Читать книгу Retirement Planning For Dummies - Matthew Krantz - Страница 28

Following are guidelines on how much you should be spending on the four main expense categories:

 Overhead: 50 percent or less of income. Generally speaking, your housing spending should be 30 percent or less of your income. Add insurance, utilities, food, and other necessities, and the total should be about 50 percent or less of your income. If you can spend less on necessities, good for you.

 Taxes: 20 percent federal plus state and local. Taxpayers on average paid 20 percent of their income on federal tax (www.irs.gov/statistics/soi-tax-stats-individual-statistical-tables-by-size-of-adjusted-gross-income). State income taxes range from 0 percent in seven states to up to 13.3 percent in California (https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/fun-facts/states-with-the-highest-and-lowest-taxes/L6HPAVqSF). Good retirement planning can help you lower the slice the taxman takes.

 Savings: 10 percent to 15 percent. Most experts recommend socking away for retirement 10 to 15 percent of your pretax income. You’ll want to save more than that if you’re planning a big expense such as college for your kids, a new car, or the down payment on a home. Keep in mind that when you’re retired, you no longer need to keep a savings budget.

 Discretionary: Whatever’s left, which is 15 percent to 20 percent if you follow the other guidelines. After paying everything else, have fun with the remaining money. You should choose what to do with your fun money.