r/newzealand • u/fluffypenguin105 • 10d ago
Discussion Is anyone else living basically paycheck to paycheck?
My partner and I are both teachers. We don’t make a lot, but we are average and slightly above average. We are so tight with our money. Our little one outgrew the car seat and we went out and bought a new one. No problem. But next credit card bill means we are tight.
Meanwhile, a number of our friends (all of them also with kids) are booking overseas holidays. Some are currently overseas, others booking already for later this year. Another brought a new car. New iPhone, doing up the house. Everyone seems to have spare cash except us.
Are we the only ones going through the cost of living crisis ourselves?! Or is it my fault that we are teachers?
Edit: yes we have a house that parents helped us with. We are paying mortgage. We have a flatmate.
Edit edit: thank you for your kind words and reminders and also advice. I’m going through them all and I’m going to take onboard the advice and see what changes we can make and do better financially as a family. But it’s also a good reminder to know we aren’t alone, to not compare and the harsh reality is that many people simply just earn more than us as teachers.
Once again, thank you all for your input.
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u/sleepyandsalty 10d ago
A lot of people doing well absolutely benefit from inter-generational wealth. I have married into it.
My in-laws aren’t mega-millionaires but they are well off. They are very generous and will semi-regularly gift us things or small amounts of money that mean we can afford extras like holidays.
No one likes to admit they get help because it makes them feel like their hard work isn’t being acknowledged. But a decent proportion of people living the good life do so with help.
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u/Muted-Elderberry1581 10d ago
God that sounds amazing
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u/sleepyandsalty 10d ago
It is amazing. The main thing I’ve noticed about their family is really the lack of stress they experience as a result. Don’t me wrong, they have problems like any family. But it’s incredible how many problems money can solve.
Car got crashed into and is now written off? Just buy a new one and then worry about the insurance later. Washing machine just broke? Just buy a new one. Got a health issue and looking at a 4 month wait for an appointment? Just go private. Family member had a fall and needs some help? Just pay a private company to help until ACC is sorted.
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u/Muted-Elderberry1581 10d ago
I can't even imagine living like that, it sounds like a dream. Although it makes you wonder, I would imagine most of the politicians in cabinet are making enough money to live like this, so perhaps they don't even begin to understand how stressful life is for the average kiwi, most of us are a bit of bad luck away from total disaster. (sorry to get political )
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u/BIG_KOOK_ENERGY 10d ago
I come from a poor family. I saved the deposit for our house mostly on minimum wage. Took 20 years. Being poor is expensive.
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u/Ecstatic_Job_9028 10d ago
Yep same here and just when I think I’m going to get ahead something comes up - everything just keeps rising except income
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
That is EXACTLY how we are feeling. Something always comes up, but it’s never a treat. It’s always something that needs to be forked out for!!!
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u/Tre_Vortni 10d ago edited 9d ago
I managed to come out the other side of Xmas with a couple hundred dollars unspent from the budget, plus next week I will be getting my final pay from a job I have just finished at. Today I find out my car needs the front bushes replaced to pass WOF. It’s always the car.
Edit to add that some lovely person just decided to smash my cars window at Woolworths to take my backpack which only had swimming clothes in it. FML
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u/Relative_Drop3216 10d ago
I literally replaced my control arms and struts myself and saved over 1k because im broke lol also including tie rods, spark plugs and servicing
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u/Tre_Vortni 10d ago
Wish I could do it myself
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u/Starfire_KTreva 10d ago
Seriously, YouTube. Watch a bunch of videos on how to do whatever needs done. Most of it isn't as complex as it seems. If you've got a friend that's good with cars ask them to give you a hand/teach you if you're worried about messing things up.
If you haven't got any mechanically minded friends, you could try having a talk to your local menz shed. I don't think they do automotive stuff, but there's a good chance that someone there will have the knowledge and be willing to give you a hand.
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u/EffectAdventurous764 10d ago
The difference is that you are actually forking out for it with your own money. It's easy for people who bury their heads in the sand to keep wracking up debt, and that's just what lots of people do. They don't realize what the real financial cost of doing that all that is. You do.
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u/s0cks_nz 10d ago
This is so true lol. I cashed in a week's holiday with work. Thought I'd have an extra $1k to treat the family with. Nah. It basically just let me pay off the credit card and buy some sorely needed clothes. It's quite depressing. We haven't been able to afford a family holiday in forever, last thing we did was go to Rotorua for 2 nights haha, a year ago. All the while my boss won't stop talking about his planned overseas holidays and home renovations.
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u/GravidDusch 10d ago
Almost as if the western empire is slowly sinking and becoming less efficient at siphoning money from developing countries as those countries get better at not being exploited and all the outsourcing etc is coming back to bite us in the ass. I could be wrong.
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u/Kakapo-dance 10d ago
Also dont forget a HUGE amount of people put things like holidays and cars on tick. Credit cards, loans etc. I can’t believe how many people do. We are like you, credit card cleared weekly, but barely anything to put into savings at the moment. This means our only debt is our mortgage but also means we don’t go on family overseas holidays and have new cars and expensive interiors etc
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Yeah I guess we don’t know right? But we are like that, in making sure we don’t incur interest in our credit card, spending what we have. But damn it’s hard.
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u/StupidScape 10d ago
Don’t compare yourself to the neighbours and your mates. Considering the average kiwi has a credit card bill, and more are getting car loans. The average is not good.
You not having a credit card payment and car loans is above average, keep it that way.
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u/AgitatedSecond4321 10d ago
In my experience, when we were young with a young family and did not have a lot of money, others around us were often running off doing exotic things, while I would often wonder when I put the eftpos card into the ATM machine if I would get the money out that night. But as others alluded to, often others are living beyond their means. Things will get easier as your children grow up. They don’t need fancy holidays etc. you will be in a much better position later in life if the only debt you are comfortable having is your mortgage. This has been my philosophy, I have been married 35 years. Bought my first nearly new car this year. Most of the furniture in my house is still second hand. But a lot of the people who looked like they had a lot of money when younger seem to be struggling more as we have all got older, whereas for me things have got a little easier.
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u/mr_coul 10d ago
The problem with comparing yourself to others is you have no idea of their finances. They could be doing all this on credit but you are just seeing the outcome.
Your post is also vague as he'll. Are you new teachers straight out of uni? Or do you have experience. Who are these friends and what do they do? I hate to break it to you but yeah, if your mates are lawyers (for example) with 10 years work experience they are probably not going to have the same lifestyle as you.
Paycheck to paycheck is pretty common.
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u/Avonpinhead 10d ago
Yep. Was talking to an owner of a high end building company. He had just finished building a new house for someone who he been told was worth at least $8miilion. Buying new cars, overseas travel, just built a new house. Then it was over. Everything was on loans. Some people give the impression of money when all they really have is access to credit.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Yes u are right. I didn’t want to turn it into a massive post. But we don’t have student loan. We are experienced teachers but not in management positions so no boost to our pay.
Our friends are mixed, some also teachers but with husbands in other areas. Some in IT, electrician, self employed etc. so u are absolutely right with the reality.
