ACCOUNTANT REACTS to 6-Figure Family Man Living Paycheck to Paycheck | Budget Breakdown

00:00 Intro
00:30 Mark’s Financial Picture
01:43 What’s the Point of Budgeting?
03:16 Mark’s Spending Habits
08:09 Master Budget & Target Savings
14:01 Steps to Stop Living Paycheck to Paycheck
15:36 SMART Money Goals
18:19 Big Picture Money Goals Overview
20:27 Eliminate Bad Money Habits

Disclaimer: Note this video is not financial nor accounting/tax advice and should be used for entertainment purposes only. Consult with your own financial advisor, accountant and/or tax advisor for advice related to your specific situation.
________________________________
MY FAV TOOLS
________________________________
FREE RESOURCES
________________________________
CONNECT WITH ME
📸 Instagram: @GabrielleTalksMoney
________________________________
WHO AM I:
Gabrielle is a CPA and Tax Expert, as well as the founder of Balance + Wealth CPA, a licensed CPA firm that specializes in Tax. Prior to starting her business, Gabrielle worked as a Tax Manager at one of the Big 4 Accounting Firms for 7+ years, advising Fortune 500 companies. Gabrielle posts weekly videos on personal finance, business finance, and tax tips.
________________________________
*This description contains some affiliate links, meaning that I may earn a minimal commission if you click through and use these links (at no additional cost to you).

[GabrielleTalksMoney]

Let me know if you saw yourself in Mark and money habits YOU want to work on!

[floydchusset]

I need a way to draw up a plan to set up for retirement while still earning passive income to meet my day to day need and also get charged lesser taxes even while in a higher tax bracket. i want to invest around $250K savings.

[_sparrowhawk]

This is so awesome - a Vancouverites version of Ramit Sethi.

[porkchop]

It’s 100% possible to turn your financial situation from being in the red to black, but it will definitely take sacrifice. I find people don’t want the short term pain for long term gain, but you gotta remember, no one else will look out for you. You gotta take care of present you + future you!

Mark, you can do it! It won’t be easy, but it is possible. Something that might be helpful as well is creating a net worth tracker and updating it every quarter (or monthly if you need the extra motivation). This will help you visually see your progress and give you small doses of motivation to keep going.

Curious to see how Mark is doing in the coming months!

Mark, also put your emergency fund into a high interest savings account; it will help your money grow faster via compound interest.

[gord]

I work in an industry with mostly 6 figure income earners. It amazes me the differences in what people have when we all make about the same money. People who do well have had a respect for money from when they are young, mostly instilled in them from their parents. They get the value of a buck. Others like Mark think money is limitless. It will be very difficult to fix Mark. He will wallow in debt for most of his life until he gets some kind of windfall, usually from an inheritance. But he will probably have the most fun lol.

[platoplato]

I’m surprised re-financing wasn’t mentioned. There are many ways to transfer balances to lower or no interest cards to defer or eliminate interest. That would be a huge boost right off the bat. Ultimately I agree with your main points. Can’t spend more than you have for very long!

[WesleyWong-lz]

Consolidating on 1 credit card helps consolidate credit card reward points. Then use those reward points to buy air fare or gift cards for shops you regularly need to purchase from (eg: groceries or walmart). And buy the gift cards when they are on promotion when it uses 20%-30% less points!

[skfanfanfan]

Gabrielle gives a fantastic presentation. Mark is wise and realises his financial issues. Having said that, I find that some people are "addicted to spending". YES. Just like people addicted to drugs, cigarettes, alcohol...It takes strong will to get out of the hole.
Also, some people seem to have NO concept on "value of money" and "value for money".

[AW-gjji]

Lucky for Mark, college funds for Quebec is very low compared to the US. Student loans are very generous too.

[bchan_]

6 figures feels like nothing while living in Vancouver, but it's a start.

[moldenm]

The budget reminds me of austerity with sudden cuts. I was surprised pharmacy costs could be cut as I assume those are either co-pay or necessary over the counter medication.Clothes and shoes hard to be at zero. Car insurance is low with two vehicles at $75 a month. ICBC basic is $1000+ a year with optional expect $1500+ a year. I assume prorated monthly unless cash method which is 1x payment a year. With current spending habits definitely curious how one became owners to save the initial down payment amount or it was given as gift by parents or inherited home would have changed equation / interpretation. Too much austerity could negatively impact relationships and quality of life, so cutting is limited. More realistic to find ways to increase income.

[tuttoaposto]

For the month of June what funded the overbudget expenses? Was it credit cards, HELOC, savings?

[tntfyah]

I found it informative the breakdown. Wish there was more options given on what he or one can do. ie emergency fund. Through a high interest account, TSFA or TFSA backed my dividend stocks etc.
From viewing and creating a budget does it help with taxes at the end of the year as Quebec taxes are crazy high.

[eecc]

Wonder if combining your budgeting strategy with paying off all debt using a HELOC can speed things up. Since he's a home owner, he has the option of debt consolidation using a HELOC to pay everything down at a lower interest rate while not giving up flexibility for emergency expenses since the HELOC is liquid. That being said this would really require huge discipline on his part and may be challenging depending on his (poor at least based on the 2 months' history) spending habits.
He's so lucky to have a 2k mortgage. Something alot of people dream of.

[sobeso]

The too many finical priorities is very interesting to eliminate because the priorities listed for Mark seemed like very important things to tackle but in reality trying to do it all at once is unreasonable at his incomes levels...

[moldenm]

Would retirement savings be needed if there is CPP or defined pension or equivalent ($60k/yr)? When you get older, you could do less like traveling so expenses one expects to decrease. One of the modern strategy seem to be building a 6+ figure TFSA account, paid off home and then collect GIS, CPP, and other low income government benefits. Marginal improvement helps the family circumstances a lot. There are no or very minor addictions (shopping) that I see. There seems to be little psychological pushback to changes. Often these are serious and complex.

[jimc]

"6-figure salary" doesn't mean what it used to 20 years ago. Between a mortgage, property tax, car, food and utilities, you're easily looking at $6000-8000/month in expenses. Which is about 150k/year before tax in Quebec. To follow 50-30-20 rule, you'd need about 330k/year income before taxes. This government is pushing everyone into lifestyle. That's not to say he shouldn't reign in his spending.

[JoeSmith-puhi]

Wow. Needs to cut all plastic cards now.

[Schnarr]

I’m interested in why he’s creating an initial emergency fund before paying down his debts? Any payments towards servicing debt would reduce his overall interest faster. I guess if he’s not able to secure affordable debt then that’s not an option.

[PATRIOT-Canada]

The first guy mark he should NOT be Broke if your a full time Police officer making six figures. Im only a security guard making 72K per year & i am doing great i just took a 6 month vacation & i still have lots of cash left over