I don’t know where my money goes.
I mean, I know that a large chunk of it - an obscene chunk of it - goes to rent.
But other than that? I really don’t know. Sometimes it gives me panic attacks, how I still live paycheck to paycheck (despite a very generous salary because my current boss fought for me and she rocks), how I don’t have any savings, how fucked I am when it comes to finance.
It’s me, I know it is. I make about 50% more now than I did when I first started working and yet I’m still in the “I have no control over my finances” situation.
It’s enough to make a girl pack it in and move to flyover country because I’ve heard that this “cost of living” thing is lower there.
A friend of mine just bought an apartment in Manhattan. I know her well, and I know that she’s not one of those people who got the down payment money from mommy and daddy. This is someone who set a goal and brought her own lunch and resisted vacations and third rounds of drinks and now she owns real estate. In Manhattan.
Excuse me while I go buy an expensive bottle of wine and cry over the fact that I suck.
I watch Suze Orman a lot, even though she’s orange. I watch and people call and they talk about investing all this money and it just kind of depresses me a bit. I’m slightly masochistic, I guess. And also, fascinated.
I tend to just blame it on New York. “Oh, that caller lives in Tulsa, no wonder she has all that in savings!”
Most of my friends live in big cities: New York, Boston, Los Angeles, London.
When we get together, conversation inevitably turns to our rents, our paltry savings, the things we buy that we don’t need with money we really should put away, how cereal costs $5 in the city but $3 once you get out to the suburbs, the fact that we’ll probably never be able to own something in the city, something more than a dilapidated former crack den in the seedy (but “up and coming!”) part of town.
It binds us, this expensive city living. It’s also a point of pride, in a way: sure, we don’t have massive savings accounts or mortgages but we are surviving and that in and of itself deserves a pat on the back.
“I don’t know how you still do it, Clink,” said a friend who recently packed it up and moved to a cheaper part of the country. And she knows, because she lived here. Half of her paycheck every week went to rent. She, too, used to be shocked when she went elsewhere and a glass of wine only cost $5.50, instead of $12. “I like it better this way. I like having a safety net,” she admitted.
I don’t have a safety net, but I do have New York. And I will defend New York to the death. I will defend New York even when I’m living in the suburbs and my quality of life has risen by virtue of no longer inhabiting an expensive city. I will defend New York always. I will encourage my children to live here, I will force M to visit with me every chance that we get, I will always feel like a New Yorker.
I love you New York. You’re absurdly expensive but you’re so worth the price of admission.
(That said, who has money saving tips because HI, I COULD USE SOME.)
I just bought a pair of louboutins b/c I neeeeeded them. So I’m no good on the money saving piece but I’m with you on NYC. I love it with every ounce of my body. I hate the burbs (even though I’m in Atlanta which is technically a big city) so so much. I even miss the 500sf apt I paid 2k a month for.
Annnd with that the shoes have now been justified. Thanks for the help!
I’ve got nothing. My husband set me up on a payment schedule for my ridiculous debt. And he gets mad if I don’t follow it.
At the very least start saving. Even if its just a little it will add up.
The struggle that I always have with money is that saving a little bit seems so useless when everything is so expensive. I totally psych myself out by telling myself things like, “A nice house in DC or San Francisco will cost us $1 million, so it doesn’t matter if we go out to dinner tonight instead of cooking” or whatever. Which is totally the wrong approach. The best thing I ever did was set up a spreadsheet in Google Documents, calculate exactly what our monthly income is and exactly what our monthly expenses are, including things like dinners out and not just the necessities, and then make a commitment to set just a little bit of money aside every month. Even just $50 per paycheck does make a difference. The way I approach it is by taking it out immediately and pretending I don’t have it, because I tend to be tempted to spend only money I actually have. We have an online savings account that pays over 5% interest and doesn’t lock your money up for years or anything. A small amount that you won’t miss into something like that every month, where you know you can get it when you need it, and you’ll feel so much better about your finances.
Also, if at any point you have a job that offers 401(k) matching, do it! It’s free money.
Ug, I feel your pain, sort of. I consider myself very lucky that I’m engaged to a man who makes about three times what I do, and that comfort? While I try not to rely on it? Is my safety net. But when I was on my own, I went on a budget for my utilities, scaled back my cell phone plan and got rid of my land line, got rid of cable and internet (since I used it at work all day anyway) and really cut back on frivolous shopping. I have an automatic withdrawal (so I don’t even miss it) out of my paycheck directly into a savings account that I can’t touch every time I get paid, so I’ve created a little padding for myself. Other than that? There’s no easy way to do it; I’m (almost) 33 and still living paycheck to paycheck. In the suburbs. Ah, the American dream.
