Foo - Whats your budget?

I'm specifically interested in hearing how much of your income goes to rent/mortgage and so forth. I'm trying to figure out living options. What can I afford?

If you want to give dollar amounts thats fine, but useless since it's all relative. What percentage of your income goes towards:

1. Rent/Mortgage
2. Utilities
3. Phone bill
4. Credit Card payments
5. Car insurance
6. Car payments
7. Food
8. Clothing/shoes
9. Student loans or other loans
10. Taxes
11. Investments
12. Savings
13. Leisure/Fun money
14. Charity
15. Gas/Public transportation
16. Other

I'm coming to a harsh realization that the real world blows. We work so much only to have nearly all of it disappear before you even see it in all these expenses. I'm sure there are a lot more expenses than this. I'm a pretty frugal guy in that I don't blow my money on stupid stuff. I do put good money into the things that matter to me though. To me, an apartment is only worth about 20% of my post taxed income, but that puts me in some very bad places. Am I being too cheap on that? I just hate to not see my savings grow at some kind of decent rate a month. Living in a respectable apartment means my savings will only be growing at a one legged snails pace. This real world thing is a joke. I went to college for this?

Eliminating a few of those categories can make a huge difference. Give yourself some time. It sucks when you're fresh out of college (or not so far removed that you're free of the student loans) and you're still paying for the last four or more years. Car loans, credit card bills, etc., feel like a drain. But you get past all that **** eventually.

I spent a long time feeling like you feel now. It won't last forever if you act smart. It's amazing how your money snowballs when you're not paying it out all over the place. Make a budget and stick to it.

I started out spending everything I made on servicing debt, etc. Now, the debt (with the exception of a mortgage that will be gone in about 8 years) is gone, and I save/invest about a third of my annual income. It's not like I did anything extraordinary. You just have to be disciplined. You'll get there. It just takes time.

I like doing budgets so I'll bite.

Savings-25% (when 6 months expenses are saved, this is extra mortgage payment funds).
Mortgage-24%
Utilites-19%
Retirement-15%
Car Insurance-10%
Blow money-4%
Gas-3%

Total-100%

The wife buys food and I have no other debt.

What is this so called budget you speak of :p.

well Lets see here this is how my disposable income gets spent. This is after taxes and 401K contributions.

Rent :- 27%
Car :- 12%
Food etc :- 18%
Entertainment :-12%
Sports & Activities :-5%
Travel Amortized over the year :-10%
Misc Spending :- 2%
Savings :-14%

This is something I'm trying to get better at. This percentage is based on my pay after taxes. I'm planning to figure taxes & gross pay soon.

rent 20%
electricity (includes heat) 4%
phone/communications (includes cell & internet) 6%
student loan 6%
other loan 33% (mainly due to past medical expenses not covered by insurance - should take about 18 months to pay off)
credit card 0%
any kind of car expense 0% (no car)
medical costs not covered by the insurance I have 10%
bike upkeep and public transit 1%
retirement 5%
everything else (food, toiletries, clothing, leisure, etc.) 15% - I've got to get better at defining/recording this part.


Savings beyond my IRA? Got to pay that "other loan" off first. I feel pretty nervous about it, but that's the way it is... Medical problems are really expensive even with "good insurance". :(

House & Utilities $3,000
Health Insurance $600
Cell Phones $200
Car Payment $600
Car Insurance $150
Gas $400
Food $1,500
Clothing $500
School & Tuitions $500
House Cleaning and Gardener $500
Hobbies & Activities $1,000
Taxes: Too much
Savings & Invetments: Not enough
Other: Travel, Dining out etc $1,000

These percentages are based on my net pay, that is after taxes, student loan repayments and super scheme payments.

Mortgage repayments: 32% (that's fairly low in NZ nowdays)
Rates (Property Taxes) 3%
Savings 15%
Credit card payment 16% (I've been naughty and keep buying stuff with my credit card)
Power, Phone & Internet 13%
Food 9%
Everything else 12%

If I'm good and actually pay off my credit card, I'll be able to save more or reduce my shopping list.

All of my utilities are included in my rent, the parents pay my car insurance, the car is paid off, and I'd rather not think about how much money I blow on dumb stuff. Also, spending a ridiculous amount of money on art studio supplies.

