Paycheck ->paycheck from census 2006

I didn't want to take away from census 2006 to talk about paycheck to paycheck.
Living paycheck -> paycheck kinda sucks. but it is all that I can afford. with a morgage I want to pay as quick as possible & just life.
Many people now can't afford to live any other way.
I am changing careers soon. I want to go from moving making a poor wage $13.00/ hour now that I got a raise after 2 years, to be an electrician. I hear journeymen make good money. Maybe by then I won't be living Paycheck -> paycheck.
I do however have over $10,000 in RRSP's I try to put a $100 a month atleast. being 31.. 32 soon I think i have a good chunk put away for starters, but most people my age have less. I wish I started sooner. In the dividend fund mutuals I have my RRSPs I get about 10 - 15 % a year.

Make our own poll!!!
On the site who can & cannot afford $1500. to give to an extra bill right now??

I could afford a $1500 bill right now if I had to. Don't tell the Feds though, or they'll make up a reason to suck it out of me.

Good for you, Lord_Comedy, for being 31 and having all that RRSP cash put away.
Having all that invested already means that you must have started saving a while ago. Most people in thier 20's are in debt - forget savings yet.

I live paycheck to paycheck and only make a little over Min wage so no I can't afford another 1500.00 right now. I'm also supporting 2 teens on that wage.

your not driving yet? where ya get a new job? guess it would not be the right time to ask ya for a loan :-)
you are doing a fine job if you can support two teens and yourself on such a low wage. i have employee's earning $12.00 to $16.00 an hour and crying they cannot afford to support themself on that wage. (my heart bleeds for them.)

you have to look at what people do with their money though BC
Many people smoke. I couldn't imagine what I would be doing without if I smoked & drank all my money away as opposed to buying groceries & stuff I want.
Obviously MsTiggs does without alot of stuff.

so true lc … people spend what they get (the mosre they get the more they spend) most… of my staff smoke and drink and one spends almost all he gets on his bike (money flows through that mans hands faster than water …. he got a $1200.00 take home check on friday and yesterday had under $200..00 left. now that will have to last him until next pay in two weeks. just makes my head spin how young people waste so much money. some of my staff earn over $20,000. in the five months of yard care and have nothing to show for it at the end of the season. i know it is not my problem what they do with what they earn but just makes my head spin.

I'm gonna be living pay check to pay check for a bit, if you had of asked me last week if I could have afforded $1500 the answer would have been yes. On Friday I bought a 2006 smart car the dealer eyes popped out of his head when I put $5500 down on his desk.
As for spending excessively I don't smoke, and when I cut back my drinking to strictly weekends I found I still had money when the next payday came.
My girlfriend bugs me about keeping a close eye on my money, she always follows it up with "It's a good thing tho" I think she's jealous cause she owes her visa and her over drafts maxed.

To be honest - a surprise $1500 bill would probably sink me.
We've lived payday to payday as long as I can remember. My wife has been a student for the last 7 years (she grads May 26!) and we have two children. 3 years ago we bought our first home, I took a second full time job for a year to come up with the down payment, and we have managed to keep abreast, but barely. If the furnace went, I really don't know what we would do.
On the more positive side, I hope if you ask the same question a year from now my wife will have been drawing a paycheque for close to a year and things will have changed for us.

buy property as my retirement fund as better value for your dollar - BC

(just moved it to this more appropriate forum)

Good move BC.

Like my grandfather used to say:

"Buy land. They're not making it anymore."

thanks for the move pooga and also thank you for allowing me a short taste of number three spot a real treat even if it was short lived.

There is only one way to achieve happiness on this terrestrial ball, and that is to have either a clear conscience or none at all.

-Ogden Nash, author (1902-1971)

I live in the bush so no one can tell where i am so I think the census 2006 will miss me. That is okay with me as I really don't think the government has any right to ask some of the questions. Anyway I like to be alone and missing…..HEY!!!!!!!!! hope they don't come looking for me on this site LOL…… :-)

Are all census questions the same?

I am confused, because the questions that I answered had nothing to do with pay of any sort. It only asked me if I was legally married, and how many kids I had. and that was it. No financial questions at all.

There are different versions of the Census form, long and short. Obviously the long version asks many more questions than the short one does.

"Message
Date: 2006-05-15
Author: maggiemae [ info ] [ anonymous mail ][ private msg ]
Subject: re: Paycheck ->paycheck from census 2006
I live in the bush so no one can tell where i am so I think the census 2006 will miss me. That is okay with me as I really don't think the government has any right to ask some of the questions. Anyway I like to be alone and missing…..HEY!!!!!!!!! hope they don't come looking for me on this site LOL…… :-) "

Youve got the right idea, Maggie …. stick it to The Man !

"On the site who can & cannot afford $1500. to give to an extra bill right now??"

I have a bank account where I have to keep a minimum balance of $1500.00 in order to avoid paying a fee but the money is there if I needed quick cash although I have always kept enough in the account to cover my expenses without going below the $1500.00. I have a line of credit at a different bank so I would use that first for emergency money. I also have money in a money market mutual fund that I can access in case I need extra funds when the markets are down. It is better than keeping money in a savings account. I have all my money invested in mutual funds. A sizeable chunk of that is in dividend funds, which aren't as volatile as some other types of equity funds. I have done a little better than Pooga's friend because I am 52 and I am already retired and I worked part-time for several years before I retired. Starting to save early is important but so is never getting into debt–it is better to earn interest than to pay it. I never even had a credit card until I retired. Very few people can pay cash for their home but you have to live somewhere so making mortgage payments is better than paying rent because at least you will own the property when the mortgage is paid off.