lsimpson33
Dryer sheet aficionado
- Joined
- Jan 16, 2018
- Messages
- 37
In the past I've saved a portion of my income each month toward a lot of different budget categories to make sure I have enough when there is a big expense (tires, pet needs surgery, etc).
But thanks to a new job with a huge salary jump, I know have plenty of cash padding in my budget (and, of course, I'm dumping all of that into FIRE) which would allow me to take care of any big expenses as they happen easily.
So now I'm wondering if it'd be better to not portion my income as much as I have been or maybe just do it for those annual/semi-annual big hits? It seems like I'm sitting on a lot of cash I shouldn't be. At the same time, I could argue, for things like clothing, it's a nice gut check before I buy something (I won't buy it unless it's covered with what I have saved).
Examples (all based on the average of what I spent last year)
- $75 per month on our pet. Current surplus: $636.75
- $40 per month for electronics. Current surplus: $1,238.56
- $75 per month for car repairs. Current surplus: $2,165.07
- $234 per month on health stuff. Current surplus: $2,722.87 (not counting my FSA).
- $140 per month on clothing (embarrassingly). Current surplus: $351.10
But thanks to a new job with a huge salary jump, I know have plenty of cash padding in my budget (and, of course, I'm dumping all of that into FIRE) which would allow me to take care of any big expenses as they happen easily.
So now I'm wondering if it'd be better to not portion my income as much as I have been or maybe just do it for those annual/semi-annual big hits? It seems like I'm sitting on a lot of cash I shouldn't be. At the same time, I could argue, for things like clothing, it's a nice gut check before I buy something (I won't buy it unless it's covered with what I have saved).
Examples (all based on the average of what I spent last year)
- $75 per month on our pet. Current surplus: $636.75
- $40 per month for electronics. Current surplus: $1,238.56
- $75 per month for car repairs. Current surplus: $2,165.07
- $234 per month on health stuff. Current surplus: $2,722.87 (not counting my FSA).
- $140 per month on clothing (embarrassingly). Current surplus: $351.10