I run a pretty tight budget now (I lived on credit for a long time). Variables (entertainment, food, cat stuff, etc) in total make up 45% of my income. My Fixed expenses make up another 45% (rent, cable, phone, hydro etc) and I use 10% to either savings or debt repayment.

I also have a company rrsp that they match that puts my contribution to savings at around 20% of my cheque.

I could break it down further if you wanted.

I'm not going to go to the trouble of figuring everything up, especially since several others already have. What I can tell you is that I save massive amount of money by not driving. I don't make much money at all, but I live in a good apartment (and have a house that I'm currently remodeling), I have no debt, I have plenty of food, and can still buy just about whatever I want for my bikes or most other things for that matter. All thanks to not driving. If I drove as much as most around here I'd be dirt poor. And if I were paying for a new car like most are around here, I'd have to live in it!

Okay, I'll bite, but you will be sorry.

House - 0 (totally paid for)
Taxes for the house - 100 dollars a year (I think less)
Car - 0 (we only use company vehicles and we usually don't go anywhere except for company) - in truth we have 2 SUVs, 1 large truck (I can't drive it because I don't have the license), ATV, motorcycle, tractor - all paid for.
Car repair - done by the company mechanic.
Food - 30 dollars a week (we have large gardens, sheep, chickens, etc)
Entertainment - 50 dollars a week (Dish TV)
Electricity - 10 dollars a month.
One trip to the USA a year - we tend to blow about 5,000 dollars stocking up with stuff, more than half is for the business.
Furniture - our furniture factory makes them for us if we need anything.


I really can't come up with anything we spend money for... No debt, no interest payments, we don't save money (don't need to - we are doing fine)

All our excess money from our investments (which is not a little amount) goes into growing businesses that we own and my projects (like now I am building a 2,000 liter aguaponics system) - which will reduce our costs of food even more.

Even though we have more than a little resources, we like to live simply so we do. It is probably how we got in such a position to begin with, not wanting a lot of stuff, and stuffing away the money.

Okay, I'll bite, but you will be sorry.

I think you lead a good life, but not everyone is envious of it. Just because you love it and live, doesn't mean others would. Just a friendly FYI as I have seen you use that card a couple of times.

Now as a retreat, escape, heck even prolonged vacation, hell ya ;)




I run a pretty tight budget now (I lived on credit for a long time). Variables (entertainment, food, cat stuff, etc) in total make up 45% of my income. My Fixed expenses make up another 45% (rent, cable, phone, hydro etc) and I use 10% to either savings or debt repayment.

I also have a company rrsp that they match that puts my contribution to savings at around 20% of my cheque.

I could break it down further if you wanted.

Instead of starting another post, I wanted to elaborate a bit. My structure is based on my net. That structure is pretty strict and held to due to my fiance being sick and not able to work for the last 13 or 14 months. We needed to reel in the expenses in order to afford the loss of the income (thank god I don't have to pay for any of her treatments or medical, I would be bust) The bonus of me being forced to do this with only 66% of the total income we used to have, is when and if she is able to work, all her income is gravy. I will be able to re-adjust those to a more reasonable amount I would say

Fixed - would go down to about 35%
Variable - I would likely leave the same (as it would actually increase based on total net salary)
Savings/debt - 20% (which would be a massive increase in investment)

Only stating all of that because you have to work your budget based on your needs and wants. If you have a car, your variable might be higher than mine, if you have really expensive rent, your fixed might jump. Looking at someone elses budget will not help, without you having knowledge of your own costs in life.

I also do my budget weekly. Taking cash out weekly and not using cards. Keeps much tighter control on how much I can go outside of my budget if I am tempted. (which I am)

Being single is more expensive too, damn dates can break a guy hahah I miss the fun, but I am glad to have the money to put somewhere else now.

This is just a net (taxes already subtracted) ballpark for a family of 4.

Home - 35%
Food - 12%
Utilities (heat, power, phone, Internet, cell, cable, water, garbage) - 10%
Good old American consumerism - 10%
Insurance - 5%
Savings (401k, kids' college, vacations every few years, car fund) - 28%

Our 2 cars are bought and paid for.

My budget? I don't have the brainpower or time for sweating the details. So my budget looks like this:

Continous expenses: estimated $xxx/month
Savings and investments: mandatory $xxx/month
Discretionary expenses: anything left
Excess discretionary funds go toward savings or investments.

