Living with one income: Tips from Parent.com
My wife and I discussed about whether my wife want to be 24/7 mom, quit her day job and take care of our baby.
After I did the calculation at stay-at-home calculator, my result didn’t show positive figures. It is better for both of us to work because my income alone is inadequate to tolerate with our cost of living.
Parent.com gives us tips and strategies on how to live with one income, but it told us that we have to watch our financial situation more carefully.
These are the tips and strategies:
++ You need to cut spending, so start with the cuts that will offer the biggest payoff. We need to live with tight budget. It also considers move to less expensive neighbourhood. But I need to think deeply about moving out.
++ Know what’s really important to you. I know what’s important to me. Family security and health is my no.1 priority. Saving and emergency fund come in second.
++ Work on building a stash of cash for unplanned emergencies — especially unplanned medical emergencies. I’m working on it. My strategies run as it planned
++ Cut your car insurance premiums
++ Take your spending off of auto pilot. I’ve been monitoring our both personal expenses, groceries, and others carefully
++ Shop with a list — and be militant about sticking to it. It becomes my habit to write a listing before enter a shopping mall.
++ Reign in the small stuff. We set an allowance or pocket money for both of us and keep it separates from home expenses and groceries.
++ Put your money in envelopes. Great idea. Ok, I’ll give it a try using this method.
++ Look for creative ways to make up the difference between expenses and income. Good idea on getting a part-time job. I’ll try to evaluate whether our family needs more money or needs more expenses to cut.
++ Know your tax situation.
++ Make sure you can make do without benefits.