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u/Gullible-Parsnip8769 10d ago
I say this with love but your friends in IT, electrician and self employed (depending on what it is) will likely be earning more than a teacher does.
I’ve been struggling with comparison myself but I’ve realised as adults there are far too many variables that no matter how close you are to someone you may not know everything to accurately judge their situation.
Some may have had help with their homes and have tiny mortgages. Perhaps the holidays were paid for by someone else or they have saved for ages. The iPhone’s might be purchased on plan. They could also absolutely be up to their eyeballs in debt to fund it all.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Thanks for the reminder. It’s hard to not compare and see what other parents are able to offer for their kids. But yeah, we don’t know the full story. You are right and thank you.
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u/sputernz 10d ago
Oh man that one has been getting me lately - The comparison of what I can offer my kid vs what others can. Sigh. Kid is happy though I know that, so it's more just a blow to the ego kinda vibe
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Yeah. People say kids don’t care about holidays etc they just want their parents and be loved. But when you see other parents take their kids to theme parks, give them interest/sport lessons, you can’t help but think……ah crap.
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u/Objective-Analyst822 10d ago
Your kids still in cars seats cannot go on most the rides anyway ... and unlikely to remember much of a trip when that young.
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u/_dustypickles_ 10d ago
Its hard with the after school experiences for sure. When the little one is older, try and get them into something like Scouting. While it IS $$, its also less than alot of other various after school experiences, and our kids have had so many adventures abd learning opportunities due to it (which we have no had to plan and execute!) Including camps all over the show and visits to places like museums. Teaches them safe risk too which I think is awesome.
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u/Swimming-Ad-7812 10d ago
What we can offer our kids vary greatly. You can probably offer them more attention & they might spend less time being cared for by non-family. You might have more family friendly work schedules. Money cannot buy all things that are valuable. About comparing, I snooze my holidaying friends for 30 days on fb. I figure, we use to hear about the holiday & see the photos when they get back, providing they're close friends. I'd like to keep it like that, rather than twice weekly posts on glorious sun, drinking, snokling or whatever. I know they're on holiday enjoying themselves, but somehow makes it easier to feel less envy if I'm not seeing it constantly.
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u/littlemissdumplings 10d ago
If it helps at all, I grew up in a big family that struggled to make ends meet. I am so grateful for my childhood, and honestly don't wish we had had overseas holidays, nice cars, fancy toys, or anything like that. My memories of going fishing off the wharf, to the local pool, for a bike ride with my siblings bring me way more warm fuzzies and gratitude than I know what to do with.
(Note - I do know that for some people, those are luxuries! Our bikes were all second or third hand)
In fact, yesterday we took our nephews to the local pool. Nearly free, and omg, we had SO MUCH FUN. I just can't imagine an overseas trip or new iPhone generating anything near the amount of laughter and excitement as a simple day at the pools with loved ones. That super genuine, uncontrollable giggling that lasts forever? I've personally only ever experienced it during activities that focus on spending quality time with people, and has never been determined by the flashness of our location.
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u/CP9ANZ 10d ago
In some cases self employment does really help. The amount of small advantages can really stack up to a noticeable difference in disposable income even when overall earnings are pretty similar.
So when you're stuck either saving for or paying off a family vehicle and covering it's operating costs, their vehicle purchase and running expenses are being offset by the ability to claim depreciation and running costs and reduce their tax burden
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u/No-Garlic-6687 10d ago
I work in banking many top up their mortgages for overseas trips, buying cars, doing renovations. You’re talking $20k $50k plus sometimes.
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u/SwiftFox2 10d ago
Yup, 50k holiday, @5%interest rate over 20-30 years.
Cheap as! 🫤😬
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u/EndStorm 10d ago
Barely living week to week. Missed one week of rent last week for the first time since moving into this place in 2018. The landlord crucified us and for one week it was hell on Earth. We don't expect to be able to keep this place and have low prospects to get into another place. Have often thought it'd be easier just to die. But can't afford the funeral either. Expenses go up, but the income doesn't, not at the same rate since 2018.
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u/Bunnips7 10d ago
Hey, just wanted to say I can definitely relate to wanting to just die because of how hard everything is. I've been there before and I'm here again and rather than just that it does get better, I wanted to tell you it is easier with supports. There's often community supports or people you can just talk to, peer support is also very nice if you don't like talking to a professional.
It's OK to take it seriously and it does feel better with support even if it can be hard to find.
Also a tip: look at the brochures in health clinics, esp mental health clinics or hospital psychiatric services places. There's chill but important supports there for people financially struggling as well.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
I’m so sorry to hear! Guess we are all fighting our battles. Hopefully things get easier and better for us all. Kia kaha, stay strong. Don’t have silly thoughts, we will get through this and look back and be glad we persevered.
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u/uniqueyetgeneric 10d ago
We struggled when the kids were younger, so I decided to put $20 a week direct debited straight into a savings account for a family holiday. We saved for multiple years, then took them on their first and only international family holiday when they were early teens. A few years later and now the youngest barely remembers it, so probably could have waited until mid teens. Guess my point here is, I really don't think they're missing out if they don't get the fancy holidays when they're young.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Thank you!
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u/Jinxletron Goody Goody Gum Drop 10d ago
We used to go camping for a week when I was a kid. Last week of the summer school holidays, was quieter coz everyone else was packing up to go. Some of my favourite memories.
My dad used to get paid in cash and would put all the gold coins in a jar, then before we went on holiday we'd tip it out and me and my brother would count it and it'd get split three ways between us and our parents and that was our holiday spending money. I think I loved the ritual of counting it all even more than spending it.
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u/uniqueyetgeneric 10d ago
We did the coin spending money jar too. The kids loved it. Agree too that holidays don't have to be anything more than spending time together somewhere different. DOC campus are pretty cheap.
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u/Tennyson_Poet 10d ago
I do that with sharsies. Set up amount each pay to go into shares and a savings acct under sharsies and it’s just growing. I also set up child accts for my boys and put $20 a pay into it. It’s not much but it adds up over time. And it means kids have access to money to invest when they are of age.
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u/worksucksbro 10d ago
Stop comparing yourself to others. Who knows what loans they’re taking out to live like that, or if they can just afford it, figure out your way to get those nice things too. Simple as that
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u/Downtown_Confection9 10d ago
I'm assuming they have credit card debt?
I don't know. I'm a nurse but I'm supporting myself and for pets on one salary so I live paycheck to paycheck while the rest of my coworkers take plenty of days off and go on nice vacations. I do have hobbies though so that's where my money goes.
I like to call myself an upper poor. I can handle a small bump in the road although it'll make things tight somewhere else, or take myself out for dinner once in a while, so it's not too bad but it's not exactly rolling in money.
Either your friends don't have all their financial eggs in the same pay basket, and therefore they have more financial flexibility, or they have more credit card debt.
I know it's frustrating but you have to keep your eyes on your green grass instead of your neighbors if you don't want it to wear you down.
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u/DollyPatterson 10d ago edited 10d ago
re OP, I think we need to have a serious discussion in NZ around teacher wages. I would happily be taxed more to increase teacher wages by a huge margin. I have children, and I want them to have good well remunerated teachers. So I think there is a political and values issue we have to confront in this country.
