Is anyone here doing ok even w/the terrible economy?

Isabella T.

I was just reading this thread https://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/6581720.aspx and so many of the posts just broke my heart. It's so sad to see young families struggling in this awful economy.

I was just wondering, is anyone here doing ok? Maybe not over-the-top yahoo wealthy, but comfortable? If so, what type of career do you and/or your hubby have?

We're doing fine but anything can change for anyone at a moments notice.

ashleyvc1

We are keeping our head above water, but not by that much.  One missed pay check or illness and we are in trouble.

gracendantho26

We are fairing fine in this economy. DH's company was able to diversify enough over the past year and a half so that they are able to still get a good amount of business. A lot of competitors unfortunately closed their does over this past year too so they have absorbed some of their business.

My job (I work PT from home) is better than ever. I work in annuities (with my dad) and he has more business than he knows what to do with.

I feel so bad for everyone who is struggling and hope that things turn around soon.

brightning

We're doing fine and just bought a new house. We really appreciate our lifestyle, too, because neither of us had this much money growing up. It makes us happy that if we need/want something, we can just go buy it.

I'm a SAHM and DD is a cop. I used to be a teacher. It makes the news seem a little unreal because because even though things are more expensive (food, etc.) our life really hasn't changed. But we do give back, donating food and toys every year. This year we donated TONS of food because the shelters here are really hurting.

ashleyvc1

Oh and I am a paralegal and DH is an attorney, however he is an independant contractor and his student loans are the same amount as our mtg.  He got his undergrad, masters and JD all on loans so that's close to 1k a month for 30 years......

Alexandra*sMom

We live in ND which has virtually been untouched yet.  The unemployment rate here is 2.9% I think.  The housing market is great here.  A Mom in our playgroup put thier house on the market and got an offer in a week.

Of course, we choose to drop our income by 60k in a year, so it hasn't been easy.

hero

We are just treading water. We can pay all of our bills but we aren't putting money in savings. I am subsitute teacher and few people are calling in sick right now. My husband is the manager of a Dollartree, which has been fairly busy because of the economy.

 

JellymanKelly

We are doing OK right now, but my husband's job is commission-based (manufacturing sales) and his sales could tank at any moment. The way I see it, the Lord giveth and He taketh away. The way things are right now, I don't think ANYONE should get too comfortable. You never know what's going to happen before things finally improve!

Isabella T.

Times are scary, that's for sure. I think we're lucky that we purchased our home when we did (5 years ago) but we both got new cars this spring that only take premium gas.

We did opt out of a winter vacation this year to stay at home instead. It's frightening to realize that anything can happen.

Brewster

We are ok. Not rolling in it, but ok. 

Brewster

Brewster:

We are ok. Not rolling in it, but ok. 

I teach part time and MH is a software engineer.  

pincushion

We are doing well. We live in a LCOL area and our expenses are very low. We will buckle down more just in case something happens but honestly the economic effects haven't really hit our area. Houses are still being built and sold. Businesses are going up.

Isabella T.

And I have to agree with one of the pp. I feel it is essential to give back too. Toys for kids, food for the hungry... it's important.

I see people around me suffering (like the thread I mentioned up above) and it really just touches my heart. Sometimes I feel so helpless

jaredswife

We arent comfortable.  But the economy hasnt really changed anything for us.  We are living the same as we always have. 

Dh is a fireman, and I SAH with DS. 

buffalo_buckeye

We're ok. We have a budget...pretty strict one. I sah but could go back if I had to or work 3rd shift if we really couldn't cut it for some reason. 

 Thankfully mh job is pretty safe (engineer) and his company is thriving (as of now). We are finding new and creative ways to get our fun money. MH bought and fixed a laptop and resold it for 300 more than he paid.  I'm planning to sell some of my coach purses.  We really don't have to do this, but if we want to go on some trips we have planned that will pay for it without eating into our savings. 

mamarazzi

We're doing alright -- not where I'd like us to be, but okay.  I feel like we may never get ahead, though.  We pay something off and something else comes off.  My H gets a bonus, but it's basically spent before he has the check in hand.  Things are going to get tighter with me being off work for several weeks and then supporting two children.  We're trying to plan ahead for the next year as much as possible, but it's still scary when anything could happen.

We'd be screwed if H got laid off.  He's a project manager (construction engineer) and his salary is what supports our family.  He gets bi-annual bonuses that allow me to work part-time (I'm a special events coordinator for a nonprofit) and they aren't 100% guaranteed.  Should his compensation package change, I'd probably have to go to work full-time or consider opening an in-home daycare.

When we bought our house, we figured we'd only be in it a few years.  We're coming up on three and will more than likely be there for at least five.  It's not ideal, but we'd probably lose money if we tried to sell right now and we really can't afford a bigger mortgage.
 

