The most important number on that worksheet is the difference cell, the difference between what you're bringing home and what you're spending.
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Ep 9Spending 50% of your income on tuition? Here's what schools actually expectStacey Zrihen
▶0:55
Spending 50% of your income on tuition? Here's what schools actually expect
Ep 9How much of your income should go to housing and groceries? The actual numbersStacey Zrihen
▶1:26
How much of your income should go to housing and groceries? The actual numbers
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Quotes
“I'm paying somebody to tell me to eat egg white omelets.”
Stacey Zrihen
“I've got families that are making 150 that have lots of kids that are doing great. I've got families that are making a million dollars a year and they are in debt.”
Stacey Zrihen
“I don't tell people where to spend the money and how to spend the money, but I challenge any decision that leaves that number in the red.”
Stacey Zrihen
“You're not creating debt by writing it down.”
Stacey Zrihen
“Those are wonderful things, but those are luxuries. We just don't call them that in our world.”
Stacey Zrihen
“If you're young, if you still have some room in that budget, just start funding your Roth IRA, please.”
Stacey Zrihen
Takeaways
1 Achiezer's volunteer budgeters began by putting out fires (foreclosures, card debt, unpaid tuition). Now more young couples, engaged couples and singles come in early, which is the real success.
2 She rarely sees a hopeless case. An outsider can see options people can't see from inside their own situation.
3 She meets married couples only together. When one spouse refuses to take part, it doesn't work.
4 The oft-quoted $400K is the full-price cost for four kids in yeshiva and camp in the tri-state area. Many families live well on far less.
5 She doesn't choose the cuts; the couple does. Spending more than you make every month is never an option.
6 Groceries are the most common hidden overspend. Suggested Five Towns weekly food ranges: couple $125-150; one or two kids $200-250; older kids $300+; four or more kids about $400.
7 Tuition red flags: schools that publish guidelines suggest roughly 10% of gross income at lower incomes, about 15% around $150K, and 25-30% at $300-400K. In the schools she knows, about 35-40% pay full price.
8 Getting a tuition break means others are paying part of your bill, so hold your spending to that standard.
9 Cutting a $200-a-week therapy session by one a month frees about $2,500 a year. Only change therapy after thinking it through with the provider.
10 When a budget runs short, a second earner nearly always helps.
11 Long years of learning and a large family are real, valuable choices. Own them as choices, and accept that a house may come at 35 instead of 30.
12 The 'what the hell' effect: deep in debt, people stop caring about small cuts. Every cut still matters.
13 Couples who follow up after a meeting tend to succeed. And it's never too late to save for retirement, though it gets harder with age.