A closer look: Comparing a spender's lifestyle and a saver's
lifestyle
San Diego, CA - You are an
over spender if: (1) you regularly spend more than you
earn, (2) all your bills are paid on time but, you have
little or no savings, and (3) you routinely pay too much
for things. Consumers who fall into one of these three
categories may be wasting up to 30 percent of their income
every month because of poor spending practices and habits.
Whether you are a part-time student worker taking home
about $125 a week or a professional taking
home more than 10 times that, the all important everyday
spending and life-style decisions determine,
rather quickly sometimes, how well you will be able to
treat yourself when you are in your 60s, 70s
and 80s, said Paul Richard, a registered financial
consultant (RFC) and executive director of the
nonprofit Institute of Consumer Financial Education (ICFE),
a San Diego based nonprofit group
helping people of all ages improve their spending habits,
increase their savings and use credit more
wisely.
People are surprised to learn their everyday spending
decisions, and especially the credit-based ones,
will do far more harm to their financial future than any
investment decisions they might ever make.
The following chart represents how different life-style
decisions determines how much may be saved
and, of course your life-style, a spender or saver. Which
one are you?
(Note to readers - email formats may differ and the
comparisons below may not be exactly lined up - use the
space and delete keys to line up correctly - thank you.)
Some typical monthly expenses:
Spender's Lifestyle Spending Saver's Lifestyle Spending
HOUSING:
Rent: $800 $550 (rents a bedroom for $250)
Utilities $65 $45 (renter pays $30)
Cable TV $85 (200+ channels) $35 (basic cable)
Telephone $40 (unlimited calling plan) $25 (basic + 5
cents per min
LD)
Total spent $990. $655 = lifestyle savings $335
FOOD
Groceries $260 (ave $60 a week) $234 (ave $54 a-week uses
coupons )
Restaurant lunches $84.50 (3/week @ $6.50) $56.33 (2/week
@ $6.50)
Restaurant dinners $147.33 (2 a-week@$17) $73.67 (1/week @
$17)
Total spent $491.73 $364.00 = lifestyle savings $127.73
TRAVEL/ENTERTAINMENT
Gasoline* $147.33 (full service pumps) $136.50 (self
service pumps)
Movie/snacks/park** $190.67 (2 movies per week) $138.67 (1
movie, 2 rentals/week)
Total spent $338.00 $275.17 = life-style savings $62.83
Grand Total Spent: $1819.73 $1294.17 Total lifestyle
savings $525.56
* ($34 a week)
** (movie $9.50, snacks $9. and parking $3.50/ video
rental $5)
NOTE: The comparison are based on the following: Single
individual lives in
a two bedroom apartment @$800 per month, pays own electric
and gas.
Optional expenses are telephone and cable TV.
Transportation: owns a 1999 mid size 2 door sedan, runs on
87 octane fuel.
For more information on mending your spending and
switching your
life-style from a spender to a saver, plus some financial
education courses,
books and videos, please send $1 and a self-addressed, 60
cent, stamped
envelope to: ICFE Resource Center PO Box 34070 San Diego,
CA 92163.
OR. please visit :
www.icfe.info.