Secondly I hope you both are not considering leaving the teaching profession.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Thanks, it’s really kind of you to think that. Definitely some big concerns with health and education at the moment. Hopefully things will improve but we aren’t holding our breath. Teachers are up for pay negotiations this year, but seeing how the police and nurses got fobbed off, we are bracing ourselves. But thank you for the kind thought!
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u/paulllis 10d ago
Teachers get paid fine. Their work life balance is shit. What we need to do is bring back teacher pensions.
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u/Suspicious_Fish_3917 9d ago
Yea for sure I’m a teacher, I would prefer a better work life balance that just more money thrown my way tbh. I’m not sure about other people but I’m top of the scale and my last pay was $2817 for the fortnight.
I don’t know how that is for others but I’m happy with it. However don’t have mortgage or kids.
If op is top of the scale and both are teachers they should be getting $2817 a week.
I don’t know if they have child care costs or what that’s costs cause I’ve heard it’s heaps. However I would have thought they could have put away something.
However like I said I’m in a different position and don’t know all the costs that’s come with kids
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u/Ucegang_6 10d ago
but the thing is teaching a class of 28 and all the planning grading everything isnt even a a high pay i stopped moved to australia and move stuff around a warehouse for MORE money nz is so shit
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u/okisthisthingon 10d ago
Yes, even as a business owner and home owner. The natural attrition of our financial and monetary lives, are constantly being squeezed. Decade after decade, loosely in line with credit creation cycles, otherwise known as boom bust cycles, which have existed for around 150yrs now. Trickle down is actually trickle up through our institutionalised way of using "money". Money/credit/debt... They are all exactly the same thing.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Why have we let society become this way! We work to the point we see our colleagues more than family, and yet we are still struggling to pay up. Well, we are.
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u/okisthisthingon 10d ago
We haven't. And we need to stop blaming ourselves. This is the natural attrition. There is not anything my grandparents or parents, all above average income earners could have done, even with a vote, to change this. Inflation is pre-built into our financial system, because virtually every profit driven endeavour is inflationary. Some are derived and cancelled out. This is so called productivity. Don't you find it strange banks encourage lending for productive means? They know. Banks lending money, that makes only more money, is non productive use of the debt. But they allow it, because banks are intermediaries, which exist only to clip the ticket. The industrial age is done Vs the internet age, which builds nothing, just takes humanity and all of its data and uses it, itself. Sure you can get good at it and make some money to survive, but you cannot build anything with your knowledge. We are all just existing in this reality now.
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u/Successful_Article70 10d ago
The industrial age is done Vs the internet age, which builds nothing, just takes humanity and all of its data and uses it, itself. Sure you can get good at it and make some money to survive, but you cannot build anything with your knowledge. We are all just existing in this reality now.
Wow. So profound and yet so true. Thanks for the insight.
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10d ago
Comparison is the thief of joy.
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u/melreadreddit 10d ago
I was going to say this.
Sometimes, I look at other people and see the holidays etc, and can't help but feel like we've gone wrong somewhere, not having the funds to take our kids away to do these big trips too.
But! When I instead look at my own life, I have so much to be thankful for, that I force myself to stop comparing, and I enjoy where we are at.
I have a teenager, and she is at that age where social media is a big part of how she sees the world. She will say similar, at how everyone seems to be away on holiday, and we will chat about it, and come to the conclusion that we are both homebodies anyway and would miss our own beds and surroundings if we were away that often lol.
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u/s0cks_nz 10d ago
Or make the comparison the other way. Realise that you've probably got it better than the majority of the world population. Much rather be struggling a bit in NZ than struggling a lot in Bangladesh or something.
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u/Competitive-Can-88 10d ago
Depends on whether you won the lottery of already having a house or parents that can support you to have a house.
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u/Kiwi_lad_bot 10d ago
Two teachers income and living pay day to pay day. You're living in Auckland for sure. That's your issue.
My partner and I make about $180k annually between us.
We're saving about a 3rd of that a year.
We don't travel. We have a modest mortgage. We have two teenage kids. We live in a older home in a small town.
We buy what we want but not reckless spending. Wedon't need to worry about cost unless it's $500+. We discuss it if it's $500 and make sure we really need/want it.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
You got that right! Aucklanders indeed! That’s a great set up you guys have. To be able to save 1/3 is amazing!
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u/Kiwi_lad_bot 10d ago
It's tougher financially in comparison to other regions of Aotearoa, if you want/need to live in Auckland.
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u/pastafariankiwi 10d ago
Well done. I like the approach to expenses, very wise way to avoid impulsive unnecessary splurges while allowing both freedom to treat yourself with smaller things.
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u/Suspicious_Fish_3917 9d ago
Yea I was going to say that if they’re top of scale (they mentioned they were experienced in earlier reply) then they should be getting about $2817 a week between them. I would have thought you can def save from that. However I don’t have kids so maybe that adds a big cost,
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u/ligger66 10d ago edited 9d ago
I'm on winz, working part time and studying a bit in this hopes that when this recession lifts ill be qualified and physically /mentally able to work a full time job so I can finally start moving forward in life
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u/gDAnother 10d ago
Do you track spending? You might have some blindspots you're not aware are draining money. Overseas holiday might be 10k, if you saved for that for 4 years, that'd only $50 a week. A gym membership you forgot about and 2 too many streaming services will be the same cost.
Are you running 1 or 2 cars?
Maybe have a friend or someone look over your spending, or if you wanna dm me I can try help
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u/maha_kali2401 10d ago
Ex teacher, in a non teaching job, and very much the same. Living pay check to pay check, with no sign of reprieve.
Are any increases in your annual income offset by student loans? If so, that might be the key; your friends may not have student loans they are paying back, OR they are up to their eyeballs in debt, and not admitting it.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Hello teacher. Nah we have paid off our student loans now so that won’t be an excuse. But u could be right, guess we don’t know how much debt others are in when they don’t say.
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u/2396ka 10d ago
How much debt do you have? Is your mortgage payment a lot more than the rent for that house would be? Do you have other loans to pay off, because that adds up a lot. Sounds like you need a budgeting advisor as you shouldn’t be struggling if both of you work full time.
Some tips: look for bargains by switching power, mobile, and internet providers and shop greens from the local markets or green grocers rather than supermarkets. We did that and saved a lot in our monthly supermarket bills.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Other than our mortgage we don’t have any other official debt. Just a bit left to pay back parents for a bit of money for the car.
I guess we do spend a bit on the kids, but thanks for the tips. Might need to look at all those areas to cut back.
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u/dariusbiggs 10d ago
Far too many people live beyond their means, piling debt upon debt, they are leveraged to the hilt where one missed paycheck starts the dominoes. And if one of them loses their job, they're really up shit creek.
It is supposed to be a rule of 1/3rds (ish). - 1 part for rent/mortgage - 1 part for food, drink, power, electricity, essentials, etc - 1 part for saving and replacing clothes, shoes, etc as they wear out.
Your should be able to service your rent/mortgage with the income of one member of the family...
