Do you live paycheck to paycheck?

**DJ1972** · 07-31-2008, 10:54 AM

I was reading something today about this topic. So here's my question: What does living paycheck to paycheck mean to you? And, where would you have to be financially for you not to be in this category?

For me, it means you have to have the next paycheck and it must be on time or else your bills will be late. When you reach the point that all bills can be paid as they come in, and there is still money in your checking account, to me, you are no longer living paycheck to paycheck.
We are kind of in the middle on this one. I need to learn to leave money in my checking for upcoming bills, instead, I use any extra immediately to add extra to ef or debt. I guess this is where following a budget would come in.

**freebs** · 07-31-2008, 10:57 AM

we live check to check. dh gets paid weekly so we are always paying something late. We also have no EF so if something happens dh just has to plan on working more overtime.

**Greebo** · 07-31-2008, 10:59 AM

Agree with your definition - if you need the next paycheck to pay the bills, you're paycheck to paycheck. If you need next months pay to pay next months bills - you're still paycheck to paycheck.

If you can go a full month with no income and pay your bills, you're no longer paycheck to paycheck.

If you can go for a year with no income, you're getting pretty good.

If you can live for 10+ years on proceeds of your investments - welcome to wealth baby!

**Jellybeanz** · 07-31-2008, 11:09 AM

Agree with Greebo's defination.. We have lived paycheck to paycheck..a this point, no we don't. Unless something outside normal expenses came up,we could go a month without a check. Beyond that, it would be tough.

I didn't like living paycheck to paycheck, so I worked a lot of overtime as did my hubby to get us kinda ahead of the game a bit. I try to keep most major bills ( mortgage, a land note and vehicle note paid one month ahead also just as a sort of safety net, but my goal is to get three months ahead in major bills I just mentioned, plus have three months EF's.. Not there yet.

Could be, really we are for the moment, BUT we are about to put a new roof on ( no choice in the matter, it's to that point) plus replace some rotting wood on the house and I'm in the process of painting it myself. Well what I can.. hubby won't let me get on a scaffold for some reason lol!)

So the money is earmarked and I wish they would just hurry up and do it, so I could get it paid for and be done with.

Then we tackle IRS ( around 6000.00) THEN I hope to get the three months EF built up. It's like I said, right at about a month ahead now.

Hang in there, if you need extra money do what you can to get ahead.. its worth it. It doesn't guarantee your safe from catostrophes but it does give you a little wiggle room in case someone should get sick and can't work for a month or so.

I feel like on this board, being the frugal place it is, there are a lot of people that probaly don't live paycheck to paycheck and for those who do, there is hope!!!! Just keep focusing on your goals.

**Izzy0906** · 07-31-2008, 11:14 AM

I live paycheck to paycheck. I get paid weekly and if I don't get that, I'm in trouble. I'm starting my mini EF and paying off my debt over the next 3 years to help. BUT when DBF starts getting a steady income again (long story) that will all be shoved into savings. He will be making the same as me yet my pay covers all bills, and budgeted savings, MINI EF and everything else.

**Bournecrazy** · 07-31-2008, 11:24 AM

i live paycheck to paycheck, i get paid every two weeks and and my bills go out at different times of the month i would like to be able to pay in advance a month or two but its not possible as i dont have much left over, but i do have an £500 EF fully funded to help out which will cover two months of bills if needed but i am getting better at savings tho. might take a while tho

**Buckeye5** · 07-31-2008, 11:25 AM

We are definitely paycheck to paycheck. We just keep getting hit with Murphys. Yesterday it was the transmission, $1200.00 Last month it was the car window motor etc. to the tune of $700, house ins. went up, utilties, food, gas, and wonder why we can't get ahead??? We are definitely trying.

**Kitten20** · 07-31-2008, 11:25 AM

In general, I agree with Greebo's definition. However, personally, I could go a month w/o any income and still be able to pay all of my bills and buy gas/groceries, etc. but I still feel as though I am living paycheck to paycheck.

**quiltingmommy** · 07-31-2008, 11:29 AM

we are kind of in the middle. We have a years worth of mortgage payments saved up, but we are cutting it close every month with normal bills and don't have alot extra for savings. The biggest issue is dh with his spending pocket money w/d. He typically w/d an extra 40/wk over his budget.

It may not seem like much, but he was making minimal for 2 years (long story) and we built up some cc debt for the first time ever. (started the year with 12k in debt, now it's at a constant 7k since the extra w/d take away from what I want to pay the cc's). Plus we had to buy him a new car this year (yes, had...his old one was over 200k and dying every day), so if one of us loses our job, we'd be even tighter. I just got a pt job for the weekends to help pay off the debt.

**LexTysMommy** · 07-31-2008, 11:31 AM

Hmmm up in air on this one. Because any "extra" money in account at end of month or after bills are paid is put in my EF. So in reality, I could use that to LIVE on, but every paycheck (or whenever I get $$) I pay some bill or I save it. Never leave more then $100 in checking at a time. And never transfer from EF to checking. Make sense?

**Russ** · 07-31-2008, 11:32 AM

Originally Posted by Buckeye5

We are definitely paycheck to paycheck. We just keep getting hit with Murphys. Yesterday it was the transmission, $1200.00 Last month it was the car window motor etc. to the tune of $700, house ins. went up, utilties, food, gas, and wonder why we can't get ahead??? We are definitely trying.

WOW that $700 tiny electric motor seems awfully high compared to that $1200 transmission job that I would almost guarantee has higher labor costs.

**IntlMom** · 07-31-2008, 11:33 AM

The simple answer is "NOPE" we don;t live paycheck to paycheck.

**AmyBoz** · 07-31-2008, 11:40 AM

Hard to say...hard to say.

I classify us as living paycheck to paycheck, because if the paycheck didn't come every two weeks, we couldn't pay the bills.

That being said, we do have an extra bank account in which we have $5000. It's not so much an emergency fund as it is a grad school tuition fund. If worse came to worse, I guess I could quit school (which is something we thought I was going to have to do when the roof fell in...however, we found someone who could fix it well, but for much less money than we thought) and use that money to pay the bills for a month or so.

**EmilyD** · 07-31-2008, 11:56 AM

Hmmm, never thought of it that way.

What else would you do?

By your definitions, we live paycheck to paycheck ... that is life isn't it?

I don't know anyone who could afford to not work and still pay their bills. Even in "retirement" we would still need a paycheck of some type to live.

**Greebo** · 07-31-2008, 12:04 PM

Originally Posted by EmilyD

Hmmm, never thought of it that way.

What else would you do?

By your definitions, we live paycheck to paycheck ... that is life isn't it?

It doesn't have to be, no.

I don't know anyone who could afford to not work and still pay their bills. Even in "retirement" we would still need a paycheck of some type to live.

Paychecks come from employers. Dividend checks come from investments. Withdrawals come from savings. If you can live on #2 or #3 w/o #1 for an extended period of time, you're not paycheck to paycheck.