I've been reworking our budget this month.While I recognized our housing costs eat up a very large part of our budget, I was a little stunned when I saw the figure in black and white.
Gotta love the Boston area, where this average family in an average home making an average living forks over 45% of their monthly income to keep a roof overhead.
THIS is why I clip coupons.
So indulge me (anonymously, using the poll) ... what percentage of your family income goes to housing (mortgage or rent, insurance, taxes, etc.)?
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11 comments:
An equal share goes to paying student loans...Ugh!
If we were still in our own home my answer would have been "I can't afford to pay my mortgage/rent anymore!" Very sad, but very true!
BUT we are lucky enough to live with my husband's mom for now and will remain there while she serves a LDS mission for 18 months in Ireland. So free rent means lots of time to save right....
Wow that's alot! I've always heard it's best to stick to 25% of your income.
We only pay about 11% but with the extra we pay on the mortgage it's about 30% (but I don't think that counts).
Probably not what you wanted to hear, but you asked right? :) We also live in the South where the cost of living is relatively cheap and we both have great jobs.
You're right Amy! It is a lot... but that's the reality around here. :(
I have daydreams about what life would be like if housing was 20-30% of our budget!
It's really hard to predict ours - Now it's about 20% - but my husband is in construction and his income varies by how much he works. If he gets unemployed, it will easily be 75% of his unemployment check. YIKES!
When we looked at houses, we sort of figured that our mortgage could be up to $200 more than our rent and we'd be okay. So that became our budget. And that's also why we live in a fixer upper in a "not trendy" neighborhood.
I don't think 45% is uncommon in this area. Plus, if you add our Lowe's and Home Depot purchases to the total, we're probably at 45% too!!
yup- i include the amount we put aside for maintenance. without that, we're at 40. still too high!!!
Right there with you--47%.
55%! But that's a mortgage/condo fee on one teacher's income...
That is exactly what percentage we spend on housing here too (not counting maintenance)
We are at about 25% but we bought below our means and back in 1997 before prices exploded. If we were to buy our house today it would definitely be closer to 50%.
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