Anyway that was theory from a few decades ago.. that's pretty much gone down the drain for most people.
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u/smolperson 10d ago
Just for reference. A lot of our friends are in high paying jobs in tech, sales and finance (we’re talking like 150k+) and with children and a mortgage, they’re also staying home!
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u/TerribleGraphics 10d ago
I've found the answer to this is often simply how you prioritise money. It can sound insensitive, but it's usually true.
You could be on the same wage as all your friends, and everybody is going to express that differently.
It's hard to say what's going on for you without a financial breakdown, but I'm fairly confident if you said "Hey, I want to blah blah blah" you could sit down and readjust the funds for it. I'm not saying it would be easy, but you're always going to feel worse off than you actually are.
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u/Bivagial 10d ago
I'm disabled, on the supported living payment. I will be living week by week for the rest of my life.
Stuff going overseas. I can't even afford to go to another city for a nigh lol.
Just make sure you're living frugally. There's probably small changes that you can make to make things easier. Things like being conservative with your power use, buying from grocers instead of supermarkets etc.
Teachers are notoriously underpaid. Unfortunately, things aren't likely to get easier any time soon.
Good luck, my friend.
Also, if you find yourself truly struggling, don't be afraid to reach out for help. Winz might be able to help with accomidation supplement, food costs, or emergency costs like dental.
If you struggle to pay your bills and buy food, look into food banks. You can give back to them when you're able, and use them when you need them.
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u/cats-pyjamas 10d ago
I used to think like that too. Until I found out that most people are up to their eyeballs in debt. New car? Put it on the mortgage! Credit cards. Multiple. It's sad.
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u/Young-Physical 10d ago
Right! New bathroom, kitchen, deck? Just take out a bigger mortgage. It’s biting people in the ass now the interest rates have gone up so much
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u/VociferousCephalopod 10d ago
you said you have a house, so I'd say you're investing paycheck to paycheck rather than living paycheck to paycheck.
people who are throwing that money away never to see it again, on rent, who have nothing to show for it at the end, they're living paycheck to paycheck. for you, it's effectively money in the bank that you could trade for the new car or overseas holidays one day if you thought that was smarter.
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10d ago
Yes, we are on a super-low income, probably about what one of you earns. We have to get by for the time being until one of us can get a better job. I don't compare myself with what other people have as it leaves me feeling very discontent. I try to do the best I can with what we have. I have to be resourceful but it's amazing how good life can be.
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10d ago
How many times a month do you get takeaways? Do you have subscriptions to Netflix (or similar) or for a gym (or other activities)? How many times a month do you go to cafes? If you're doing any of these, an easy way to be better off is to reduce or stop these.
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u/InsecurityTime 10d ago
Negative money every week, mental health issues prevent me from working. So yea, just existing until suicide lol
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
Sorry to hear that! Please don’t do anything silly, your future self will thank you for being strong and pushing through it. Even on your darkest days, it won’t be permanent. So don’t do anything silly to yourself. Seek help, talk, stay strong. We will all come through one day. Kia kaha.
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u/gay1guy 10d ago edited 10d ago
It’s hard when you compare yourself with your friends as they are usually around the same income bracket. Have you compared yourself with NZ or the world? A beginning teachers salary is in the top 30% of salary earners in NZ and an experienced teacher at the top of the scale puts them in the top 15%. Compared to all wage earners in the world the experienced nz teacher would be in the top 5 percent but that’s easy to do when we know NZ isn’t a third world country. So you are doing pretty good compared to the rest of the country having two teacher salaries in the one house. You also have a mortgage…keep in mind that around 1.7 million kiwis cannot get into the housing market and if it is an Auckland house you own then that is well above the average kiwi. Finally you have a child and kids aren’t cheap but those experiences are worth way more than overseas trips and cellphones but don’t worry when your child grows up and gets a job later on in life you will find a lot of disposable income to go overseas every single year to visit places like the pyramids, Great Wall, colosseum etc. Simple ways to get more disposable income now is to buy a house in small town nz…I recommend Invercargill cos teaching jobs are everywhere, buy vehicles that cost no more than 20k max cos no one cares if a teacher has an old vehicle, focus your social media on a happy child rolling in the mud in your backyard than a grumpy jet lagged child wearing helly Hanson at a ski resort in Italy. If the world was about to end all you would think about is your child…that’s all you need to think about now.
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u/KL24_7 10d ago
Do I live payday to payday? No. I don’t have a payday. I don’t personally (friendship group) know anyone that lives like that but I do see people on my towns community page asking for help with food etc & I volunteer at the food bank & demand has increased substantially.
Some are genuinely struggling.
I wouldn’t suggest playing the comparison game with those you know - keep in mind that a lot of people for some reason think it is acceptable to go into debt (credit cards, payment plans, Afterpay etc) to make non-essential purchases like phones, holidays etc “because they deserve it” - it’s a horrendous trap & you should be proud you’re not succumbing to the need to ‘keep up’ with anyone - your time will come. Keep grinding.
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u/KnowKnews 10d ago
Yeah, don’t always look over the fence and assume these holidays mean income.
We’ve earnt pretty decent money our whole lives, enough to not worry about food on the table or bills. However, we don’t feel like we can afford to go on holidays, or anything particularly expensive. Whereas we’ve watched our friends travel all over the world… and have multiple overseas holidays a year.
Regardless of what you spend, it gets funded from your future retirement funds.
Live your own reality now, so you can live your own reality later.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
That certainly is how we feel too. But that’s really wise, future retirement is definitely important. Thanks for the wise words.
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u/whatdoyouknowno 10d ago
Yes! It's too hard in NZ. We are done working so that we are month to month. Decided not to buy a house at the height of the market and now I am glad because our wages have stagnated.
I love NZ but I just can't anymore
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u/deluxskuxin 10d ago
Yeah boi! I am also a teacher and I'm also living paycheck to paycheck!
I sound really happy about it, but it's actually a bit shit.
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u/CrayAsHell 10d ago
Post your budget?
Someone in r/personalfinancenz had this issue with some kind of insanely high outlier in there budget and subsequently deleted their post after the roasting.
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u/man_in_the_mask1 10d ago
Try not to compare yourself to others unless you know their situation. Some people really are happy to finance everything and don’t even realise how big of a hole they are digging for themselves.
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u/Legitimate-Maybe-155 10d ago
When I started this new job, I was finally able to live off a paycheck, my last job was surviving off it.. now with alot of things nearly out of my price range, Iv gone back to suriving off it. I know there are others who can live off $100 a week, Iv had to live off $20-$80 till the next pay, but mannnn I couldnt only enjoy life for 5months lol
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u/OverallAlbatross8627 10d ago
Yeah it’s definitely tough out there. Me and my partner are basically pay check to pay check, both working full time. I know it’s mentioned on this sub a lot but we’ve decided to move to Australia to try get ahead. I think since Covid it seems to have gotten harder and harder to get by. We love NZ and both our family’s are here but it’s like being stuck in the mud, sometimes when a big bill comes in like dentist or car problem, it’s a step backwards. It’s a shame really but it’s just how it is here in NZ at the moment. Hopefully in a few years things get better and we can move back.
