Originally Posted by
swaayze
And finally a nosy question (feel free to tell me to bug off, though it is genuine and I feel that I can learn from you; but still has a point if rhetorical):
You mention lowered expenses by $1000/mo if/when you pay off your mortgage, but expenses of only ~ $3400/mo now. So if your P&I is $1000/mo I assume you are probably spending almost that much each month on property tax and insurance (assume you’re in DFW from your earlier references, so maybe $600-700 at the least). How the heck do you spend only ~ $1800/mo on everything else? We spend that on utilities, auto gas, and other insurances alone (disability, life and auto - we're well covered, but all are necessary imo). Notice we haven’t eaten yet!
This is what I mean by expenses rising. I can see it if you’re a young, healthy single person, but add in a spouse and kids and ooooh boy do things change.
Our mortgage is around $1100 but not in Texas. So total expenses outside that are around $2,300/month. $400+ is food, that is the budget buster!
We don't have any disability or life insurance but do have 300/500 on our autos plus another $1m in umbrella.
No kids but we do have an old dog that is getting expensive!
Our budget is pretty bare bones by what most would consider "required spending". I am very driven to reduce costs and will spend money to do so. Example, several years ago I dumped about $1500 into a car that wasn't worth that on paper, but continues to perform well as a daily driver/airport car to this day. We cook the vast majority of our meals which we enjoy doing. Prepaid cell phone plans. Lots of DIY work. I even (gasp) mow my own lawn. I don't think I've talked to a single guy who does that here!
I get my shopping fix by buying stock.
If you have the assets you really don't need most insurance besides auto and home. IMO. Most guys way overbuy insurance but that is also coupled with their inflated lifestyle spending levels. I see budgets of $6, $7, $8+ a month and wonder what they are thinking. Who knows maybe most people have several million. I really don't know. But it would freak me out, in our industry, to know you have to come up with that kind of money every month just to pay bills.