How The Average U.S. Consumer Spends Their Paycheck

Re:How The Average U.S. Consumer Spends Their Paycheck by paulhart on Sunday July 12, 2009 @01:30PM (#700339)

It's not the 1% that's killing them - it's the fact that they're spending at their limit and they don't have that 1% available.

"Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery." -- Charles Dickens, 'David Copperfield'

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Re:How The Average U.S. Consumer Spends Their Paycheck by nostrademons on Sunday July 12, 2009 @04:12PM (#700526)

I think this point doesn't get enough attention from people whose salaries are big enough to save lots of money. If you make $60K after taxes and spend $30K, then you can easily eat a $300/year increase in gas expenditures. Your savings rate goes from 50% to 49.5%, big whoop. But if you make $31K and spend $30K, and gas goes up $300/year, it's eaten up a whole 30% of your savings rate. And if you make $30K and spend $30K and gas goes up, you're screwed.

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