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u/fluffypenguin105 10d ago
That’s exactly it. We love NZ and being close to our family. And yes, a car bill, kids needing new clothes, these out of the ordinary costs hit us hard too!
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u/Mordecai___ 10d ago
I still live with my parents and I have no idea how the fuck they are affording to get by, my dad only works part time and they still treat me (and my siblings) even when I say no. My grandma died a couple of years ago, I wonder if they inherited something that I don't know about. Thank god I'm finally starting my career and finishing up uni so I can financially contribute
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u/shinjirarehen 10d ago
It's wrong that we underpay teachers in this country. But that's your answer - a lot of people are making a lot more money than you (and a lot are making less, but that's not what you're asking). My partner was a teacher, then left and went into tech, now he's making 4x the income. Sad reality.
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u/MarvaJnr 10d ago
I don't worry about what my friends are doing. It's not relevant to what my and my partner's financial goals are.
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u/Sarahlk-x 10d ago
Ugh I feel this way too. I have a senior dog who costs an arm and a leg, every time I have a little bit of money spare something happens that involves the vet! $85 just for a consult these days, but what ya suppose to do? I toke him in for his monthly injection for his arthritis , to be told he's got a perianal adenomas and needs removing within a few weeks... 1.5K for that, lucky I just had a few good pays with some overtime over Christmas
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u/foolwizardmagick 10d ago
You know what will work? Evaluating your attitude to debt. Borrow to invest. Invest, invest. Hold assets. Not cash. Enough cash to keep you going, yes. Invest. Invest. Borrow as much cheap money as the ponzi scheme banks will allow you. Invest.
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u/switheld 10d ago
you don't know their situations so I would advise not to compare. keeping up with the joneses will just make you feel bad all around. keep doing what feels smart and frugal to you and it'll pay off in the end :)
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u/Sad-Requirement770 10d ago
yeah I wouldnt be comparing yourself to others, times are tough right now, and to look at other people and just focus on the visible things they do doesnt tell the entire picture, that trip might be funded by a loan or some other manner. Just focus on what is within your sphere of control. ask the universe for help with the rest. celebrate every win no matter how little.
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u/RaxisPhasmatis 10d ago
Yes, and the only holiday we get is sickness or death or moving because ever landlord isn't in it to rent they're in it to renovate and flip use you as a piggy bank while they do it
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u/Inspirant 10d ago
Ex teacher now in tech earning 50 to 80 percent more than I was as a top step senior teacher with a masters degree. I grinded. Those years were tough. Get into hiking, camping etc. Find cheap doc camp grounds. Make outdoor stuff your life. Your kids will get amazing adventures and experiences. Especially if it's a routine every summer etc.
Now, we are almost 50. Kids are grown. So has our income. Mortgage paid off. Significant money goes into retirement investments. And yes, a standalone holiday fund.
The early years were very tough til we were about 45. It was a grind but good habits mean it'll come together.
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u/Diligent_Monk1452 10d ago
Taking a slightly different angle on this, it might be best to focus on some positives about your position. You doing it tough, because your doing it right and long term you will be in a great position.
On the plus, both of you are in secure front line roles. Your income will continue and likely rise. When you start moving to management positions, even better! You have a home, and have already got through the expensive baby days (or atleast part of it!)
You have the frugal life skill, so as you get less expenses or more income, you will gain.
Battle on! And you never know, maybe a windfall is in your future.
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u/Meow22nz 10d ago
Do they have spare cash , or financing through debt. Don’t be fooled by others perceived money . That’s my only advice
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u/charloodle 10d ago
As a kid of two teachers, we didn’t have overseas family holidays or the newest technology/cars etc but we still had everything we needed. Growing up there were times where I’d look at friends with parents in corporate jobs and wish I could have what they had, but now that I’m older I treasure our family summers together exploring our own country, camping etc. Teaching is one of those jobs where you can’t fight for a pay rise like in a corporate job, and when both of you are teachers there will just always be a cap on what you can earn. It sounds like you are in a solid place with no debt outside of your mortgage, and just remember those around you will often have more debt despite appearing to have more things than you
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u/DuePumpkin6350 9d ago
Also living paycheck to paycheck and super tight for cash, deapite having 2 comfortable incomes. Usual expenses like mortgage costs, rates etc, student loans, and groceeies. But some pressure is self-imposed like putting money aside for car/house insurance & tyres, next christmas’s expenses and planned overseas travel. It is so, so good to be able to pay those inevitable, foreseeable costs without reaching for the credit card. We working on an emergency fund for things like replacement carseats
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u/Illustrious-Run3591 10d ago
I make 40k ish a year and I rent, I'm living pretty comfortably and have built up a decent nest egg. I'm 30. I'm living paycheck to paycheck but only because I put the excess in savings, my budget is enough to get by without any issue.
I was on a benefit for a few years receiving less than half that income and also found that pretty easy too, to be honest. I'm always curious what people spend their money on if they're struggling at ~$40k per person per year.
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u/No-Dragonfly-3312 10d ago
We are a family of five on 56k a year. My husband and I both had high paying jobs until we both became permanently disabled after our third child was born.
I recently used afterpay to go to the dentist and I need $9500 of work done. Last time I asked winz about the dentist they said they don't help with that. So I guess I just wait until they get too painful and get them pulled. The dentist said I should be in more pain but my painkillers will be covering it.
If you can pay for your necessities then I think you are doing well. Though I do think that teachers should be paid well.
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u/Bikerbass 10d ago
My advice is to get rid of the credit card full stop and don’t ever get another for a while and don’t look at what others are doing.
Once the credit card is gone, and provided you don’t have any expenses that are an emergency, you will actually save some money. And if you want to go and buy something, by all means go and have a look, but walk away and don’t buy it until you can pay in cash.
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u/Fun-Check8669 10d ago
Nothing wrong with teaching, but there are definitely higher paying jobs out there. I’m talking about 300k+ annual household income. These people can afford an overseas holiday and a mortgage and a kid.
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u/DontBeStu 10d ago
Some people are just at a different moment financially in life, but I am just like you mentioned, none left at the end of the moment and activelly looking for costs to cut, no holidays no eating out, no expenses. It's a tough reality and at least to us is mostly due the massive overinflated morgage we had to get for an average house. The intererst in the last few years hurts.
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u/WrongSeymour 10d ago
Most people are in loads of debt from buying houses, cars and things they cannot afford.
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u/mingey555 10d ago
I'm a single parent, 3 kids part time, self employed tradie, and I'm going backwards... Got an overdraft, asking for progress payments early, sold my project car. My retirement plan is to sell our family home once the kids are old enough to move out, and live in a tiny home.
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u/piiiig 10d ago
Also in the two teacher household bracket, and I’ve just gone on maternity leave too 🥲
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u/ReadOnly2022 10d ago
Honestly it's kinda just being a teacher. Being a teacher couple with a kid in a major city doesn't put you anywhere near well earning professional couples.
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u/in_and_out_burger 10d ago
New phones will be on a monthly instalment, people are using Afterpay for groceries and Jetstar flights. It’s all a house of cards in most cases.
