30-30-40 Budgeting

Ok, budgeting does have bad reputation. Who really likes tracking every little cent you spend? So over the years I have tried a few different things, but I found a nice rule of thumb to see if you are on track: 30-30-40.

Basically it goes like this you should be spending about 30% of net (take home) pay on housing, 30% towards retirement savings and debt repayment, and the remaining 40% all other living expenses.

That first 30% toward housing should be used to pay off your mortgage. If you don’t own your house I suggest looking for one. After taxes the next biggest monthly expenditure for most people is their housing cost. Once you remove that monthly cost you are a lot closer to retiring early.

The next 30% for savings/debt payment may seem like a lot, but you are most likely a lot closer to this level than you think. For example, if your net pay is $3700/month and you have the following monthly payments: Car $300, RRSP Savings $100, Spouse RRSP Savings $100, Student Loans $610, you would be at the 30% level. The real trick with this 30% is to take any extra cash you get and pay down those debts faster to leave more of the 30% for savings.

So after you’ve been responsible enough with the first 60% of your net income, the last 40% becomes fairly easy: you spend it. The only real trick I found for this amount is to limit those little daily purchases on things your really don’t care about (coffee or a lunch out at work). An easy way to limit these is to just use cash (No credit cards or debit cards). That way when the cash is gone you stop spending. My wife had the idea to take cash out twice a month. That way you typically are cashless for a few days in the middle and the end of the month.

Now isn’t that a relatively painless way to budget?