For small things, I work on a cash accounting basis. It's all on my credit card, but paid off monthly. For larger things, I maintain a simple spreadsheet with targets and timeframes and adjust my mandatory savings rate accordingly. The spreadsheet also tracks my emergency cash buffer and my asset allocation in my investments. (Yes, this requires some brainpower and time. I focus all my personal finances energy on dealing with savings and investments and let the other details sort themselves out.)

Being a grad student right now, my continuous expenses consume a huge amount of my income, but I do force myself to fully fund an IRA before dumping the rest into the discretionary expenses category. Before grad school, on a post-tax basis, those three categories of my budget were comparably sized, though I routinely transferred excess discretionary money into savings and investments.

1. Rent/Mortgage - Get roommates, or get more roommates. If you already have them, boy it must suck.
2. Utilities - Also, get roommates
3. Phone bill - Drop the cell and get a land line, TV/Internet/Phone can be bundled and split among roommates. Cell phones are a luxury
4. Credit Card payments - Kidding me? Pay them off ASAP. Interest on CC is > savings, you're losing money
5. Car insurance - Get cheaper insurance with a cheaper car
6. Car payments - Get a cheaper car and/or move closer to work, I drive my car once a week
7. Food - Don't eat out, ever. It sucks being young and broke, I know. Never buy prepared food.
8. Clothing/shoes - Make due with what you have.
9. Student loans or other loans
10. Taxes
11. Investments
12. Savings
13. Leisure/Fun money
14. Charity
15. Gas/Public transportation
16. Other


If all else fails, get a better job.

I moved back home with my parents after graduating and commuted between 60 and 75 minutes one way to my job. Boy it sucked. After a year of that, I changed jobs and moved out. Now, even though I live in one of the 'richest' counties in the country, I'm able to stuff away at least 50% and usually more than 60% of my take home pay, and I only make an average salary.

"cell phones are a luxury"

Why would i pay $30 a month for a phone that is tied to my home when i can pay $30 a month for a phone that i can carry everywhere?

I think you lead a good life, but not everyone is envious of it. Just because you love it and live, doesn't mean others would. Just a friendly FYI as I have seen you use that card a couple of times.

Now as a retreat, escape, heck even prolonged vacation, hell ya ;)


You might be surprised, but I totally agree with you. This is what I like, most people would be miserable doing it. But my wife and I love it.

It is a balance in life. For us, we prefer to keep things very simple, but I will admit, today I am going slightly stircrazy since I shouldn't be swimming with stitches and that is what I really want to go do.

Oh well.

"cell phones are a luxury"

Why would i pay $30 a month for a phone that is tied to my home when i can pay $30 a month for a phone that i can carry everywhere?

Cable/internet = 90
Cable/internet/phone bundled together = 100

Divided by 3 roommates:
90/3 = 30
100/3 = 33

$3 land vs $30 cell, and thats a recurring cost

Cable/internet = 90
Cable/internet/phone bundled together = 100

Divided by 3 roommates:
90/3 = 30
100/3 = 33

$3 land vs $30 cell, and thats a recurring cost

Voip?

Cable/internet = 90
Cable/internet/phone bundled together = 100

Divided by 3 roommates:
90/3 = 30
100/3 = 33

$3 land vs $30 cell, and thats a recurring cost

Assuming that your roommates would be up for that. I can live without my cellphone i'm sure, but you really have to understand that times have changed. Personally, during the course of a class day i'm at home minimally and very frequently need to make phone calls for school or work. Fact is that in today's society, it is expected that you are able to be reached. I just don't see it as being a luxury anymore. Now, an iphone is a luxury, but not all cell phones are like that.

You might be surprised, but I totally agree with you. This is what I like, most people would be miserable doing it. But my wife and I love it.

It is a balance in life. For us, we prefer to keep things very simple, but I will admit, today I am going slightly stircrazy since I shouldn't be swimming with stitches and that is what I really want to go do.

Oh well.

no I am not surprised. I would have expected you to have a completely reasonable point of view on it. :)

Bummer about the stitches, its almost been a week now, they should be ready to come off ;)...

no I am not surprised. I would have expected you to have a completely reasonable point of view on it. :)

Bummer about the stitches, its almost been a week now, they should be ready to come off ;)...

Yeah, they are ready - I really should take a walk down to the clinic and have them yanked. Probably tomorrow. Stupid things itch!