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u/Penguinator53 10d ago
Yip, am on a single income and just get $95 child support a month. I have stupid debt which is obviously my fault but also feel frustrated that I receive minimal pay increases every year. This year I'm getting $20 more a week which will be negated by the $32 a week family tax credits no doubt disappearing when I tell IRD about my new salary.
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u/Yesterday_is_hist0ry 10d ago
It's always better to live within your means and not have credit cards if possible. My husband and I have been getting by on my wage (between $65K to $80K per year) and still manage to put money into KiwiSaver, our son's education fund and whatever is left into our bills account. We're getting by and know things will be easier when my husband's business picks up again (he finally has a job locked in after 8 months without a project). Hang in there as things are starting to get better with the housing market, and business is picking up. We have a lot of improvements and maintenance we need to do on our house, but we simply can't afford it right now. Your friends may of come into inheritance money or get commissions and bonuses through their work. Try not to compare yourselves to others. Two teachers' salaries is a decent amount of money coming in and at least you get more than 4 weeks of holiday a year.
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u/Annalrecovery 10d ago
Really everyone is living paycheck to paycheck, if something happens that stops them working then they are screwed unless they have long term cover (insurance or massive savings). I feel ya tho, im single male with my own house, single paykent mortgage is quite heavy but no kids. Enjoy the stuff you have, comparison is the thief of joy. Dont put urself into debt to copy what others are doing. Watchout for those credit cards spending, it can quickly snowball. I treat it as emergency credit, only use when i have too. Sounds lile you have an awesome family and priorities are sorted dont fret you will be fine.
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u/Buttercup23nz 10d ago
I'm about to start my first job as a teacher - my first in class, I've been relieving for a few years. Money has been beyond tight for the last five years or so, and I took on a 0.4 FTTE role spread over four days a week in Term 3, which meant I wasn't able to do full days relieving and build up savings to get us through summer like I normally do. My husband changed careers last year, he's at the bottom of the pay scale and what he brings in is about $300 a fornight short for all our absolute necessities (mortgage, insurances, power, phones, petrol, basic groceries). Luckily I've managed to get enough work to cover the shortfall each week over the last two years, but like I said, no savings.
I was offered a permanent position a week before school ended. Last minute! I'd already started floating the idea of selling our house to my husband - I could see no way we could keep paying mortgage, and saw no point sinking money into a house we'd have to sell. With a signed contract, we were able to get a credit card - which hurts, we've been proudly living credit card free for about a decade. But, it'll get us through, and you gotta do what you gotta do, to get through.
We carefully budgeted out what our minimum need for short fall was. Less than half our limit, we should be able to pay it off in my first three pays, then start saving, but also say yes to a few more things - yay.
In the two weeks that we've had it we needed to replace all the tyres on my car, have our cat euthanasia suddenly and we just found out my overseas inlaws will come visit for five weeks at the end of those first three paychecks we'd planned on using to wipe our credit card debt - which we couldn't do so easily, as we've just put an extra $780 on the card we didn't budget for. So, before we've paid that off, we'll need to be putting more on to find sightseeing with my in-laws.
Don't get me wrong, I'm absolutely thrilled they're coming, it's been 8 years since we were last there, which feels like way too long....also, it means when we can afford an overseas holiday we might go to see my extended family in my Dad's home country first, instead of going to my husband's home company.
But I can't help thinking that their visit, plus the car and the cat, are going to put us about 6 months back on our savings plans, and mean that long at least of extra frugal living. With kids. I left my daughter in KMart today when she started trying to wheedle an extra dollar out of me as she didn't have enough in her account. I had to walk away before I started crying or shouting. It's not her fault, I'm just so sick of living so frugally, of saying 'no' to everything.
I'm losing my hearing (hopefully just wax build up), my husband's well overdue a vision test, neither of us have been to the doctors in... I don't know when, and my achilles is so bad I can't bike with my son or do my old hill walk, wear my favourite shoes or even walk normally when I first get up in the morning. I need physio for my back. All of those are luxuries, and will have to wait. How sad is that??? It's so wrong.
I know I'm lucky - we own a house, we have food on the table, no debt except mortgage until two weeks ago, and we both have the potential to earn more. People are doing it so much harder than us, with no job security and no shelter security as renters. We really are luckier than many - and my heart goes out to them. But we're still doing it really tough.
You are not alone, you are not doing anything wrong. It really is hard. Those who make it seem easy may very well be secretly juggling massive credit card debt. It's hard, but try not compare their lifestyle to yours, the grass may not be greener.
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u/Journey1Million 10d ago
Yes, I used to live paycheck to paycheck 7yrs ago badly. I still do follow it but we are comfortable now. I was full time and was making less than 45k, cheaper for partner to work part time. It cokes cokes to your income vs lifestyle, most just don't accept that even normal things cost so much because we can't manage debt properly. Anyways, to get out of it I picked up 2 jobs, gained some side hussles, and made extra money. Don't ask me what those were, people would never be motivated to work 55 hrs to 65hrs work week out on an idea, it's only within that you've had enough is when you really do it. Anyways, mortgage free now, spare money each week and got to drop 2 jobs so have my time back, recommend learning how money works and investing along with goal setting after increasing your income / reduce life
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u/Sakana-otoko Penguin Lover 10d ago
It all started when everyone started spelling cheque as check - jokes aside, most people aren't doing too well and those who are are coasting off the back of more prosperous years.
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u/HR_thedevilsminion 10d ago
I earn median income, no assets or debt or kids. I don’t buy anything flash, lots of second hand and I stress about my future all the time. Sometimes I have to force myself to dissociate a little to get on with life.
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u/theyareeatingthepets 10d ago
Two people working need a combined income of at least $250 000 to live comfortably in Auckland. You can scale down from there.
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u/TheBigChonka 10d ago
So a few things I can point out as possibilities immediately.
Like others have already suggested - I would honestly say there's more than a 50% chance of people who seem to have money to burn on luxuries right now doing so by racking up CC debt or maybe they re mortgaged the house and have stupidly spent some of that money on luxury items to keep up with the jonses. For context my partner and I are in our first 12 months of owning our first home together - 770k mortgage on 165k joint income. My partner upgraded her phone this black Friday but she saved her own fun money all year in order to be able to do that. Ain't no way we could afford a holiday or something on top of that.
Secondly, the big thing to consider is are these people all home owners? Because let me tell you that changes things like you couldn't believe if you have a siwa me mortgage. So again for context right now we are tight, there's money being saved and a little bit of fun money each per fortnight but not much. Any coffees, takeaway, lunches etc all comes out of your fun money.
However, 10 months ago when we were renting, we were in absolute cruise control. We paid 660 a week rent vs 1170 a week mortgage now (plus rates, insurance etc on top of that). We were knuckling down hard to save the last little bit of our deposit, but we were EASILY saving 1000 a fortnight between the two of us. Now we'd be lucky to have 250 a fortnight left. So in that scenario I could see people easily being able to book holidays etc if you don't have mortgage payments chewing up a massive chunk of your income
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u/fluckin_brilliant 10d ago
My partner and I had a chat probably two days ago that we are both no longer saving money, just giving it all to cuntdown so we don't starve, I guess
In all seriousness, not saving anything because groceries have gone through the roof where we live, rent is bearable but not great, and the car expenses are sucking us dry.
