Could you do it?

[norsegirl]

Today on Oprah... Suze Orman's Recession Rescue Plan.

Step 1: Live on half
Prepare yourself for the worst by living on half of your income and banking the other half. This will help you to establish an emergency fund and help you to look at your budget and spending now, before something traumatic happens like losing your job.

I look at Jason's take-home pay and at our current expenses and I don't think there is any way we could do it. I mean yeah, if we lost the income and had to reduce we sure could, and I do have a plan if it comes to that, but it would be by giving up stuff that I'm not willing to give up now on a six month trial "just to prove we can do it" basis. Why do I say that? What would we have to give up? The house. If I add up just the mortgage, taxes, insurance and basic utilities (electricity, water and gas, not cable, internet or phones) and we're left with $65 less than half of his income.

It amuses (and somewhat scares me) that to live on half on an experimental basis we'd have to give up:
- food
- one of the utilities (electricity or water)
- the car (we wouldn't be able to pay the insurance much less the gas)

To hell with all the luxuries like eating out, new clothes and hobbies, we'd have to give up FOOD and we'd either have to live in the dark or stop drinking!?!?! Maybe in 10 years when Jason's income has gone up a little, and maybe I'm back working again, and the impact of the mortgage payment has been reduced by virtue of inflation we could do it. Heck, it might even be possible in 5. But right now, not a chance.

I'd love to know if there is anyone out there reading this that could do it. Could you live on half your income? Is it even possible for you?

Comments

[much-ado.livejournal.com]

live on half the *household* income? yes, absolutely. in act, that's *exactly* what happened when i quit my job to go back to school.we're managing, barely, and this year is going to be hard with no bonuses to cover the tuition fees on top of all the other expenses.

both of us living on half of matthew's current salary? maybe, but not with school costs. one car would have to go, completely. school would have to go. we'd have to rethink how we do groceries, but otherwise we got into the habit of living frugally and without a lot of luxuries and frivolities two years ago, now going into a third.

[eve-the-just.livejournal.com]

Touche. We are also now living on half of the *household* income because I had to give up my career for this move, so I guess in a way we've already done it too. And we were living on just a little over half (we lived on Jason's salary, which was larger than mine and put mine towards savings, paying off loans and that sort of thing) when we lived in Edmonton.

We're already down to one car (we never had a second) and I don't have tuition to cover, so I can understand how hard it must be for you. I can't entirely say we've been living frugally this last 6 months though as I've been spending like nuts to get all the things you "need" for a new house, like blinds, furniture, landscaping, lawnmower, vacuum and other tools and then there's all the baby stuff.

I wonder when the baby arrives if we'll spend more or less? More because there's another person demanding things or less because I'll be less inclined to go out shopping just 'cause and I won't be picking up any new hobbies or even have the time to pursue the ones I have.