I started to write this thoughtful response on the balance between living today and saving for tomorrow. I threw it out the window because it comes down to this: LOVE YOUR LIFE. If that means spending every pretty penny you make now so you can barely get by living in one of the greatest cities on earth, then DO IT. At some point, when your priorities change, the decisions you make will change, too. Until that day, live life without regrets.
If your paycheck is electronically transferred to your checking account, start a savings and have $5 or $10 a pay transferred to that account. most employers let you do that. it doesn’t seem like much but it adds up fast!
and put it in a savings account you can’t access with a piece of plastic!
That bringing your lunch thing really does help. Not always as tasty, but still.
And I’m with Michelle…have a certain amount of your paycheck automatically deducted and deposited into an account you won’t touch. Right now a percentage goes into a savings account just for the wedding. I’m not touching that one until we really need it!
I’m absolutely HORRIBLE at saving money. Then again I’m also paying for graduate school on paltry salaries.
I live in L.A. so I sympathise. There are costs associated with it, but the benefits to living in a major urban area (I’ve lived all over the US and parts of Canada so it’s all beginning to run together for me) that I enjoy.
I was never at paycheck to paycheck or in cc debt, but I’ve never compared to my *very* financially astute parents.
I basically made major lifestyle changes and now save in the 401K, pay off my student loans and have cash savings-despite the fact that I am taxed to the tune of 48.5%.
Basically I don’t eat out or drink (although that was for health reasons and no I’m not an alcoholic :)), leave all my debit and credit cards at home unless I have to drive somewhere (and then I only bring credit), NEVER buy Starfucks and think twice about anything that costs over $40.00.
Remarkably, my consumerism just went down naturally. These days I think about how to better wear/use the stuff I already have.
I’m lucky in that I am an upper-income professional. But believe me-despite my reasonably paid nice job with health benefits etc., I have to exercise a lot of economy. In the end, I realise that my parents, who are also upper-income professionals, made their money the exact same way. It’s not magic, it just kind of sucks.
Oh Clink, I hear you! I wrote about this before and I don’t freakin’ know where all my money goes either! I have been working to bring my lunch a few days a week (as opposed to none) and putting aside a little money from each paycheck into savings (as opposed to none) and of course, a 401(k) plan too. It’s hard, especially with damn student loans and more on the way.
I love New York, but to me, the price we pay to live here just isn’t worth it. I think it’s cute that you will defend New York till the very end. Dedicated woman, you are!
I am smiling as I read this because this right here? this is why I am career switching. Yes, of course, I want to handle the high net worth clients. But that’s not why I decided to get into financial planning. I did it because I have gotten the verbal version of this post no fewer than ten times from various friends. For the ten-or-so years stretching from college graduation to our thirties, nobody knows what they’re doing with money. Nobody.
It’s the same old story of I-don’t-make-enough-so-why-bother-saving or I-don’t-know-where-to-begin-so-I-won’t. But there are so many little things to be done. Bringing the lunch a couple times a week (not every day, but even a day here or there adds up!), sitting in the crap seats at theatre/opera/symphony/concerts, walking or subwaying instead of taking a cab, meeting friends for a walk in the park instead of a $40 dinner. The little scrimping along the way leaves you with a few more dollars at the end of the month. And be anal about keeping track. Believe me, you will be horrified when you see how much a $10-a-day lunch schedule is costing you. When it dawns on you that the amount of money you pay for your morning coffee could, at the end of the year equate to $1,000 in your retirement fund, you might rethink your morning routine.
So make sure you establish a reasonable budget (if it’s not reasonable, you will never stick to it and then it’s all for naught). Live within those boundaries you’ve established for yourself when you are thinking about it rationally (ie. it’s hard to figure out if you can afford something when you are staring at that something through a store window - a $250 pair of shoes can ALWAYS be rationalized in the heat of the moment). And definitely create goals. Don’t save just for the heck of it - it won’t work if you don’t have identifiable goals, something to set your sights on.