*Amy*

We are doing pretty well, we just bought a new house, and our renting the apartment in our 3 family investment property that we were living in.  The investment property is a great source of income, and DH and I have a budget that we follow with a weekly discretionary allowance for groceries, gas, dinner out, etc.  We know that when that money is out for the week-no more spending.  We have a separate debit card for it so it helps. 

 I am a SAHM-I make wedding and party invites on the side and DH is a VOIP engineer for a major insurance co and a part time real estate agent.

KellyGreen

So far we are doing fine.  Though I would love to be a SAHM, I am very glad that I continued to work part-time; if one of us would lose a job, we have the other income to rely on.  We've carefully built up savings and have no consumer debt.  We are careful with every penny we spend by choice - and that buys peace of mind.  We are both lucky to have good jobs. 

eclaires

We're doing really well, but I feel pretty lucky about that.  We live in a fairly LCOL area, and my husband has a good job - he recently got a new one and is making more money.  The company he went to work for has been hiring a lot recently and their business is doing really well.

He's a mechanical enginerd and I'm currently a SAHM.  I have my law degree and I will likely practice when we move (sometime after the first of the year).  We've made smart financial decisions, but I also know we've been pretty lucky too.  We also live in an area where we could sell our house for a decent profit quickly, which in this current economy is a very good thing.

It breaks my heart to hear about families struggling, so I'm doing what I can to help.

KellyGreen

Wanted to add that we're giving more to the charities we've given to in the past, and also giving to new ones, especially food banks - it makes me sad to think of kids going hungry.

Mrs.Saxy

We're doing OK.  Had we not had to waste money going to DH's ungrateful cousin's wedding in DC we'd be fine.  We have some cc debt that I don't like but DH just started a new job and we are making good money.

I'm a teacher and DH is an agent for ships on the river.  He'll never be in jeapordy of a loss of money.

Yodajo

We're doing ok.  My DH's job is automotive related (controls engineer)though, so we keep waiting for something bad to happen.  We were fortunate enough to be one of the few in our area to sell their home quickly and we moved into a new home at the beginning of September.  Our new house is an upgrade for us, so that, coupled w/ the uncertain economy has us nervous and wondering if we did the right thing considering the times.

Isabella T.

Hubby and I both work which I know helps tremendously. I rece'd my undergrad + grad degree in under 4 years, got recruited and I've been working ever since. I really don't know anything else.

I have to say that family is a great support system for us. Free day care from my Mom (6 am - 6 pm since last December) and my grandparents are very, very generous. Every little bit helps.

Having investment property is wonderful. We were thinking of getting into that but neither hubby nor myself wants to dedicate the time it would require. With the hours we work, we just wouldn't have enough energy I'm afraid. 

 

Yodajo

Oh, I am a SAHM mom and a dental hygienist.  I work a few days a month.  There are NO hygiene jobs in my area though, so if DH loses his job, things would be tight!

leiann2003

We have enough to pay the bills, buy groceries & gas for our cars, but that is about it. No extra money for anything fun! Thank god we don't have student loans or car payments! I don't know what we'd do! DH is in cable/internet/phone sales (basically commission only) and I am a PT Admin/Receptionist and work PT at Target as well.

Sweet&Spicy

We are doing fine also, not as well as a couple years ago... my husband is a builder and I work from home as a coordinator for a dialysis company.  My sister is 20 and I told her to make sure she gets a career in the medical field, awesome job security and it isn't effected as badly by bad economies as people still have to deal with medical issues.

Isabella T.

ITA about upping the amount we donate to charities.

true_norskie

We're fairing well still.  We bought a new house this year so I feel like we did our part.  I'd be naive to think we're "safe" given DH and I work in two industries that are extremely volatile right now.  However, DH is in a group that, despite the fact that he's in the financial industry, is busier than ever BECAUSE of all the crap going on.  And I'm working on one of the biggest projects my company has ever taken on...and consequently totally committed (logistically and financially) to completing.

The only thing I'm worried about is that when we bought our house the economy wasn't great, but it hadn't gone completely in the shitter yet.  So 2009 might be tight for money since we can't count on "typical" raises.  We more than doubled our house payment and will have another in daycare full time.

I'm absolutely not complaining and am truly grateful for our family and jobs...I feel terrible for those struggling right now.  You can bet we'll be donating this year more than ever.

Temp159135562506975

we are doing better than last year... and the year before that- so i guess we're doing pretty good! I can't complain - we can pay our bills- even though there is not much left over at the end of the month.

My 401K is sucking big time right now- but that's a long term investment so i'm not too worried.

the economy hasn't really effected us - it's being pg with twins that is making us feel really broke these days.

ali-1411

We're actually pretty good - DH just got a huge payraise when he started his dream job as a Blackhawk mechanic.  I worry sometimes about the stability of his job once this war ends...but trying to live in the moment here.  We've been living paycheck-to-paycheck for...well...forever.  But now we'll actually be able to set some aside and think about upgrading out of this two-bedroom apartment.

