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Budgeting income for retirement and taxes and savings


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Hi all;

Budgeting, not often a happy subject for most but as we both work into tax season and a new year, its worth discussing.

The media industry matures and changes we should revisit this subject. There is no doubt the industry, the union, and the world is changing.  We mostly work freelance and there are few safe guards, let alone financial ones....

I know many, many freelancers (maybe most) who are in deep …… because they are underprepared.  

The ideal was always, for me, 15% for taxes over what I had taken out of my check because lots of things get paid throughout the year without taxes deducted and box rentals etc..  Next, 20%, ideally for retirement, and often auto deductions was the most sensible and least painful way to be reminded of its very important place in our life.  Lastly, anything to 20% for savings for those inevitable months when you have no or little income.

I've been both good and terrible at this over the decades.  

Simple math, I've now made 30-50% of your every paycheck less.  Yikes!  

I think its rare that we all do that and certainly life events prevent it but its time to at least start with something, 5-20% into some of those accounts would certainly fill holes we all know about.

I'm raising this to make us all think.  I certainly wish someone had brought it up when I got big paychecks and thought it was all mine or I was putting out the current financial fire!  (There is always a big bill on the horizon in my world.)

Janice

 

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