Comments on: Debt Reduction – Emergency Fund Savings – The Balanced 75/25 Method

By: How to Quit Your Job

How to Quit Your Job — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:01:10 +0000

[...] of the self-employment transition with three items.A six-month emergency fundEveryone should have an emergency fund for unexpected expenses. An emergency fund provides a cushion for major car or home repairs. It is even more important if [...]

By: Emergency Fund Savings and Socially Responsible Funds

Emergency Fund Savings and Socially Responsible Funds — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 16:35:25 +0000

[...] Debt Free Adventure discusses emergency fund savings with the balanced 75/25 method. [...]

By: Monthly Debt Reduction & Savings Statement for Aug, Sept, & October 2009 – 3 in 1 Edition

Thu, 24 Mar 2011 00:15:50 +0000

[...] the awesome ING Direct automatic savings plan. With that said, we have decided to lay aside the Balanced 75/25 Method of debt repayment/savings contributions and have halted contributions to our Emergency Fund for [...]

By: Job Loss – Save Money or Get Out of Debt?

Job Loss – Save Money or Get Out of Debt? — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 06:41:30 +0000

[...] ($300/mo), and a household expense budget of about $3000/mo. plus $1000/mo for day-care. We have NO emergency fund. I bring in about $2500/mo. We had been using his income to pay for full-time care for our [...]

By: Learn Personal Finance from The Bible, not the Federal Government

Learn Personal Finance from The Bible, not the Federal Government — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 06:36:50 +0000

[...] conservative instead.Have an emergency fundDid you ever realize that the federal government has no emergency fund? We have 12 trillion in debt, yet no emergency fund. Many other countries in the world have [...]

By: Matt Jabs

Matt Jabs — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 17:57:24 +0000

We have about $4k saved for our next auto, which is sufficient for now. We budget $100/vehicle/month for repairs and maintenance. All extra income is going toward our debt snowball now because our savings are now at a level we’re comfortable with.

By: droed

droed — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 16:13:51 +0000

Hmm… What if you knew you knew you needed to replace the front and read main seals on the engine or your car. For those not mechanically inclined, this is an issue where your car starts slowly leaking oil, and the amount leaked increases over time. So it is not an issue that requires immediate action (i.e. not an emergency).

This is a repair that ranges anywhere from $500 to $1000 dollars. Wouldn’t it be advisable to budget money to save and make the repair, or are we to throw caution to the wind and wait until the car runs through a quart of oil every 500 miles, before trying to scrounge up the cash? My guess is most people will opt to save money over time to make the repair.

I see a car replacement fund the same way as a repair fund. The key is to plan your spending. If you can be out of debt in 24 months and your car is in good enough shape to make it that long, you probably don’t need a replacement fund. However, if you are on a 5 year mission, it may be a good idea to send some cash to that category about half way through.

By: Matt Jabs

Matt Jabs — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 14:37:29 +0000

Hi Maria,
Awesome, awesome… awesome! I’m very proud of you and your husband and I’m thankful that you took the time to share your experience with us… I love hearing debt success stories like this. Glad you like the laundry detergent… don’t for get to try the dishwasher detergent, it works great too – we love making things ourselves. Keep up the good work and God bless!

By: Maria

Maria — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 14:33:25 +0000

Hi Matt,
I found your site when looking for DIY laundry detergent. You have great recipes and they are simple, I love it! I also read a few articles on your debt reduction page and I felt compelled to post our story. I found Dave Ramsey’s site 2 years ago and implemented his strategy and we are out of debt except for the house (paid off nearly $50,000). We sacrificed, sold a truck, travel trailer, several smaller things around the house, worked like mad (alot of overtime) and now we are increasing our emergency fund to 3 months saving, we are 1/2 way there. We should have a 6 months savings by the end of this year ($12,000). No we do not make alot of money, both years about $40,000, but we sold alot and now we run an old Chevy S-10 (paid cash) we also have a very low mortgage ($300). We are not paying our house off, because we are selling in three years and moving to warmer climates. Getting mad worked well for me, never, never again will I let debt come into my life!!!

By: High Return Investments for Low Income People

High Return Investments for Low Income People — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 05:15:34 +0000

[...] Fund and investing in low-cost index funds.If you have NO debt…Build a 3 – 6 month Emergency Fund using a high yield savings account by funding it with automatic monthly contributions. I prefer [...]

By: Pay off Debts First or Build an Emergency Fund?

Pay off Debts First or Build an Emergency Fund? — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 04:04:03 +0000

[...] no rule that says you can’t do two things at once. Debt Free Adventure has a wonderful 75/25 method on paying down debt while [...]

By: How to Build an Emergency Fund That Fits Your Family

How to Build an Emergency Fund That Fits Your Family — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 17:12:57 +0000

[...] money for building up your emergency fund at the same time. Debt Free Adventure has a wonderful 75/25 method accomplishing both without burning yourself [...]

By: Slush Funds – Save it For a Rainy Day

Slush Funds – Save it For a Rainy Day — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 05:33:07 +0000

[...] decision was always to pay off debt – then I realized that a lot of times it’s best to pay off debt and save.While my opinions may change, one fact always remains the same… saving my money gives me [...]

By: Pay Off Debt or Build Savings? — Couple Money

Pay Off Debt or Build Savings? — Couple Money — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 00:54:48 +0000

[...] have to make it an either/or choice, I recommend checking out Debt Free Adventure’s 75/25 Method to accomplish both goals. I recommend automating the process and letting online bill pay and transfers do all the [...]

By: Debt Reduction and Savings Statement – March 2010

Debt Reduction and Savings Statement – March 2010 — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 13:20:04 +0000

[...] Emergency fund savings goalWhile repaying Lending Club we were contributing $100/month to our Emergency Fund via our ING Direct automatic savings plan but will bump this amount up to $850 come April. This is [...]

By: How To Make Money Blogging

How To Make Money Blogging — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 11:01:34 +0000

[...] make mention of my “side hustle” here on DFA and how it earns money that enables us to repay debt much faster. Recently several DFA readers have contacted me wanting to know exactly what my [...]

By: Save Money - Reduce Debt - Increase Cash Flow

Save Money - Reduce Debt - Increase Cash Flow — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:29:55 +0000

[...] savings. This allows me to pay down my debt and save at the same time – I call it the 75/25 method.What do you think?Do you think that C.L. should use her $1,000 to start an emergency fund, pay down [...]

By: Kicking it to the Curb « ElysianConfusion

Kicking it to the Curb « ElysianConfusion — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 20:28:36 +0000

[...] off YES! Just paid off the second credit card. There’s progress! I’m still working on Matt’s 75%/25% plan, I haven’t actually managed to incorporate that [...]

By: » Determining Your Financial Priorities @ fivecentnickel.com

» Determining Your Financial Priorities @ fivecentnickel.com — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 11:02:54 +0000

[...] ordered list, I should briefly touch on our giving strategy, and also outline our 75/25 method of debt reduction and savings contributions we adhere to throughout most every [...]

By: Debt Help - Debt Repayment Plan

Debt Help - Debt Repayment Plan — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 12:02:15 +0000

[...] an emergency fund. You don’t mention the existence of an emergency fund, but do mention a trading account. I advise you to close the trading account choosing instead to [...]