They are doing tons of layoffs at my company, but we'd be okay on DHs salary alone.  I do AR - billing, which you can almost always find a job for.

K-I-S-S-I-N-G

We have had no problems to speak of thus far. I am a claim analyst for a really secure insurance company and my husband is a senior operations manager for a tech support center with a government contract. It seems that both of our jobs are really secure and we have been able to maintain our lifestyle throughout the economy's problems. Luckily, we have quite a bit in savings and if either of us did lose our jobs we would be fine. Now that gas and food are going down we are doing even better, however I feel very blessed and worried about a lot of people right now. Our 401k's are in the shit_hole but we are long time investors, nowhere near retirement so we are just not looking at our accounts right now!

belle204

I was laid off in May and haven't found a new job. But, thankfully, since I live with my mom and I was planning on it, I'm not too bad off. It seems overwhelming at times but I know I'm a lot more blessed than some people. I'll feel a ton better when I find a job nonetheless.

Makinroom4baby

We're doing fine but only b/c DH is active duty air force for another year. Next year he has the option to retire or re enlist. The economy is really making him want to stay in although he is really done with the Air Force.

heyitsme

So far we're doing OK. We have quite a cushion of savings to help us out with that. We live in a HCOL area and definitely don't make the salaries to match that, but we strive to live within our means and save as much as we can. We don't own a home and own both of our cars outright, and so our debts are pretty much my student loans, our utility bills and rent, etc. We do use CCs but just because we accumulate airline points (with both our families being 3000+ miles away and just getting by, we have travel as a priority), and since the APRs are kinda high we do pay them off monthly.

DH was working 2 jobs but now is down to 1... so I guess we'll see how we stay. He used to work a day job and then was a waiter at night but now he's a waiter FT. He works at a very upscale restaurant and, thankfully, their clients don't seem to be feeling the economy crunch and so they're still eating out and giving good tips! I work in publishing.

I see my parents and siblings struggling and I feel horrible for them, and helpless...

 

Starr_Mom

DH & I are doing fairly well. His disability claim with the Veteran's Administration just got approved, so we'll be getting extra funds each month for th rest of his life. Both he and I work for the same large bank that's one of the ones buying all the other banks and our jobs are fairly secure, although I will count more on mine than his based on the areas we work in.

Zenya

nothing has changed for us yet.  I SAH.  DH is an engineer.  There are some layoffs but as yet he has not been affected.

Maybride2

We're keeping our heads above water, but that's it.

We're in MI, the worst state to be in in terms of unemployment.  We both have decent-ish paying jobs (higher than the median income for the area), so we're doing ok.  But my job is never really all that stable (mostly grant funded), and DH commutes nearly an hour each way to work every day, so that costs us a lot in gas and car maintainance. 

Plus, student loans and daycare costs eat up quite a bit of our monthly income.

The only thing that gives me some comfort is knowing that we have a lot of available credit, if we need it.  But I hope it doesn't come down to that.

goodhartedmommy

We're doing fine right now. We certainly aren't well off, but I'm not noticing a difference. DH works for Toyota, so his job could definitely be affected by the economy, and they've already started lay-offs. It's been a game of "will he keep his job or not" for months now--telling him he'll be laid off by the end of the year, and then guaranteed a job with a contract company. Anyway, we are already tight with our money; we live well below our means which helps save our butts in times like these. I stay at home. We couldn't afford daycare for 3!

Rebekah1021

We are doing pretty well. Even before the economy got rocky - we really cut our spending and still manage to eat out once a week. Our christmas budget is the same as last year and we have plenty in savings and investments if we need cash quick.

DH is an I.T. architect

AndysKandi

We are struggling, but do get by. There are people in worse situations than us, that's for sure. I am unhappy in my job (the hours suck, the pay is so-so) but at least I have one, and a stable one at that. DH has a very well paying, stable job and I am thankful for that too. I would like to find a new job because we barely spend time together as a family any more, and I could definitely use a higher income....It would be nice if we could stop using our credit cards and start paying them off instead. My car will be paid off in about a year, so that will be nice! As hard as things are, I can see a light at the end of the tunnel. It's just a loooong tunnel, it seems. :-(

firefightersgal

We are doing okay.  We actually are doing better than we ever have been, but that's not saying a whole lot.  My DH is a firefighter, so his job is pretty secure.  The FD really cannot be understaffed due to safety reasons, so a hiring freeze would be more likely than layoffs in his field.  He's not getting a cost of living raise this year, but he should still get a merit raise.  I'm a substitute teacher.  The money I bring in is really extra.  We budget everything off of DH's pay.  He also works a few part-time hours a month for EMS in our tiny town.

If it weren't for where we live (state/town/house), I don't know that we'd be able to make ends meet.