A Steward’s Guide to Starting a Budget Part 3: Fixed, Variable and Lifestyle Choices

A Steward’s Guide to Starting a Budget Part 3: Fixed, Variable and Lifestyle Choices

Sam is a typical person I serve.  By the way, Sam isn’t a real name.  Sam lives in the NY/NJ Tri-State area and spends over 50% of his income on his housing and car payment alone.  He reached out to me because he was sick and tired of living paycheck to paycheck considering that he was earning a decent income. 

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A Steward’s Guide to Starting a Budget Part 2: Tracking Expenses by Category

A Steward’s Guide to Starting a Budget Part 2:  Tracking Expenses by Category

Sam’s Financial Situation

Sam spends close to 40 percent of his net income on his housing.  He has a $400 monthly payment on his car.  He goes out to eat a lot but doesn’t know how much he actually spends.  He enjoys his daily drink from Starbucks along with something to munch on.  He has about $60K in school loans and another $40K on credit card debt. He has no savings and lives paycheck to paycheck.  He wants to contribute something to his retirement but hasn’t taken advantage of the matching his company gives. He wants to be generous to his church and other causes he values but never seems to have anything left at the end of the month to give generously.  Does Sam sound like you?  It doesn’t have to stay that way. 

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