Okay, this post is WAY long. Sorry. I just have a lot to say on the topic. It’s so important to establish good financial habits now when, really, there’s no reason not to (when you have a kid, there are PLENTY of reasons that budgets will go out the window). And, because time is oh-so-important when it comes to saving, it’s important to do it now when you have all those years ahead of you for the money to grow.
Oh yeah, and I just have to say-DESPITE the dollar amount of my gross salary…the 48.5% thing kinda kills how much I get in hand. That’s where your 401K kind of saves you. I mean, if you’re going to get fucked you may as well just stash it away for when you’re old.
As a 34 yr old NYer who still has no idea where her money goes - I completely understand. However, my husband and I who are huge fans of the $12-$15 wine ( we were @ the Peninsula hotel bar last night!) decided a few years ago to make strategic cutbacks so that we could buy our apt. We never take cabs unless we think it is unsafe take the train late night. We bring our breakfast and lunch every day to work (I lost 10lbs too!). We rarely go out for brunch on the wknds - we save it as a treat and eat in! And lastly, I gave up (or mostly gave up) my $4 a day latte habit from Starbucks. All in all, not too much difference in my quality of life - I can still shop, travel, and we bought the apt. last year. And of course I never gave up my after work drinks! The little things really made a difference here - we estimated it to be appx. $1000 a month all in all!
Ohh I feel you fellow NYCer. I love love this city but omg i’m about to start paying my own rent and paying every single little bill. I added up my finances? HOLYCRAP. I will be spending more in one month than I have currently in my bank account. It is frightening. And I have the worst shopping habits, shopping habis usually exclusive to the very rich and yet i do it and seem to think oh yeah, i can afford that. This is why I do not have a credit card.
I agree with Michelle, put some money in your savings, where you cant’ touch it. I’ve done that so that i can survive a couple months after graduation if i dont find a job right away. Put like 50 bucks in every month if you can afford to “lose” that 50 and over time it’ll grow. Also budgetting? Is your friend. OK its so not but i really need to figure out that it is otherwise i’ll be the next girl you see sleeping on a park bench in central park.
I think its funny that i’m giving financial advice. But you know that whole living in the suburbs and COMMUTING to nyc? Well i was doing it and it was MORE money than i’m paying for my apt right now for rent and that damn train ride that took up my entire life. That is how i justify living in nyc and paying these obsene prices. And now taht i’ve written a small novel in your comment section I will go now.
xoxo!
I suck at saving money too so I’m no help. Like you said though, even though I have no savings and live paycheck to paycheck, I’m damn proud of myself for being fully self-supporting. I may not have very much money in the bank, but I rent a two-bedroom apartment all by myself, pay all my own bills and am completely financially independent. It feels good, even if I feel like I’m always broke.
Also, if you ever decide to move away, Indianapolis isn’t a bad place. Just sayin’.
I love your blog, and I’ve been reading a while (and commenting here and there). Since you asked, one big thing about getting to a better place with money is seeing where it all goes.
The first step is to record all your receipts. Record all the ins and outs. (We use Quicken, and we have for years). A simple spreadsheet in Excel will suffice at first. Quicken is cool because it can tell you with a click of a button where your money is going based on the categories you’ve set.
By recording it all, the mystery is gone. When the mystery is gone, the fear goes with it. In this first step, there is no “judgment” of “should or shouldn’t” you spend your money here or there, it is what it is. Period. Does that make sense?
The next step is to set aside a little bit of money each paycheck into a savings account. One of the best pieces of advice I ever got before we got married was one of my friends telling me to ALWAYS have a separate account. It was ok to combine our finances on one level, but always have one that was just mine. It’s good advice, and I still do that. (We’ve been together almost 11 years, married 7.)
Odds are, you won’t miss that little bit of money you set aside. IF it’s really hard for you to find money to set aside, that’s when you can look at where your money has gone and see if there is somewhere it can come from. (And, it can be somewhere simple…that third round of drinks, that coffee in the morning a couple days a week, etc.)
The last step is to figure out how much you’d want to save and then make a budget that reflects that amount.
It’s possible to save money, regardless of where you live. It’s possible to save money and still have fun. Once you get your finances out in the open (on a spreadsheet), it won’t be so scary. I hope that helps!
I could easily be talked into buying magic beans, so I’m of no help here.
