Living payday to payday. How many people do it?

Naf

meer53 wrote: »

I see why you have done this but i too don't think you're doing your children any favours.

Your son is used to living off the money he has left after he has been paid and he has paid you. When he leaves home and finds himself with much more money available from his salary, what will he do ? He has no experience of saving money, you've done all that for him. You say that the money will be given back to them but that they don't know that, then you say that the money is given with their blessing because they know it's for their future ? Bit of a contradiction there.

I'd say it's far better to let children do things for themselves. Thats the only way they learn.

The end result may not go exactly as Bloomberg hopes, this is true.
The general hope is twofold:
Firstly that they will have learned to live off a realistic expectation of what they will have left after bills etc. which will stand them in good stead in the real world.
Secondly, that by receiving a lump sum that has been built up from their money (even if not by them) they will appreciate the value of making those savings themselves.
The first part is all but foolproof; the second is a little hit & miss, but certainly isn't going to leave them in any worse position financially and money-skills wise than they would be otherwise.

innovate

There's a 3rd part to it - - the Know-How about savings (and investing).

We see an amazing number of posts here on MSE from people who do not understand AER, ISAs / ISA transfers, Regular Savers, managing multiple accounts, the need for regular reviews and perhaps shifting of money, the difference between saving and investing, when to invest into what, where to invest, the difference between an FA and an IFA, and so the list goes on.

Can't see how anyone could get on top of this if they didn't learn about it gradually, ideally from a very young age onwards.

michaels

I have an offset mortgage and stooze all the repayments due to the low rate - nothing to stop me spending everything I earn each month although I should aim to put at least 1k aside each month....

Thus 'can we afford it is never a relevant question' so instead I budget more by Martin's mantra - 'do we need it'? (and also my favourite question given the DW likes to hoard 'where will we put it?')

IrishGypsy

Thanks to my four years in retail banking (and from having learned about debt the hard way in my youth), I'm now in a position that even though I'm self-employed and my current due invoice is over a month behind being paid as the guy is a start-up waiting for his next round of funding, my bills account is covered for the next month and my business account has enough to get me by for one more month.

It means I can't really enjoy myself too often, but I can live well now that we live near a Lidl, Aldi and Sainsbury's (all within 2 mins of each other). I've taught my wife - who's a higher rate tax payer - to appreciate savings rates, to use quidco, to shop around and I'll do the same when our 10-month old daughter grows up.

Sadly, I still don't have anything put away for retirement (at 33), I'd rather get my unsecured debts cleared first, then I'll be hammering away those post-debt amounts into a saving vehicle for my future.

I'm just glad I learned what I did before it was too late and that I can now pass that knowledge onto my daughter for her lifetime benefit.

Bloomberg

meer53 wrote: »

I see why you have done this but i too don't think you're doing your children any favours.

Your son is used to living off the money he has left after he has been paid and he has paid you. When he leaves home and finds himself with much more money available from his salary, what will he do ? He has no experience of saving money, you've done all that for him. You say that the money will be given back to them but that they don't know that, then you say that the money is given with their blessing because they know it's for their future ? Bit of a contradiction there.

I'd say it's far better to let children do things for themselves. Thats the only way they learn.

There is no contradiction at all. The money is taken with their blessing but they think that I am using some of it towards food etc. Unbeknown to them right now every penny will be returned to them, where is the contradiction?

suki1964

I taught myself to not live payday to payday by opening my pay one day a wheel later ( back in the day of weekly wage)

I followed that on all my life and now I have a years wages saved

I always aim to save more then I spend to make sure there's enough for those rainy days, ad with hubby working less and less, it's raining a lot here

pawlala

Bloomberg wrote: »

There is no contradiction at all. The money is taken with their blessing but they think that I am using some of it towards food etc. Unbeknown to them right now every penny will be returned to them, where is the contradiction?

You've probably heard the phrase

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

Part of the enjoyment (and understanding) of saving is watching your money grow. Denying them the ability to save themselves and learn along the way kind of defeats the object, IMO. When you give them all that money back will they know how to best invest it?

suburbanwifey

Bloomberg wrote: »

They think that some of the money is for their future and all the money is taken with their blessing. In addition to saving money for them I educate them and feel that they appreciate the importance of saving.


My son is twenty two and I have taken in excess of twenty six thousand pounds from him. Next year he wants to buy a flat with his girlfriend, if the huge lump sum that I will give him does not teach him about saving and its benefits what on earth will?

And your point is?

I envy your children (you'll give them back that money right?) I was told that very same thing when my mother [STRIKE]stole[/STRIKE] took 2/3rds of my wages from the day I started work at age 16. I was told a lie - a third for you, a third for me and a third for your savings. I never saw the savings book but when I asked I was told all the money would be given to me when I left home. I went on to leave home and when I asked (I had to ask! for my own money) I was told, oh! I didn't say that. She stole my money from me with lies, I worked for a third of my wage as long as I lived in that house and effectively paid for all her designer bags, boxes of 4 cream cakes she loved to buy to get fatter etc. Yeah. I'm glad you aren't like my mother and you will give your children the money you take from them.

I'm in my 40's now and I haven't spoken to her since the day I left home. I don't like liars or thieves and she can rot in hell for all I care. Stealing money from your kids loses them.

Naf

pawlala wrote: »

You've probably heard the phrasePart of the enjoyment (and understanding) of saving is watching your money grow. Denying them the ability to save themselves and learn along the way kind of defeats the object, IMO. When you give them all that money back will they know how to best invest it?

They're not being 'denied the ability to save'. They're being placed in a similar position to what one could expect when living independently; and have the option to save similar amounts as they will after they leave home (presumably/ hopefully Bloomberg does teach and encourage this).
The fact that the money will be returned at some point is an entirely separate point.

innovate

Naf wrote: »

They're not being 'denied the ability to save'. They're being placed in a similar position to what one could expect when living independently

I had - perhaps wrongly - assumed they won't have any money left for saving, after they bought themselves clothes and shoes, paid for their transport, paid for the odd night out, had their hair cut, bought some papers, books, presents, paid for their mobiles etc etc etc. They have to fund all this from 25% of their income. Unless, of course, Bloomberg pays for all of it?

Bloomberg wrote: »

I take three quarters of their wages and save it.

Naf wrote: »

and have the option to save similar amounts as they will after they leave home

They'd have to pay a mortgage or rent, and any other costs that come with the place they live in. No way could they save 'similar' amounts (75% of their income)

Naf wrote: »

(presumably/ hopefully Bloomberg does teach and encourage this).

Bloomberg never said he/she teaches them how to save. Bloomberg said he/she takes 75% of their income off them, and then as if by magic they will get it back one day as a surprise.

Bloomberg wrote: »

Unbeknown to them I will give them the whole lot back one day plus interest.

How are the kids learning to save when it's done for them? How do they learn how to shop for the best account, how to open and transfer ISAs, how to read and understand T&Cs, how to decide whether to save or to invest, how to resist spending the money etc etc?

And how, if they will get the whole lot back one day plus interest, will they have learned that living somewhere costs a lot of money?