They are bad enough that I was researching on the Internet how to remove them myself - the only problem is I can't reach all of them AND my wife refuses to help. :lol:

Thats too bad, removing stitches is a cinch...not that you pay much down there anyways :)

Curious, this just came to me, for the americans, do you guys seperate your savings for medical emergencies and traditional vacation etc style savings?

Thats too bad, removing stitches is a cinch...not that you pay much down there anyways :)

I gather you have had a lot of experience... ;)

Curious, this just came to me, for the americans, do you guys seperate your savings for medical emergencies and traditional vacation etc style savings?

Most american's are stupid...so i'd say mostly no.

I gather you have had a lot of experience... ;)

I have had tonnes of experience with stitches...I was an accident prone kid. I got very good at removing them (saved going to the doctors)

I actually just removed my fiances the other day.

Most american's are stupid...so i'd say mostly no.

hehe...ahh ok :)...

Curious, this just came to me, for the americans, do you guys seperate your savings for medical emergencies and traditional vacation etc style savings?


If you're me (and I'm a naturalized US citizen, so I don't know if I really count), I belong to a credit union and have my IRA funded through that. I also have a separate account at the credit union which is used specifically for vacation/holiday/travel.

My medical expenses aren't too bad, but I have the option of using a Flexible Spending Account through work and I use that.

East Hill

I have a flexible spending account through my employer as well. US tax law allows you to withhold up to $2000 per year. The nice thing is that it's money that doesn't get counted as taxable income if you do it that way. Since I only take the standard deduction, this allows me a tax benefit that I wouldn't get otherwise because it's not worth it for me to itemize my deductions. It can be a bit of a pain, though. You have to request reimbursement with receipts, and you cannot lose your documentation or you will not get reimbursed. I can have that money deposited directly into my credit union account, at least. Some employers offer a debit card, which saves you the wait to get reimbursed. Wish my employer had that. :( You must spend the money within the calendar year, or you lose it. So it is best to be conservative in your estimations at first.

I have a pretty good handle on my annual medical expenses. This year I am withholding $1500, which I am positive I will have no problem using based on what I know I have to get done each year. That $1500 encompasses my $250 deductible, $20 copays, 10% coninsurance on most medical tests (I've got a couple of really spendy ones I have to have yearly.), prescription copays which for me can be up to $30 for a 30 day supply of a medication, a 30% dental coinsurance payment for my preventative care (thank goodness I inherited good teeth), copayments for optical visits, as well as contact lenses, the rest of the cost of glasses if my prescription changed. (They only pay for $200, and that's about how much each lens of my glasses cost, as I did not inherit good eyesight. :eek:) Naturopathic and chiropractic office visits are also reimbursable. I can also submit for OTC meds like ibuprofen and contact lens supplies. If I've got extra money at the end of the year, I generally go to Costco and stock up on saline solution and ibuprofen.

It doesn't cover vitamins that aren't prescription and I wish it did. My doctor has me take a lot of calcium and magnesium but of course I can't use my FSA for that even if she wrote a letter saying I had to have it. :mad:

All I know is after we pay for and buy everything we need we are broke! :lol: we rarely get anything we want, but we are set up as far as retirement goes and thats why we rarely get what we want, so that we can do so when we are REALLY retired ;) (we are retired but not really, not until the last one is out and on her own ;) ) EDIT: but then again we have always lived a quite modest life style =)

I
It doesn't cover vitamins that aren't prescription and I wish it did. My doctor has me take a lot of calcium and magnesium but of course I can't use my FSA for that even if she wrote a letter saying I had to have it. :mad:

Tell me about it, my fiance has fibremyalgia which requires a tonne of "supplements"...its quite costly.

"1. Rent/Mortgage - Get roommates, or get more roommates. If you already have them, boy it must suck.
2. Utilities - Also, get roommates
3. Phone bill - Drop the cell and get a land line, TV/Internet/Phone can be bundled and split among roommates. Cell phones are a luxury
4. Credit Card payments - Kidding me? Pay them off ASAP. Interest on CC is > savings, you're losing money
5. Car insurance - Get cheaper insurance with a cheaper car
6. Car payments - Get a cheaper car and/or move closer to work, I drive my car once a week
7. Food - Don't eat out, ever. It sucks being young and broke, I know. Never buy prepared food.
8. Clothing/shoes - Make due with what you have.
9. Student loans or other loans
10. Taxes
11. Investments
12. Savings
13. Leisure/Fun money
14. Charity
15. Gas/Public transportation
16. Other"

Yea I guess roommates would be good. Although, with the terrible housing market it might be worth it to buy an apartment to start putting equity into something I can eventually get back sort of.