Considering that fretting about money is all that I do these days, and that I live on less thank $20K per year now, save money AND live in Los Angeles, I consider myself in a position to give advice ;). You need a budget. That’s the best money-saving advice that anyone can give. Determine what your actual needs are (rent, utilities, food), pay them, and then think hard about your wants and what you can part with. At a bare minimum, you should have 10% of your take-home that you can put in a savings account, and probably another 10% you can put in a retirement account. You can do it, but you have to take a hard look at your attitude towards spending and be willing to make some sacrifices. Good luck!
Um yeah, I totally feel you. Part of me thinks I should be smart and move back to Miami, where I can live rent free in my parents house but then I think: a) Move back in with my parents? I love them but hells no and b) I would miss the city. It’s home in spite of all our bitching and moaning about the high cost of living. I bought Suze Orman’s book; I should probably crack it open.
I think you’ve gotten a lot of good advice. Baby steps…I think that is the best solution otherwise you may feel deprived and say screw it.
Well, I DO live in a low cost of living area and I’m still broke, but that might be because I’ve been in school since I was like, BORN. But I’ll be graduated soon! YAY! And then I’ll give half my paycheck to the government in gratitude for all these lovely degrees of mine, and also because if you don’t pay your student loans they will come to your home and take your things.
Clearly, I have no advice but I do lurve you!
Clink, I feel you. Living in New York is SO expensive. But I love this city. Even if it means working an extra part time job just to make ends meet. It does make me cry when I look at my bank account.
Oh, I hear you. I think Casual Perfectionist and Lil’ Irish Lass had some great tips. For me, I never knew how much discretionary income I had until I started paying for two children in child care. Eeek.
So, do try and find the little things here and there in your lifestyle that won’t hurt when you eliminate them, and then keep track, because if you don’t, you’ll miss the coffee/drinks/etc. and won’t feel like you are benefiting from your little sacrifices.
Clink dear, you are not the only girl I know with money saving issues. Every one of my girlfriends doesn’t have a savings account and most of them live in Iowa where rent is cheap and so is having a mortgage. Plus it is way more expensive to be a girl than it is a boy.
I’m pretty brainless when it comes to money. So I do two things to stop the self-destruction:
1) whisk away money where I can’t get to it easily (automatic deductions into 401K and an ING savings account)
2) read about how others are saving money on a regular basis (I read http://getrichslowly.org/blog/)
Yeah. We’re gonna have to learn how to live cheaper and save money because, DAMN. We had only a little bit to save back every month when both of us were working, and now we having nothing. Less than nothing actually. It’s difficult sometimes.
I transfer a ridiculously small amount of my checking account into an ING account… It’s easy, you can have it done automatically, it’s free, and most importantly, the interest rate is HIGH. Try it - even if it’s $50 a month.
Lots of good tips here already. Once you start with one thing (investing, saving, etc), the rest of it comes quite easily - or it did for me. Usually it’s just a matter of cutting back, not cutting out entirely - that’s no way to live. Good luck!
Every time I get a raise (about twice a year), I increase my 401k and savings contributions by a little bit. I don’t even see that money, so I don’t really miss it.
But I also don’t buy clothes as often as some of my girlfriends, or go out drinking all the time. That seems to be an easy way to not notice how much you are spending.
I do save up for vacations and other big purchases, though.
I am horrible with money too. I bought a house with my boyfriend not too long ago on his credit because he wanted to. I went from going paycheck to paycheck because I NEEDED those 10 million items of clothing, Starbucks everyday, and enough miscellaneous random things to fill a small town. Now I go paycheck to paycheck because we NEED five different sets of plates and a billion candles. I’ve come to the conclusion that I just NEED to spend money, and if I have it, even in small amounts, I will. It’s pathetic. If I have $5 in my bank account, my first thought is “ooh macchiato time!” instead of “gee maybe I should stop spending.” I know exactly how you feel.
Yeah, I’m just not even going to pretend I am qualified to give you money advice. How about you learn from my mistakes, instead:
1. NO CREDIT CARDS, UNLESS IT IS AN EMERGENCY, LIKE LIFE OR DEATH OR A NEW HOT WATER HEATER. You will end up using your “allowance”, or fun money, to pay your credit card payment, and then, are you going to stop having fun? NO. YOU WILL NOT. YOU WILL PUT FUN ON YOUR CREDIT CARD. THEN YOU WILL HAVE TO GIVE YOUR PAYCHECK TO VISA. IT SUCKS. DO NOT DO.
