making a 30k pay cut work...UPDATED- we did it!

[ColonelHathi]

OP, I can realtate to what you are going through. DH lost his job in August, found contract work in October, but I was completely miserable in my FT job, completely. When he went back to contracting DD and DS went back into daycare preschool and before/after school care. I then made the decision to leave my FT job in November because it was making me so miserable, and I was being treated poorly. I went back to work PT with a former employer, and eventually FT with a $20K paycut in february, but what a HUGE difference!!! Just the positive energy alone made it worth it, and I was still able to support DH in his months of search for a permanent position. He finally got an offer and starts in a new position next week. Is it his dream job, probably not, but I can't tell you what even a little bit of salaried-job security means for us. It's also a positive career step looking at future opportunities with or outside ofwhere he is going. Especially with the workplace being scary right now, so many companies are not hiring, or paying less for more work, hiring younger workers, etc.

We totally had to cut back on activities for the kids, but we just try to refrain from eating out (which we used to do a lot more of), find bargains where we can, spend our money more wisely, buy more of the kids clothes 2nd hand, etc. Wish I had a magical solution, but money is tight, and you pretty much have to take things day-by-day. If anything we have learned to shift our focus to the important things in life and just being together vs. going out and doing "stuff" for fun. The benefits of job satisfaction are so not measurable, it will reduce stress termendously, and kids feed of their parents stress.

Best of luck.

 

[pixie921]

I just want to wish the OP's family the best of luck. We faced a similar cut about 3 years ago and I'd be lying if I said it hadn't been an extreme adjustment. I can't imagine ever voluntarily taking the hit that we've taken. I hope it works out for you, OP, and that it leads to everything you hope it will!

 

[MrRomance]

I believe that you can make anything work if you prepare and know the changes that you'll need to make. We adopted 2 special needs children and went from 2 salaries to 1 and have managed to maintain our previous lifestyle for the most part. It's about finding where you can cut costs and where you can put extra money in your pocket.

It would seem to me that you already have some very good skills that you could use to make a little extra income. Here are a few potential ideas...


Self publishing to Kindle. You're a writer and photographer so you could sign up to Kindle publishing, create content and put up for sale. There are a lot of people making a lot of money self publishing these days.

Blogging. Writing a successful blog can be VERY lucrative, between advertising revenue and becoming an affiliate for other products (for example Amazon) you can make a decent living from it if you know what you're doing. It's cheap and easy to do and you have the skills already.

With you husband being home more to pick up some of the slack at home, you can create your content when he's home and schedule it to post later.

 

[Kathi OD]

There are no state income taxes here.

That's very cool, but PA will require payment on any income earned in another state, even if that state doesn't have an income tax.

They are already filing in two states. Now, regardless, they only have to file in one.

They shouldn't be filing in two states. These two states have income tax reciprocity. DH's employer should only be taking out PA tax, regardless of if the income is earned in PA or NJ, since that is his state of residence. However, fighting with your employer over this is sometimes not worth the effort and that's why they might be filing in both states. They would file in NJ to get back everything they paid in through payroll taxes, and then file in PA because it's required by law and pay any difference not withheld by the employer.

 

[Jillscabanastories]

I think that is a very substantial amount to need to cut. It really depends how well you we set up to take such a hit. Were you living up to the maximum amount of your income before? If so you may have to cut a lot, possibly change your living conditions by scaling down a lot.

Different house, smaller car, less monthly payments somewhere. Putting your child back in public schools will sure help.

That would me a big change for us,

 

[pocomom]

They shouldn't be filing in two states. These two states have income tax reciprocity. DH's employer should only be taking out PA tax, regardless of if the income is earned in PA or NJ, since that is his state of residence. However, fighting with your employer over this is sometimes not worth the effort and that's why they might be filing in both states. They would file in NJ to get back everything they paid in through payroll taxes, and then file in PA because it's required by law and pay any difference not withheld by the employer.[/QUOTE]

Dh confirmed we aren't in the end really paying to two states. Last year's taxes were complicated because half the year he was a ny employee, and half a nj employee. I was remember him complaining about filing in NJ. but it was just the annoyance, we did get a credit for what we paid to NJ.

As far as moving to Texas, it is on the table but not likely. I want to see how long dh wants to stay in this position, and we have to wait out the real estate market here. We're upside down on our mortgage based on the current market. Our house has lost 80k in appraisal value since we bought it 4 years ago, mostly due to foreclosure sales in the neighborhood. I do like those state taxes in Texas though!