I have Sprints most basic package that costs around $40 a month. I"d rather have that then a land line. I'm hopefully going to start traveling for my job in a couple months, and it will be necessary.

Don't worry about my credit card. It was my first one, and I have no interest through 12/2008. Only thing I used the card for was to buy my bicycle. I'm making the minimum payments on the card right now. When interest is about to start I'll just pay it off in one lump sum from the money I've paid. Then the card will begin to collect dust.

Car insurance/car payments - I do have a cheap car. I bought a used 2000 Miata for $6500. I probably could have gotten a cheaper car, but I was transfixed on getting a Miata because they're sporty, cheap, and get good gas mileage. I kinda regret that purchase now only because the car just isn't me. Insurance is $88 a month. Car payments are around $160. I get roughly 28-30 mpg.

See my next post. Even though I'm living very cheap, I still have little money left over.

Ok. So lets say hypothetically I make $36.5K a year. wink wink

That's around $3000 a month pre-tax, $2400 post-tax.

Let's make a budget -

Phone bill - $40
Student loans - $75, but will eventually go to $150.
Car insurance - $88
Car loan - $160
Credit Card payment - $50.
Gas - $65
Rent with utilities - $500 for a cheap place
Food - $360 - I hypothetically estimate 3 meals a day for a 30 day month. Avg price per meal being $4.

Total expenses at this point - $1338.
So $2400 - $1338 = $1062 a month left over. Now consider that cable/internet costs aren't in there. I didn't factor in purchases like tooth paste, laundry detergent, etc.. Then also consider a $500 apartment isn't going to get me much. I live near Scottsdale, AZ with my parents right now, and I'm looking to move out. My job is in Scottsdale too. I'm not going to find many cheap places. I estimate hopefully $650-$700 a month for a place. The only costs I can cut from my budget are the credit card when I pay that off, and maybe the car loan when I pay that off in a year or two. That doesn't help a whole ton though.

Am I really only working to make maybe $800 or less a month in savings? That sounds so depressing, because those savings have to get split so many ways in between medical expenses, savings, investments, leisure/recreating, etc.. Am I missing the point?

Ok. So lets say hypothetically I make $36.5K a year. wink wink

That's around $3000 a month pre-tax, $2400 post-tax.

Let's make a budget -

Phone bill - $40
Student loans - $75, but will eventually go to $150.
Car insurance - $88
Car loan - $160
Credit Card payment - $50.
Gas - $65
Rent with utilities - $500 for a cheap place
Food - $360 - I hypothetically estimate 3 meals a day for a 30 day month. Avg price per meal being $4.

Total expenses at this point - $1338.
So $2400 - $1338 = $1062 a month left over. Now consider that cable/internet costs aren't in there. I didn't factor in purchases like tooth paste, laundry detergent, etc.. Then also consider a $500 apartment isn't going to get me much. I live near Scottsdale, AZ with my parents right now, and I'm looking to move out. My job is in Scottsdale too. I'm not going to find many cheap places. I estimate hopefully $650-$700 a month for a place. The only costs I can cut from my budget are the credit card when I pay that off, and maybe the car loan when I pay that off in a year or two. That doesn't help a whole ton though.

Am I really only working to make maybe $800 or less a month in savings? That sounds so depressing, because those savings have to get split so many ways in between medical expenses, savings, investments, leisure/recreating, etc.. Am I missing the point?

I forget what the percentile goal is, but i think savings should be 10 to 20% of your gross. Thats a minimum of 300$ to a maximum of 600$...I think 800$ is great if you can stay that tight to a budget. Everything over the 10 to 20% is gravy.

TV/Internet/Phone can be bundled and split among roommates.

TV is free. ;)

I forget what the percentile goal is, but i think savings should be 10 to 20% of your gross. Thats a minimum of 300$ to a maximum of 600$...I think 800$ is great if you can stay that tight to a budget. Everything over the 10 to 20% is gravy.

Thats what scares me. Being able to save only $300-$600 a month sure makes it hard to save up to live life. I'm glad I'm a DIY kind of person so that certain things can be cheaper. I can't imagine living a life where I expect to pay full price for everything and have to save for years to do something.