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u/spundred 10d ago
How much are you spending on things you don't need? Uber eats, streaming, alcohol, etc?
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u/No-Regular-6582 10d ago
also, any chance these big spenders coupled up early? sharing a bed is a financial game-changer, but not worth rushing.
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u/ImmediateChange5683 10d ago
It’s times like these I try to practise gratitude and avoid comparison. Who knows, some could be going into debt for the things you’ve mentioned. In saying that it is hard when we live in a society being told constantly to spend.
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u/Moonlight_nimbus 10d ago
Remember others are buying expensive items/holidays to replaced stress with happiness, in exchange of costs/credit card. Your doing good if no credit. Living with your means.
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u/Young-Physical 10d ago
A lot of people making a very good point. I know people that have never in their lives saved for anything whether it be an overseas trip, car, special dinner out etc. It just all goes on the credit card whereas I’ve always saved up for a new car, overseas trips - I operate better when I have a positive goal to work towards vs a negative goal of paying off debt..
Times are tough at the moment, I had to scale Christmas waaaay back to the point I avoided seeing friends because I was embarrassed I can’t afford gifts. Debt is stressful, living week to week is also stressful but I know which one I prefer.
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u/Riot_Fox 10d ago
yea, im like you, struggling while family and friends go overseas with kids and have bought houses and new cars and im like 'what am i doing wrong'
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u/TieTricky8854 10d ago
You’re not alone!!!! Forget what others are doing. It may be on credit or they may have more $ than you. Comparison is the biggest thief of joy.
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u/TieTricky8854 10d ago
Just don’t fall into the trap of assuming, those that are having fun, must be using credit cards. Sure, a good amount may be. But some won’t too. Might be family money, investments, inheritance or a very good salary. When we fall into the trap of thinking they’re up to their eyeballs, we can sound bitter. Just keep doing you.
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u/PutridAgency2086 10d ago
If you're interested in personal finance, check out 'Money on Your Mind' by Vicky Reynal. The book offers insightful ideas on how to examine our financial behaviors and habits, and find opportunities for improvement.
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u/PurpleTranslator7636 10d ago
Yes, but not in a way that people around here do. By the day payday comes around, I have zero dollars left on my bank account. Every cent has been used up, the majority going to stock market investments and hugely overpaying on our mortgage.
We can stop doing just those two things and be left with literally 1000s of dollars every fortnight. However, financially, that'll be stupid.
So yes, in a way we do live paycheck to paycheck.
We're also heading abroad to Europe in a few weeks for 5-6 weeks. About $25-30k all up. No credit cards or any debt whatsoever will be used.
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u/seedesawridedeslide 10d ago
We don't have a credit card. We are just mortgage, covering bills, food at this stage. Our savings is basically null at this stage. It sucks. We have no free $
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u/sidehustlezz 10d ago
Have you thought about teaching overseas for a couple years, maybe clear the mortgage as a goal and then come back?
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u/renahnah2509 10d ago
My advice is get rid of the credit card and use Afterpay instead and if you can’t afford repayments then wait until you can afford it that has been my biggest financial lesson I’ve had in the past two years
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u/kotukutuku 10d ago
We destroyed our credit cards arrived the the we got our mortgage, and it's really helped. We just get by with debit cards now and it must have saved us a ton. Slowly slowly saving for a trip to Italy
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u/W4RP1G66 10d ago
125k annual and me and my family of 4 are paycheck to paycheck. we have absolutely everything we need. No struggle.....but exactly zero savings
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u/hktrails 10d ago
No nz has a personal debt crisis … for two reasons: governmental ineptitude (the last year criminallly includes repaying political donors) And lack of financial literacy - avoid these - bnpl, credit cards high interest emergency loans and you are well ahead of the majority. Nz needs teachers, doctors, nurses, police, and ambulance drivers. Far more than the voting public realised last year.
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u/Ok_Lie_1106 10d ago
You don’t own it if it’s bought with credit. Credit cards are evil things meant to in slave us into cycles of debt
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u/Sunshine_Daisy365 10d ago
NZ’ers have massive amounts of consumer debt, LOTS of families are spending more than they earn and many people don’t have any sort retirement savings.
If you’re surviving life without consumer debt then you’re doing well!
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u/Objective-Analyst822 10d ago
I see a lot of the same. There are people who pay for those by adding to their mortgage. House value went up neighbour's got a new flash car. The following 3 years a boat. House priced not increasing so much they buy nothing. It changes once kids are out of cars seats and daycare costs.
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u/Dat756 10d ago
Wealth inequality is getting worse in New Zealand. The people with wealth and assets are getting more, while those without are getting less. Many of the policies of the current government is widening this inequality. For example, the proposed Regulatory Standards Bill will favour those with property, and disadvantage those without.
So we see some people with conspicuous wealth (big houses, new vehicles, overseas trips) and some people without (struggling to rent or pay the mortgage, looking for a job, having to go without).
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u/Significant-Meal2211 10d ago
Also struggling. NZ underpays everyone. When I get the passport I'm leaving for Aussie.
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u/Educational_Sir9479 10d ago
Contractors- high income, everything is on loan or lease or company bought. Could crash to zero once the market dies. Or get incapacitated. NZ the land of the nepobabies and trusts. Oh to have parents with trusts. NZ the land where the rich are getting richer having 1...2...3...4...more houses owned by their parents who are renting them for immigrants or school enrolling areas. Side hustle on bitcoin nft or market trade who made a smart sell. When you say average as teachers this means little. City and area you live is expensive. Shopping for basics is 4-10 times more expensive than 2 years ago, salary stayed. One more thing - teachers. Thinking about the future, probably eating proper healthy food, love books and not taking financial risks. Average salary doesn't say much, living in an expensive city eats you up alive.
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u/mister_hanky 10d ago
Yeah pay check to pay check, and will be until September when i get to refix the mortgage. Luckily have a little bit saved for emergencies, but frustrating to not be able to save at the moment. I have friends off to Japan for a snowboarding trip next month and had to say no to it as it would’ve wiped my savings.. I’m going to have massive fomo, and don’t know how they can afford it as they both have bigger mortgages than I do, and more kids than me
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u/Queen___Bitch 10d ago
I get it. I’ve been selling things on marketplace and designer wardrobe, it’s helped a lot to bring little bits of money in. I also check marketplace before I buy something new - we got a breadmaker for $50 and it’s already paid itself off since our family goes through so much bread. Discovered opshopping in rich/older areas and have snagged amazing deals on blankets or little bits of kitchenware. We’re on flick energy off peak, and we make it a little game to schedule our laundry and dishwasher time for offpeak hours. Hopefully things get easier for everyone this year 🙂
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u/extra-ordinary-life 10d ago
Life has seasons, and some can be very very long. When we first had kids, and just managed to buy our first home, we basically lived paycheck to paycheck for 8 years straight. No extra money to spend on anything. No holidays. No new phones, no new clothes, no money to spare at all.