2. Pay as little rent as possible. Even if it requires paying a single friend to give a mortgage loan officer mad head, BUY REAL ESTATE. Even if you can only afford a square big enough for you and M to lay on at night. RENT IS WORSE THAN CREDIT CARDS. Even in my dinky little town, my rent was $800/mo, which is $10k a year, and all I got for that was a generic little apt to keep my stuff in and paper thin walls.
3. NO MATTER HOW BROKE YOU ARE, PUT MONEY IN YOUR 401K. This way, no matter what else happens, you won’t be living in a box when you’re 65. 25, maybe. 35, if you aren’t careful. But once you’re too old to bear the NYC winters outdoors, you’ll be golden.
I can tell you that I have successfully adopted #3, and I puke twice a month when I open my bills as a reminder of #1. You think you can’t afford #2, so did I, but the way I see it, you can’t NOT afford #2. Make it happen.
Kisses are free, so I’ll give you some of those. MMMMWWAAAHH!
Yeah, when I lived in New York… I don’t know where my money went. I have control when I live in Canada! But grocery bills are like, double. Rent is like, triple. Admission price to the lap pool was $15 in New York… and free here! (And I go several times a week). Everything is more expensive. I miss New York, though.
I definitely agree with Michelle’s suggestion of auto-transferring money to savings. But, I suggest opening a free ING direct savings account instead of using a bank savings account. You can easily connect ING to your bank account to do the auto-transfer.
Once I realized that I had been working at a “real job” for amost 2 years and had $0 savings and no emergency fund I went hunting for help on the internet. Here are some links to sites that I read and get some good budget/money saving advice from:
http://moneycentral.msn.com/community/message/board.asp?board=womeninred&BoardID=688
http://youngandbroke.typepad.com/index.html
And a very easy Excel budget sheet that I use:
http://www.grantgannon.com/lifehacker/Budget.xls
Lots of $$$ luck Clink =)
Savings plans begin with facts; facts that can be unpleasant to look at, both on the income and expense side.
For one month, I kept track of every dollar I spent. Kept all receipts, paid with a credit card when I could, typed it into my treo, whatever. Didn’t try to reduce anything, just tracked it.
It was eye-opening for me. $250/month for lunches. $250/month in taxis. $175 in laundry. $600 eating out.
Then I stopped thinking about my paycheck in terms of gross salary, and only in post-tax terms.
Do the annual totals, and you come up with some unattractive numbers. And as unpleasant as that is to look at, dealing with the truth is the only real way to save money (and calories). How to go after that money once you’ve identified it is very dependent on your situation, but I’m sure there are plenty of common-sense approaches.
Also: compound interest is your friend. The earlier you get the money in, the more you have later.
Ok, now for my 2 cents. (Too bad it’s not literally 2 cents, ’cause it sounds like you can use it.)
1. Stop saying you don’t have money or you don’t have enough. You’re just attracting less money to you. Did you not see The Secret?
2. Bottomline: It’s about discipline and facing your own demons. You said you’re making 50% more than what you were at your last job, but you still find yourself living from check to check. Yeah, something is definitely wrong here. Material things are a definite weakness for girls (and some guys). You see a pair of shoes, a dress, some awesome jeans, even a cup of Starbucks and you think “I MUST HAVE IT.” The truth is you don’t. You will survive without all of the above, but the fact remains that you really, really want them. The real question is why do you feel you NEED them? I’m sure your clever little brain will give you the best of reasons why you should spend your money on it right at that moment, but no, this kind of question requires you to dig deep. And I mean DEEP. The kind of depth that might bring tears, but with tears come the truth. I’ll give you the perfect example using myself (because believe me I’ve been there).
EXAMPLE: It’s the holidays and one of my fabulous friends is throwing a fabulous New Year’s party, the kind of fabulous where I convince myself I’ll need something pretty and new to make the whole event perfect in my eyes, the kind of outfit where friends will secretly be jealous of my fashion savyness and my cute shape, where the men in the room, including those who are taken, will wish I was the woman on their arm, the kind of outfit that will look great in all the photos that will begin circulating the days following the party. The truth is the funds are limited, so I can either not eat for 2 weeks or have one fabulous outfit to wear to this one party. THE QUESTIONS: But why do I feel I need this outfit? Well, I just said it: I want to look cute. Ok, but you’re already cute and you already have plenty of cute stuff in your closet, is it really necessary to have another? Then that would mean me building a “new” outfit out of clothes they’ve already seen me in. So? Is it so bad if they see you in clothes you’ve already worn? Well, they’ll know I didn’t buy anything new. Once again, so what’s the big deal? Um, well, then I’ll just be wearing old clothes. Yeah, and why does that matter? Well, they might talk about me behind my back or judge me for it? Aren’t these people your friends? Some of them are, others are acquaintences. Ok, so if they’re your friends wouldn’t they just be happy you’re there celebrating with them? I guess. Furthermore, if they’re true friends, would they really dump you as a friend because you’re wearing something you’ve worn before? I guess not. So really what it all boils down to is you’re worried about what others may think of you and ultimately in being rejected or not accepted? (Tears.) Yes, I guess that’s it. You guess? Ok, that’s it. (More tears.) One last question, do any of these people pay your rent or bills? No. Then I say F what they think. Don’t let someone else force you into debt just ’cause you feel a need to impress them.
