We do not have a mortgage and we’re working hard to avoid them in the future as well. We don’t pay for expensive gym memberships and we try to save and also use points for our vacations. Keep your lifestyle simple and saving will be easier!
Thanks for being part of our journey. We’re still new at this but I’m excited about the progress we’ve made in 3 months!
