Where do you live that your housing is less than 13% of your income?
Please, please tell me you meant “farmer’s market veggies.” 
My husband and his first wife built this house over 25 years ago, so the house note is very small according to today’s standards. It was 6% of the 2006 expenses. This shows how much we’ve cut back: it was 10% of the 2009 expenses, although the dollar amount of the note has not changed.
The top five in 2006: Insurance, utilities, car note, taxes, medical.
The top five in 2009: Medical, insurance, “miscellaneous”, housing, utilities.
(the car note had been paid off in between there).
I’m a librarian right down the road from Charlotte - I’m our only breadwinner, but we don’t have kids. We could handle it, but we need to cut spending as it is. We eat out way too much. We wouldn’t lose the house or anything, though - just have to implement some austerity measures.
No, I meant flea market, which includes several stalls of cheap, good produce. Some local, some off a truck. All of it at a much lower price than at the grocery store or farmers’ markets. It’s easier to live on greens and beans when I can add in peaches, bananas, and potatoes.
Ah… furlough.
First, let me answer the OP.
We would make it, but I make pretty good money and we don’t live beyond our means.
Kids are all grown and my maternal-unit is enjoying her golden years in a nice retirement community and needs nothing monetary from us
Fortunately, I also have really good health insurance which is fortunate because my lovely bride is a cancer survivor.
Let me tell you about my furlough last year.
It was March and our business group was informed that the middle two weeks of April were scheduled for a furlough of every single person in the entire company from the President down to the janitors. There was one very important group that was exempted from the furlough: our technical support staff. We were told NOT to mention this to our clients, and to go on as if everything was business as usual. We were also told that we didn’t have to answer our cellphones or our email for that two week period.
Well, I am the architect of several products, and as such, I am the primary go-to guy for the ongoing installations. I provide support for my techs who actually install the systems. And they knew that they were going to have to have my help during the furlough if they were going to be able to do their jobs.
So, guess who worked for nothing for two weeks?
I could survive, I’m doing worse than that now. The funny part is the part time jobs I get are only like two or three hours a week. Last week I worked two part time jobs for 7 hours total for the week. I so far manage to keep my rent and food paid, but that’s about it.
You know it’s bad when even the temp agencies don’t want. Oddly enough there are jobs out there. I still get lots of interviews, I just don’t get the jobs. I guess with the competiton I’m just last on the list <sigh>
At least he’s getting one full day off. In these stupid temp jobs, I get sent home early or called at home and told to come in later. Like I am supposed to open at 7am -10am, so I go in at 7am and the manager send me home a 8am. Grand total worked 1 hours. So I have to walk home as if I took the bus I’d be almost losing money. LOL
The temp agencies here require a 4-hour minimum if you report to work - so even if you are sent home early, they still have to pay you.
Interesting. My only experience with flea markets tends toward the bootleg CDs and junk-we-stole-from-people’s-cars-at-the-Clint-Black-concert type.
Glad to hear yours are more wholesome.
Oh, there’s plenty of that, too. You’ll get a booth selling the contents of a sold off storage space right next to one with bootleg dvds next to one selling pot metal swords next to one selling really good dried peppers. I’m a big fan of the local flea.
10 furlough days would be the equivalent of one full paycheck. Can’t say I’d be thrilled with the idea, but it won’t cause any significant hardship for me, either. I’d actually try to take 10 consecutive days off and have a vacation.
Yes, I’d be able to survive. I wouldn’t need to give anything up, although I probably would, simply out of caution.
Well, considering that a 20% cut in my former paycheck would still be considerably more than the maximum unemployment check I am currently getting – uh, yeah, I’m pretty sure we could make it work. And be happy I’d still have a job.
Sorry if I sound bitter.
20% of my income, I might reduce/eliminate: books, meat, alcohol, and other non-necessary expenses. Maybe stop the cable-TV. We actually live pretty frugally already (except for food, our one big indulgence), and have neither car nor house payments.
If we lost 20% of my husband’s income, we’d be in much more dire straights. He makes slightly more than twice what I do. We might consider renting one of the bedrooms.
Thanks for the explanation NinetyWt, and congrats on getting your car paid off.
I took an 8% cut, and my wife a 7% cut recently. We did the following:
Canceled cable (kept broadband I admit). It was nice, the cable company did all sorts of deals to lower our bill and let us keep broadband and the phone from them - I know it was loss prevention, but it worked well for us.
Changed our cell phone plans.
Canceled NetFlix (and stopped renting too).
Changed the wine we drink (yep - we drink enough for that to make a mark)
Altered diet (more pasta, less steak). Probably healthier too.
We were ready to adjust the kid’s childcare situation if needed next. My older son would have been watching his little brother each afternoon.
We’re furloughed four hours per pay period, or the equivalent of thirteen days per year. Thing is, they expect us to work 40 hours anyway, getting paid for just 36. I don’t believe that is legal, so I do not require it of my staff.
I’m currently undergoing an extreme version of this experiment. I’m on a furlough year while my employer tries to force me into early retirement.
Yep, my firm regularly employs furloughs, and I had two weeks worth last year, plus a paycut.
This is why I have emergency savings and live beneath your means.
I have a good six months worth of living expenses in savings, so I’d be fine. Well, at least for now, assuming the healthcare reform doesn’t destroy my career over the next couple years.
Well, you’re not just giving up the income. You’re also getting the day off, right?
I would love this, actually. I need to work more than half-time, but not really full-time. Four days a week would just be perfect. Unfortunately, not an option for me.
State employees have furlough days (I think one a month) but they can opt to use vacation time, if they have it.