And so I built an outfit out of clothes I already had, but had never thought to piece together before, and I ended up looking just as fabulous for free. This is what I mean by discipline, asking yourself the tough questions and being real with the responses.
Clink, I respectfully I disagree. You are NOT a New Yorker. I have been reading you for a while, and I really think you are the type of person who sees this city as a phase but it is itching to go live in a Jersey town like Maplewood or Montclair, you have admitted it in this blog before (if I had more time I find the specific post). The streets of Jersey are lined with that type, the Jerz-Yorker, the type that sees Manhattan as your playground in their 20s, while awaiting marriage and a more tranquil life in the tree-lined streets of white towns in NJ, nothing wrong with it, but please be true to yourself. I don’t mind you hanging around here, if it did not make rent more expensive for true New Yorkers. A New Yorker is someone that sees this city as their home, now and forever, and finds a way to make living here work out until retirement. Someone who enjoys the challenges this city provides, and confronts them head-on until old-age. Someone who is not terrified of their kids taking the MTA bus in 5th grade surrounded by the Mexican busboy, and the Jamaican nanny, and the quintesential homeless person, and is disgusted with the thought of their kids growing up in a bubble surrounded by their kind. I don’t usually like to ‘hate,’ and I am trying to be civil, but your claims are just too outrageous and too contradictory to what you have posted all this time. Keep up the decent writing!
I second the whole idea of having some money automatically go into your savings account. It’s like I don’t even know it’s there. I swear, if it wasn’t for that, I’d never save money! Even having just a little bit helps stave off the anxiety.
whatever money-saving tips people give you, please share them with me. i’m in the same predicament where i’m still living paycheck to paycheck even with a well-paying job. while san francisco is not QUITE as expensive as NYC, it’s a close second. the sacrifices we make for living in great cities…
True NYer: No matter what happens in the future, I am a New Yorker right now. And who are you to decide whether or not I still feel like a New Yorker years from now, despite where I live?
My mother was raised here and she still considers herself a New Yorker even if she has been living in the suburbs for 20-plus years.
Also, I don’t disclose everything on this blog. This blog is snippets of my life. You don’t get everything, sorry.
And, in that vein, M and I HAVE discussed staying in the city and raising our children here and we’re seriously considering it.
So don’t group me in with the bridge and tunnelers just yet ok? Thanks.
This is one of the most fascinating posts you’ve written (mainly because it speaks to stuff I had to struggle with) so I’m sorry for re-commenting but I just HAD to say that True NY’s comment cracked my shiz up so hard because it sounds like something I’d watch a character say on Sex and the City and laugh at like crazy because it sounds so insane. I didn’t realise there was a secret True Dweller committee or code of conduct to actually describe yourself as a True dweller of any particular zipcode. I live in L.A., was born overseas in India, grew up in Quebec and Massachusetts, went to college in Montreal, grad school in Illinois, did stints as a child in London and Tokyo.
I’m a Bostonian through and through and in the sum total of my life, I only lived there consistently for 6 years. But it’s the city that I feel most in tune with, though I love living other places.
Clink on Clinknyc.
sincerely,
monkey
if you’re going to struggle financially, at least you’re living somewhere fabulous and struggling there.
NYC is probably one of the most amazing places on earth, and maybe you won’t be buying a brownstone anytime soon, but at least you won’t be bored.
i feel your pain, though. while san diego, california, isn’t exactly the big apple, we do have the big prices.
but oh man, it’s fun.
this really is the million-dollar question…no pun intended! in terms of saving money - i’m sure its been metioned somewhere here already, but bringing lunch is a huge help. and also? investing! put some money and lock it away in savings you can’t touch. let your money work for YOU. It’s not easy at the beginning, but really - it helps!!! good luck clink!
