Can you live on $50K a year?

I was reading and article on MSNBC today talking about the fact that $50,000 is the median income in the US.

It got me thinking about whether $50K a year is sufficient income to life comfortably. I actually went back and checked my expenses this past year so see where I landed.

I also did a quick check using the tax calculator on TaxTips.ca to see what the take home income would be with a gross income of $50K. Here is what I found.

- With a single earner, 4 member family (couple + 2 kids), a $50K income would translate to a net, after-tax income of just over $40K.

- $40K net income translates to about $3300 per month.

- This should allow the family to lead a comfortable middle class lifestyle without giving considerations for RRSP, RESP, TFSA etc. Depending on the family's priorities, they may actually be able to invest in the plans to some extent.

So in my opinion $50K should be sufficient for a family.

And in case you are wondering, I did come in under the $40K threshold as well - not counting the RRSP, RESP, TFSA etc. But if $40K was all I had to work with, I am sure that I would have managed my expenses better (maybe there would not have been the 2 vacations or the 2 cars etc)

What about you? Is a $50K income sufficient for you?

Temptations all around

For someone trying to watch their spending, Christmas time is the worst time of the year. There are sales all around. All those pretty looking flyers with things that you would love to have. The temptation is just too much. So how does one survive this glut of temptation?

A few simple rules ...

1. Decide before hand how much you can afford to spend all season. And then ... most importantly ... stick to that budget. No matter what.

2. Identify the items you need. Maybe these are things for your loved ones. Or maybe they are for yourself. Either way, make a list of the things you need. And stick to needs.

3. Once you have your list identified, you need to figure out how much you will pay for each item. The total for all the items has to be within your budget identified in #1 above.

4. Now watch out for sales. If the items on your list go below you "expected" price, grab them. Most stores will price-match through till Christmas day in case the price drops further. So its a no-risk buy.

5. If the items are for yourself, consider waiting for Boxing day (and week).

6. Finally if you end up with some left-over dough after all items on your list have been accounted for ... Hold on to the rest. Its tempting to spend it all since you have been good all season. But a penny saved is 2 earned. Hang on to it for a rainy day.