If you are saving $300-600, consider yourself WAY above average.

Check out the information for the US Department of Commerce.

http://www.bea.gov/briefrm/saving.gif

I have no idea. I get a bill, I write a check.

I'll give the monthly amounts in my currency - SEK (1 USD ~ 6.4 SEK).



1. Rent/Mortgage - 2825
2. Utilities - 400 (electricity only)
3. Phone bill - 300 (both land line and mobile)
4. Credit Card payments - 0
5. Car insurance - 0
6. Car payments - 0
7. Food - 2000
8. Clothing/shoes - 300
9. Student loans or other loans - 0 (still takin' 'em...)
10. Taxes - 0 (deducted before I get my pay)
11. Investments - 0
12. Savings - 0
13. Leisure/Fun money - 200
14. Charity - 25
15. Gas/Public transportation - 200 (bus/tram tickets)
16. Other - 800 (bike parts, presents, health/skin care products, gadgets, furniture, et c)

Am I really only working to make maybe $800 or less a month in savings? That sounds so depressing, because those savings have to get split so many ways in between medical expenses, savings, investments, leisure/recreating, etc.. Am I missing the point?

One of the easiest ways to save money is to join a credit union and simply have money taken directly from your paycheck and deposited into certain accounts.

I have $250 per payperiod (every two weeks) taken from my paycheck which goes directly to the CU. $72 goes into the IRA account. Whatever's left over goes into my vacation fund.

I have a FSA set up, taking out $1500. Sounds like a lot, but I have big medical expenses due to my migraines, dental bills, etc.

Because I work for the USPS, I also have the option to put money in the Thrift Savings Plan. This lowers my tax bill up front, because the money for this is taken out pre-tax (so is the money going into the FSA, by the way). I'm at 11% taken out of my paycheck per payperiod. This is in addition to my actual retirement, because I'm on Civil Service, not FERS.

I also put money in a savings account separately from all this other stuff. My husband has a mutual fund thingy going on, has an IRA, blah blah blah.

All this works if you aren't extravagant. Most people don't know how to balance having fun with having a set goal. If you like to party, chances are you aren't going to be able to accomplish most of this. It does sound as if you are doing what you can to maximise your fun in life, balanced with future goals, so kudos to you!

East Hill

Post federal income taxes and 3% to the 401k, I think it's around:
-30% mortgage/property taxes (includes a pinch extra for principle)
-17.6% for my car (all costs, and it's paid off!)
-11.7% charitable givings
-I'm not sure what groceries run us, but I'll bet groceries+eating out = 10%, if not more
-5% school loans

That comes out to what, 75%? Rest goes to clothes, keeping the wifes car on the road (she drives much less, like 8kmiles/year, and it's paid off too), doctors visits, etc. Oh, and utilities--not sure what that runs, but I'll bet running there's easily another 10% more right there just in home heating. [Wife took over the bills, so I'm not sure anymore.]

Budgeting is hard, but worthwhile. Sometimes it does feel a lot like a rat race. Go to work, so I pay for the house and car, etc. Loved college, living w/o a car, roommin' it with friends, livin' cheaply. Still living cheaply, but wouldn't trade the wife and kids for the college experience again. Just the way it goes.

Bike Schwag: $1000.

Everything Else: Who cares?

One of the easiest ways to save money is to join a credit union and simply have money taken directly from your paycheck and deposited into certain accounts.

+1, although a credit union isn't necessary. I have my bank accounts and investment accounts linked, and have $500 automatically put in my investment account every month.

I also have a 401(k) that I am maxing out at work.

because I'm on Civil Service, not FERS.


East Hill

You must have over 20 years of government service to still be Civil Service. I'm FERS but didn't have the option back in '89 when I started. I can't believe how fast Thrift Savings adds up even just contributing 10 percent. I'm at almost half million and I don't retire until until 2023. Compounding interest rocks!

Our budget goes like this:

Put a little away.
Pay the bills.
Give some away.
Buy stuff we want.

I have a good system set up. My paycheck goes into an investment account, funded by cash up to a point. That cash portion is an emergency fund. Above that, everything gets invested automatically. I pay myself a "salary" by electronic transfer from the investment account into my checking account twice a month. My budget is the amount of the "salary." Everything else is saved unless there's some sort of dire emergency.