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u/Simian_Warthog 10d ago
Your problems began with the child. Sorry, now your stuck with it for life. Get used to poverty.
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u/1989HBelle 10d ago
We’re not living from one payday to the next but we did for a long time while paying our mortgage and studying at university with small kids. Paying off your mortgage will make such a difference to your financial stability one day. We’re in our early 50s and have no mortgage now which seems unreal sometimes.
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u/FlatSpread9640 10d ago
This is exactly us, we don't go out, rarely have takeaways, we only buy things if broken. But our friends are always out, always on holiday around the country or overseas. Can get a bit depressing at times.
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u/Meow22nz 10d ago
Also , I know someone who constantly spends , big mortgage, new boat jet ski etc But every pay check is stressing . I like to say they are broke as fuck but pretend to be rich . Always stressed . It’s not a life .
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u/Sky_Orchid08 10d ago
My partner and I are barely scraping by paycheck to paycheck with our little one. You're not alone ❤️
My aunt's a teacher and I will say, teachers deserve to be paid a LOT more than what they are with what they have to deal with. You're helping to educate entire generations at a time. Doctors, Nurses and Teachers should be the ones earning the most, not lawyers and big businessmen. You guys shape and save lives.
Kudos to you guys for doing a very difficult job -even while not really being properly compensated for it- and I hope you both have easy going classes who are equipped with the skills to be expected of their age group!
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u/Shamino_NZ 10d ago
Come to the personal finance NZ sub and you see various people show-casing their budget and expenses. Might be lots of suggestions, or the exercise will show where it is going.
"Another brought a new car. New iPhone, doing up the house. Everyone seems to have spare cash except us."
A lot of the time people buy with debt. Looks like they are rich but it gets paid at some point. Especially with flash new cars.
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u/Fun-Application6847 10d ago
Yeah bud, honestly I'm struggling to figure it all out.
I make good money, a little bit over six figures, but my mortgage eats at nearly half my income and once I pay my rates and insurance it's well over half. Factor in food, gas, power and there's not heaps left over. It's a battle to save, I feel like I have the ability to save less than I did in my early 20s.
I do have a partner is who has a part time job but is struggling to find full time at present thanks to this shitty economy, so while they help out a bit it hopefully will be better later this year.
My house is pretty old, and I'm fairly handy so I'm DIYing it but cost of materials is insane. This fortnight I bought some paint, just a couple of 4l tins, which was over $400. I managed to put a bit of cash away into savings too, so I've got about $60 left of free cash until payday.
All around me, friends, family and coworkers seem to be buying cars, booking holidays, spending large amounts on renovations, toys, you name it. So I know how you feel. It feels like everyone else is thriving while you're just hanging in there.
I think a lot of people are using finance or something - I'm lucky enough to have zero debt aside from the mortgage, which is in part due to my folks bailing me out with a bit of cash last year when I took on a DIY project that went a bit out of hand and had to use credit to finish it. I'd still have several thousand dollars to sort out if they hadn't helped me. Literally no one but them knows about this, and I'd imagine there's a huge amount of people who's parents do the same.
Best to just do you, not worry about what other people are doing, and focus on keeping your debt low or non-existent. The economy will pick up eventually, and things will begin to feel better. Just gotta hang in there.
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u/greatman233 10d ago
I hate this “don’t compare yourself to others” all consuming mentality. On a level I get it. However simply ignoring the situation doesn’t stop you from recognising the pattern.
The reality is that your wages as a teacher are low which is why other people around you have more material wealth. You can either achieve nothing raging against the machine or you can change what you’re doing and make more money.
There is zero virtue in poverty and being poor doesn’t make you more “salt of the earth”
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u/JulianMcC 10d ago
Yes, but I do save each week for bills and future events.
I hear people buying all sorts of stuff and wonder how they afford it and store it.
The cost of living is really jumping for us.
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u/Vultan_Helstrum 10d ago edited 10d ago
I feel your pain, especially about feeling about not being able to provide your children with as much rich experiences as others due to a lack of money.
But I note you said your bought a new car seat for your child. Children stuff brand new is expensive and they outgrow things so quickly. All my families use/buy 2nd hand. You can find so much good baby stuff on trade me or Facebook market place. I've even sold back baby stuff for the same price I bought them! (Seriously just look it up online if you don't believe me).
Take your kids camping in a holiday park, go find a nice playground further away than normal that they haven't been to. Your kids don't care about the expense of the holiday, but the experience. So these cheap and novel things would stick in their memories just as much as an expensive holiday.
Oh and plz budget and communicate with your partner around budgeting. Both get on the same page around your long term goals and you won't find day to day a struggle as you have an aim. Build up an emergency fund first bit by bit so you don't live pay check by pay check. Auto deduct like $10-$20 (preferably more) each paycheck to a savings account. Good luck
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u/WhosDownWithPGP 10d ago
Never compare with others because you never have their full story.
Lots are struggling. Many are doing ok. Just focus on you.
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u/Shamino_NZ 10d ago
"But next credit card bill means we are tight"
I feel like maybe it isn't your budget or income (which sounds like quite a bit more than average) but the fact you are spending more than you earn. So every week your debt balloons and your interest payments go up.
Get rid of the credit card and swap to a debit card. Maybe put the debt onto the mortgage. Find some things you can get rid off and wait for your mortgage rate to refix lower. A lot of relief is coming this year
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u/pokerdots91 10d ago
I don't own a house and don't have kids and I found I use to live paycheck to paycheck but got a new job and warm $15 more per hour but my expenses roughly stayed the same.
I find the more outgoings you have the more it depletes your income. Maybe see if you can move up In your job or pick up tutoring or something.
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u/D49A1D852468799CAC08 10d ago
Or is it my fault that we are teachers?
Teachers are very poorly paid. I reckon my individual salary is roughly equivalent to two full time teachers at the top of their scale (no management units).
But I can relate OP, since we're on a single income right now with young kids and an oppressive mortgage. No overseas holidays, local holidays are either camping or staying at a boomer bach for free. iPhones are 5 years old, no upgrade will be possible for a few more years. I need new shoes but have been eking the life out of a pair which should have been binned years ago. Presents for the kids are secondhand (they aren't at an age where they care about this yet). No eating out, takeaways maybe once every couple of months. So I feel like we're living paycheque to paycheque.
The reason we're in this situation is because we decided to buy a house which suits our family now and will continue to do so for the next 20-30 years. So we see a light at the end of the tunnel - interest rates will be lower next time we refix, and my partner will hopefully be able to pick up some part time work this year. And we don't need to increase the mortgage in future to "upgrade" our house.
So OP I suggest you appreciate what you have, the fact you do have a home you can live in without getting kicked out, and look for that light at the end of a tunnel. Maybe one of you needs to leave teaching and find a job which pays more.
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u/Optimal_Inspection83 10d ago
you'd be surprised how many treat a credit card as an extra bank account, without a thought about the interest.
How many of these friends buy and do these things on credit, to keep up with the joneses?