Ages:
Her – 25
Him – 29
Occupations:
We’re both lawyers. I’m currently working as a Contract Attorney [fancy word for the temp job I have] and he’s an International Tax Attorney for one of the Big 4 Accounting firms.
Location:
Jersey City, NJ – right outside NYC [we can see Manhattan from our balcony]
Gross Income:
Me – $22/hour [approximately $44,000/year-ish], Him – $103,000FB Notes: I threw them together as a combined household income of $147,000/year or $7500 net a month
ASSETS: $11,200
Note on Assets:
Chequing Account: Not much, LOL. Varies throughout the month obviously.Example: He got paid last Friday and I got paid Tuesday so there’s a bit over $1,600 in there now and most monthly bills have been paid already.
Savings Account: Roughly $7,000 in an engagement ring account and we recently started savings $50 bi-weekly into a savings account as well
DEBTS: $328,000
Note on Debts:
Car Loan: Owe just under $8,000 on it [don't know the exact amount] so we’ll be paying it for another 2 1/2 years I believe?
Debt-to-Assets Ratio: 29.29
They owe 29.29 times more debt than in assets.
Budget: $7500/net a month
Notes on Budget:
Rent: $2460
Electricity: Ranges from $75-150 [last two months were $100 and $150 - during the summer when we used the AC, it was $75 or so]Cellphone: N/A because his cell is through work, mine is on a family plan with my parents/sister
Eating Out: We try to only eat out twice a month, if that.
Beer: Buying beer at the convenience store – $20 [we're trying to cut back on this
Clothing/Gifts: We usually don't "shop" so nothing is budgeted for this area
Savings: Depends on how much "excess" money is available. We're automatically transferring $50 into a savings account bi-weekly.
Monthly Transportation Passes: Receive $110 pre-tax reimbursement from his employer for this
Credit Card Payments: No credit card debt but balance varies each month, mine is currently $500 for this month. We don't carry a balance but pay it off in full.
We try to use these for larger purchases only [lately, furniture and other apartment furnishings] to delay payment for a month.
Student Loans: I currently pay $950/month but will increase another $300-400 in March as another loan enters repayment
Personal/Beauty: $75/month unless I get my hair done then it’s about $200
I feel like there are other expenses too but I can’t seem to think of them?
How did you decide to get into your occupation(s)?
When I started applying for colleges, I wasn’t sure what to pick for a major.I noticed criminal justice was offered by most schools and since I enjoy reading true crime books, I went with that. Turns out it grew on me and I graduated from college with a B.A. in Criminal Justice and a minor in both legal studies and spanish.
Probably my second year in I decided that law school would be my post-graduation path and here I am!
He graduated college as a history and teaching major. He knew he didn’t want to teach immediately so he opted for the law school path as well. Took a tax class and loved it. The rest is history.
Are you in debt? If yes, please elaborate how you got into debt
Yes, big time! We have no credit card debt but we do owe on a car still [I think for another 3 years?]. Mostly though is our student loans. Our student loans combined are roughly $320,000 [about $160,000 for each of us]. Monthly payments are about $1,500 each.
What are your top 3 financial goals?
[I know they're very general but it's a start...]
1. Save for an engagement ring and then once that’s out of the way, a wedding and downpayment on a house.
2. Save for a house/apartment/co-op
3. Pay off student loans as quickly as possible
What are the top 3 common budget busters for you and why?
I really can’t think of anything…
What is the most frugal thing you’ve ever done? (e.g. save tissue boxes for some reason)
Often times I reuse ziploc bags and lunch bags. Nothing really out there though…
What is your single best financial decision?
I have two… First, bringing lunch to work every day saves a LOT of money [especially in NYC]!Second, I plan a menu for two weeks and make a grocery list based on the menu and the current sales flier. The two week plan tends to last three to four weeks for us since some nights I don’t cook or I’m home alone.
Also, each meal tends to give one or two left-over meals for lunch or dinner later in the week.
What is your single worst financial decision?
None. Yes we have a lot of debt but that’s due to student loans and I wouldn’t have done that any differently.
Where would you like to be financially in 5 years and what are you doing to get there?
Married, either owning our own place or being on the way to owning our own place.Having a good chunk of our student loans paid off.
