Hello Lovely Savers!
I am so happy to be back to writing this blog and really excited to share this savings plan with you! As most of you know, Handsome Man and I just bought our first house and have been working into the wee hours of every day trying to get the projects done before we moved in. *Spoiler Alert: we did NOT, we moved in this weekend before we had a functioning bathroom! But more to come on our home adventures later.
Today’s post is about how I personally saved up for down payment. I originally saw this as a pin on Pinterest, how to save $5,000 for a down payment in one year. But I said “That’s not crazy enough, I’ll have it done in HALF THE TIME!” and *Second Spoiler Alert you guys: I DID.
The original pin from Larissa Swany, a realtor I believe, was how to save $5,000 by saving a certain amount off of each of your paychecks. Here’s why I don’t suggest that.
First, it takes too long for you to see results! I have tried many a Pinterest inspired savings plan, only to find I have a hard time remembering to make the deposit or I grow bored with it. This time, I was so freaking pumped, I was giddy when the 26th week came around.
Second, bills follow your paycheck cycle too. This savings plan is aggressive, and I don’t want you to skip weeks or pay periods because all of a sudden you remember another bill coming out and panic. It’s important to remember that a savings is just that, a savings. If you need the money in an emergency you have every right to transfer or use it. What really matters is that you see the savings account growing, and growing fast! It will keep you going every time.
Here is the best part, we didn’t use this money for our down payment. We were fortunate enough, and had other savings, that all $5,000 is still sitting pretty in my new “wedding fund” account. Now, Handsome Man and I are not getting married yet, but we already have $5,000 for when we do! (Have you ever looked into catering?! It’s crazy!)
My tips for making this work.
- Start the cycle so that the bigger savings amount are for the week you get the paycheck. I didn’t at first and I ended up having to transfer money around a few times until I switched to this way.
- Budget for the savings! While this seems like a “get rich in 6 months” kind of a deal, it’s not. It IS still you putting away money, money you do not get to spend on clothes or movies, or whatever. Make sure the amount saved in the month is allocated away from the other categories of your budget or you won’t have enough to save!
- Make a visual check list or tracker so you can have a reminder of your progress every time you see it or fill it in! Coloring is fun, saving money is fun, they are basically a match made in heaven.
I am so so soooo proud to have made this work over the last 6 months, and I am even going to do it AGAIN. $10,000 for the wedding by 2019!
I 100% recommend this savings plan to anyone looking to save for a down payment on their home, or a wedding, or a new car, or whatever! And I am super looking forward to sharing all of our home improvement projects with you guys, and how we kept it on a budget.
Until next time, wishing you all Sugar and Savings,
Taylor
xoxo
Don’t forget to sign up to my email list to get reminders when I post new ways to save you money! Also, I am now booking clients over on my Facebook page or else you can email me here at sugarandsavings@gmail.com. Work with me personally to get yourself on a budget that WORKS!
I’m really interested in the rest of your “how to save $5000 in just 6 months” how can I get the rest of that template??
Thanks!
It would be easy to do this if you got paid weekly but most people don’t. I get pd on the 1st and 15th.
I totally agree Tabitha, I was doing this with a paycheck every other week too. This is NOT an easy plan, but it is possible. I do suggest that you have the bigger amounts coincide with when your paycheck comes in, or else you end up having to move money around a bit. That was also the mistake I made the first time trying it.
Or you take her amounts every two weeks and save that amount. So for weeks 1 & 2, take that out first paycheck and so on…
Just add two weeks if you can, and think is an important bill you have to pay!
I am SO excited to try this!! Thank you for the tips!! Not only did I not properly save for taxes so have a hefty sum I owe, but I have a vacation coming up and a wedding in 2.5 years! This is so helpful!
I am so glad!!!! Congrats on the wedding and have fun on the trip!
What about for those of us that are lucky to have $50 after all bills are paid and necessities are taken care of?
My husband and I are trying this to save money for a bigger down payment on a car !! So far it’s working great
That is awesome! Keep up the great work!
This is impossible on la low income paycheck especially if you want to save these amounts and have to combine two weeks. Some paychecks you’d have to save over 500. Not reasonable for the average family unless you have absolutely no other builds or can live on just one income.
I am going to try this on a monthly plan and see what I can accomplish.
I am so glad that I came across this post! I am currently saving up for a down payment and a family vacation all happening in 2020. This seems like a great way to do it.
Thank you!
That is awesome Jessica! Good luck!
I owe 10000 in tickets that I occur at 18 young and dumb I guess. I’m using this system to help me get my license back. I combine 2 weeks at a time from your chart and multipled each sum by 2 then added that together. Then divided that by 2 since I get paid bi weekly. It will take me 13 month to reach my goal. Which is awesome. You just have to use your chart as a guideline and adjust it to your liking.
It was fun reading through your journey. Good luck with the wedding plans!
One thing you could consider with your $5,000 or $10,000 is to keep it in an investment account and let it become your employee. When it is producing enough interest to make a car payment you will never buy your own car again, your interest earned will make payments. OR… let the interest fill another investment account and between you and the interest contributions you will create another employee even faster. Now you have one buying your car and another paying for vacation. The first $10,000 is the hardest.
I am going to try this. We are retired and raising our 16 year old grand daughter. We already save a little each month.
My plan is to take the total amount and divide it by 6. That gives me a monthly amount to save. Because we get our retirement at different times of the month, I divided the monthly total by 2. That makes things much more manageable for us.
Starting January 2020 I will try and do the challenge.