Big sigh. Why am I always surprised when I have, like, two dollars left to spend out of my paycheck? Figure it this way—at least in NYC, you have an actual working subway system and not some shitty trolly contraption that passes for a train. You’re probably getting more bang for your buck in NYC than Boston!
You know, I used to feel similarly about DC. I thought the financial sacrifices I made were worth it because I was in the thick of things in a city that rocked my socks off.
But you know what? Once I moved away, to a place with a more reasonable cost of living (Denver), I started to feel like a big, fat SUCKER for - literally - buying into the hype.
But I still don’t have any money.
I’m with you on that paycheck to paycheck thing. I’m already 25 so I’m seriously starting to worry that this is something I can’t get over. I have no financial advice obviously, except for one. Credit cards = everything that is wrong with the world. Okay, so that’s not advice, but you get the picture.
Yeah I don’t save money either. Get a piggy bank?
i highly recommend this book called “Smart Women Finish Rich”. i thought i would open it and it would say “Marry Rich. The End.” but it didn’t. It’s the most helpful thing I’ve ever read. Not full of pep-talks but full of real info on what to do. Sure I skipped some of the steps, but now I’ve been out of debt for years, bought a new car, and have already checked 4 things off my “Do in the next 10years” list.
they also have a smart couples finish rich book, but my sister said it was too hard to do with her husband.
granted, i feel like i still live paycheck to paycheck, but part of my money goes away to 401K and savings before i see it so i never feel it. and i would have more of a cushion but i prefer to love having shoes and coats for now : )
… and i tend to spend more money on groceries if i try to eat in all the time, rather than just having meals out.
oh, and my sister always tells me to “Act Your Wage”
… it’s corny, but it makes so much sense!
I like the point that Jenny made about still feeling as though she’s living paycheck to paycheck, even though she IS saving. EVERYONE should be living paycheck to paycheck in the sense that they’re accounting for every dollar in and every dollar out. Approach saving from ‘one day at a time’ (or one paycheck at a time) frame of mind, and it becomes much more manageable and much less intimidating than thinking about the longer-term.
Living paycheck to paycheck doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re never more than two paychecks from being homeless.
Btw, Clink. I have a super-fantastic budget spreadsheet (with fancy features like automatically tallying and percentages!) that I created for monthly budgeting/keeping track. I would be more than happy to send it along if you’re interested. It helped me tons.
Uh….can you send it to me too? haha
Okay, so I saw something on BB’s site about the “real NYer”, and I was intrigued.
“Keep up the decent writing”? Are you serious?
I love my city, but I hate people who wear it like a badge, like they are somehow more deserving of the city than others, like they epitomizing the lifestyle and are just fakers.
Isn’t being a New Yorker about variety, not fitting a certain image?
*sigh*
And I do know what you mean about money. I am making more than I ever have, and I am living on my own… but, still, the situation never seems to improve. The cost of living keeps going up- my first and cheapest apartment was way bigger than my current and most expensive one. And I only moved out 6 or 7 years ago.
[...] know if I will die here. A couple of days ago, on Clink’s blog, someone had the gall to comment and tell her she wasn’t a New Yorker because she might possibly move to the suburbs in the [...]
i think i’m a little late to comment on this, but i just thought you might want to know that if you have a Bank of America account and keep track of it online, the bank website will automatically show you what money you’re spending on what in almost any way that it makes sense to you - pie chart, bar graph, line graph, chart, etc. it automatically categorizes most of your expenses on your debit card. this is by far the easiest way i’ve found to budget. you can see what you’ve been spending month to month and you can set a budget online. it will show you visually when you’ve spent more than you should on a certain category (eating out, groceries, transportation, medical,etc). you can also link all your credit cards and savings accounts, 401k’s, insurance plans to the same site, and you can pay bills automatically.
thanks to the above posters for the comment about the ING savings account. i have mine with BoA, but i’ll look into that.
[...] got me thinking about a comment that was made on Clink’s post a week or so ago by a supposed “True New Yorker”. I was definitely riled up about it, as were many bloggers from NY. It especially struck a chord [...]
I live in nyc and def am living pay check to pay check. i’ve tried saving money but always end up with the same balance: zero.
I’m starting to think that affluent people in nyc get their money through other creative means. like investing. or the mob.
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