A couple of weeks ago I asked you to send in the best financial advice you’ve ever received. Several readers said it was to base their lifestyle on one income right from the start of their marriage. Initially, following that advice enabled Jennifer and her husband to pay off an automobile loan. Ever since, the habit of living well beneath their means has enabled them to pay cash for cars, and now that they have a child, to have her stay home. As Jennifer wrote, “I know a number of people who have gotten married, excitedly bought a big house because they could easily afford it on two incomes, and then after they had a child the mother wanted to stay at home but felt like she couldn’t because they wouldn’t be able to maintain the status quo.”
Another reader, Jon, told a similarly powerful story of how living on one income enabled his wife and him to pay off their education and vehicle loans, save for a down payment on a house, and to transition to one income when they had children.
h3(matt). Matt’s View
p(matt). Even for couples who do not plan to have children or who plan to continue as dual-earner households with kids, it’s wise to live primarily on one income. Doing so provides an all-too-rare safety net in case one earner loses their job. Plus, it provides a lot of flexibility should one decide to go back to school or pursue a less lucrative but perhaps more satisfying career.
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