 

[IUTBAM]

I do like those state taxes in Texas though!

I wouldn't get too excited about that, lol, if you are a homeowner. I'm from Texas, and have lived in other states. We moved from TX to CO four years ago. Yes, we didn't pay income tax in Texas, but our property taxes were VERY high (around $7,000 per year on a $250,000 home in the Dallas suburb of Frisco...very nice home, at a very nice price, but astronomical property taxes). What we pay combined here in CO in state income tax (on a salary that is approximately 1.5 times more than what my DH was making inTexas) and property tax on our home (which cost us $450,000) total about $10,000 per year, so only $3,000 more than what we were paying in Texas for property tax alone.

 

[pocomom]

Well dh took the plunge. His last real day at his old job is Friday! New job starts Monday. We won't see much of him this month but then after that he'll be home 2-3 weeks a month.
His old job offered him a pt position in addition which he turned down due to no healthcare. The main reason he wanted to stay on there in some capacity was to either maintain or or pay for our healthcare. When he discussed it they decided to keep him full time, but let him take all of his back vacation days that he has never taken. So he gets three weeks now (while he is away and training for the new job) and then will work 2 days a week on his schedule, from home the rest of the summer, maintaining his full time pay and benefits! After that he believes they will work out a consulting position. He set firm limits on the amount and type of work he will do for them. So he'll have 2 full time paychecks and healthcare, putting off the time we'll need to get Cobra and work a 60 hour week, which is actually less than what he works now. We should be able to put most of the one paycheck away for a cushion for the Fall /Winter and taxes. It is not my ideal as I wanted him to have a clean break from the old company, but you can actually see a physical difference in him the last two weeks, just knowing he is getting out. He has lost 4 or 5 lbs doing nothing else, is smiling more , playing more and just at peace. So worth it. I'm nervous about the next year, but if we are smart I think we'll do fine, at least until he can negotiate a new contract, get another consulating gig or I find something that contirbutes more. We're going to live on the new check, and what I contribute so we're still trimming away bits and pieces, but there are some unexpected savings in doing this too, dh charges and then gets reimbursed for all his meals, travel and lodging when he is away. So we'll earn free flights, hotels and points on those, plus we'll save on groceries and his eating out when he is travelling. No dry cleaning, less oil changes, tires etc, on his car. Small bits but every little bit helps! And having my husband happy is priceless!

 

[pyrxtc]

Well dh took the plunge. His last real day at his old job is Friday! New job starts Monday. We won't see much of him this month but then after that he'll be home 2-3 weeks a month.
His old job offered him a pt position in addition which he turned down due to no healthcare. The main reason he wanted to stay on there in some capacity was to either maintain or or pay for our healthcare. When he discussed it they decided to keep him full time, but let him take all of his back vacation days that he has never taken. So he gets three weeks now (while he is away and training for the new job) and then will work 2 days a week on his schedule, from home the rest of the summer, maintaining his full time pay and benefits! After that he believes they will work out a consulting position. He set firm limits on the amount and type of work he will do for them. So he'll have 2 full time paychecks and healthcare, putting off the time we'll need to get Cobra and work a 60 hour week, which is actually less than what he works now. We should be able to put most of the one paycheck away for a cushion for the Fall /Winter and taxes. It is not my ideal as I wanted him to have a clean break from the old company, but you can actually see a physical difference in him the last two weeks, just knowing he is getting out. He has lost 4 or 5 lbs doing nothing else, is smiling more , playing more and just at peace. So worth it. I'm nervous about the next year, but if we are smart I think we'll do fine, at least until he can negotiate a new contract, get another consulating gig or I find something that contirbutes more. We're going to live on the new check, and what I contribute so we're still trimming away bits and pieces, but there are some unexpected savings in doing this too, dh charges and then gets reimbursed for all his meals, travel and lodging when he is away. So we'll earn free flights, hotels and points on those, plus we'll save on groceries and his eating out when he is travelling. No dry cleaning, less oil changes, tires etc, on his car. Small bits but every little bit helps! And having my husband happy is priceless!

Glad it all seems to be working in your favor. I hope it stays that way !

 

[dpswift]

I am glad that it is all coming into place for you. Remember if it feels right it most likely is. Hopefully soon you and the kids will see more of him good luck.