Author Archives: Kristina Tahnyak

Good morning Dinks. Today we are discussing our disposable income, or in some cases our not so disposable income. Sometimes peoples spending and savings habits are directly related to their income and sometimes peoples financial habits are related to an emotional or mental state. Have you ever made a purchase just because you were in the mood to spend money? Let me ask you another question, have you ever not purchased something that you really wanted just because you couldn’t bring yourself to spend money and watch your account balances go down?

I am sure that we have all been there – on both sides of the spending and saving fence. We are Dinks, we are dual income households with less necessary expenses than the average family because we don’t have kids. This theory tells us that we should have a high disposable income and therefore we should be saving like crazy.  Or, maybe

So which one is it – are Dinks spenders or savers – what do you think?

According to our friends at Save Up young adults (ages 22 to 32 years old) are keeping money in their savings accounts and paying down 57% more student loan debt than previous generations such as Gen X or Baby Boomers.

Did we learn from our parents mistakes or are we paranoid?

Young adults and recent college grads may be lower wage earners than more experienced employees in their 40s and 50s who are more established in their careers. However, we are saving more than the older generations and we are paying off our debt at the same time.  Save Up reports that “young adults are taking a balanced approach to managing their finances.

Maybe you learned to be financially responsible from watching your parents make mistakes with money when you were younger, maybe you had no choice but to become a financially responsible young adult because it was embedded into your brain as a child or maybe you have experience the recent market crash first hand and you are reluctant to spend money because you don’t want to live through a period of uncertainty again.

The best financial advice from a younger generation

If you told my parents that I could team them a thing or two about money they would probably laugh in your face because older generations rarely feel that they can learn anything from the generations that came after them, but according to SaveUp this is just not true.

Despite possible lower incomes young adults are more responsible with their money. We find a perfect balance between paying off debt and saving. As a financial planner when I ask my clients why they aren’t saving they say it’s because they are paying off debt. But the truth is that you can do both.

If we live on less and try not to have it all then our budget can afford to pay off debt and save money at the same time. Very often I see people rack up debt and then use their savings to pay it off but that is an unnecessary and to be honest, a bad financial habit. If you are deciding whether to pay off your debt or save money – don’t make a choice, you can do both!

Photo by taxcredits

Good morning Dinks. We all try to track our income and expenses, we try to live within a budget and we save for our future. But let me ask you a question – do you really know how much money you are spending and saving. If I asked you what percentage of your income you spend on food every month and you had to answer this question right now would you know?

LearnVest and Chase Blueprint recently published an article where 8 readers share their secrets to not spending.  I honestly believe that temptation is a big part of spending; it’s also a big reason why people get into debt. If we avoid temptation and don’t want things then we will be less likely to spend money unnecessarily.

What is the last unnecessary item that you purchased?

Use these tips to help you stop spending:

1. Leave your wallet at home.  This is the best savings tip that I have ever heard.  If our wallet holds our money and our credit cards and we leave our wallet at home then we can’t spend any money.  Next time you go for coffee with friends or go for a walk, put $5 in your pocket and leave your wallet with credit cards and cash at home.

2. Rename your accounts.  If you associate your accounts with specific goals such as vacation fund, housing costs and retirement savings you will be less likely to use that money for miscellaneous spending.  Rename your accounts for your personal and couples goals and you will avoid spending money carelessly.

3. Treat shopping as a scouting mission.  Always get at least three quotes.  Don’t shop just to buy something, shop to get the best deal on items that you need.  Shopping around, checking weekly flyers and searching online for the best price will help you save money while shopping and avoid impulse purchases. For some of us it’s not spending money that is the most important part of shopping, sometimes it’s just fun to spend the day out with friends…even if we don’t buy something.

4. Consider your cost per hour.  This helps determine if your purchase cost is really worth the price. I don’t mind spending a lot of money on a really warm winter jacket or a good pair of winter boots because I know that I will have them for many years. Over time the lump sum cost will average out to be worth it.

5. Adopt the one in one out rule.  If you buy something new you should get rid of the old item that it is replacing, otherwise you will just be a hoarder.  If you can’t part with your old items then you won’t buy new items.

6. Keep a running tally on your phone. Tracking your daily spending and monthly budget through your cell phone helps you keep a running tab on how much you spend.  Checking your bank accounts once a day from your home computer is good but checking your account balances several times throughout the day is a great idea.

7. Avoid buying on the spot.  I think we can all agree that impulse purchases are killer to our budgets. Avoid them at all costs. I like to use the three day rule, if you still want an item in three days then you can buy it. Waiting three days before buying your items also gives you time to shop around for the best deal.

8. Unsubscribe from retailers.  Temptation is brutal when it comes to spending.  I used to receive several emails per day telling me about discounts, free gift with purchases and store sales. I unsubscribed from all emails and now I avoid the shopping temptation by avoiding deal emails from stores.

What is your trick to cut spending?

 Photo by emdot