Greetings, personal finance enthusiasts! My name is Denise and I blog as “The Single Saver.” As the name implies, I am single and I am a saver.
I was raised by two financially savvy parents. This was very fortunate for me, as I was taught early on that you never spend more than you earn and you always pay off your debts (and credit cards) in full before they are due. This kind of upbringing taught me life lessons that have served me very well over the years. I now model my own spending and saving habits from my parents. As a result, the only debt I currently have is a mortgage (which I hope to be rid of soon). The next big step after becoming mortgage free? Early retirement! Wish me luck!
Anyway, I started The Single Saver to help fill what I saw as a void in the blogging world. Although there are thousands of great personal finance blogs out there, I felt that very few were really targeted towards singles and small families. Hence, The Single Saver was born.
Being single is expensive.
When you are single, you are dealt a completely different set of cards than your married counterparts. You only have your own income to fall back on in hard times. You don’t have a spouse’s income (or even the opportunity for a non-working spouse to pick up a side job).
Here are just a few ways in which singles have a definite disadvantage when it comes to savings:
• Housing eats up a third (or more) of most budgets. It is the largest expense most of us will ever have. A single person has to bear this burden on his or her own.
• A single person with children likely has to pay for childcare. There is no option for a spouse to stay home with the children. And there is no 2nd paycheck from the spouse to offset childcare costs, either.
• Single people are at a disadvantage when it comes to retirement savings. Married couples have the option to have two IRA’s, two 401(k) accounts, etc. And while many have proven it is possible for a family to live on one spouse’s income and save the other’s, a single person has no choice but to make their one income work to cover their living expenses and their savings needs.
Now don’t get me wrong, being single isn’t all bad. There are some nice financial perks to such a lifestyle, such as:
• You only need one car. That means you also only have expenses for one car.
• You are free to eat as you want. There is no pressure to make a fancy meal if rice and leftovers suit your needs. No one but you can complain if you eat rice for three meals straight to save some money on the grocery budget!
• You are also free to keep the house as cold in the winter or as hot in the summer as you wish. I know from experience that this leads to some fantastic energy savings.
• Your financial goals are yours and yours alone to make and succeed at. You never have someone else fighting you on the goals.
So as you can see, there are some big advantages and disadvantages to saving while single. And I try to help singles and small families work with these advantages, and around the disadvantages, at The Single Saver.
Blogs I like
I love blogs that give me an insight into the author’s lifestyle. I love blogs that teach me tips for being frugal. I like to get to know the blog author through their writing… blogs that have a personal touch always attract my attention. And so, these are characteristics I have tried to incorporate into my own writing. Rarely will you find “heavy” topics at The Single Saver. My goal is to educate and inspire you with ways you can save money in your own daily life in a lighthearted way. And though I won’t go quite as far as to call my blog “fluffy,” I do hope that it is seen as “fun.”
While The Single Saver is geared towards singles and small families, it is written with everyone who enjoys saving money in mind, so I hope you will stop by sometime and check it out!
Thanks for sharing Single Saver! You and I think a lot alike. My wife and I are currently debt free (except the house) and are working to pay off the mortgage as soon as possible. It’ll be great to get rid of that pesky thing!
Good luck getting rid of that house payment. I know I will be thrilled when mine is finally gone!
Congratulations on living a frugal lifestyle and being nearly debt free! The great thing about blogging is that we all get to share our life experiences with our readers!
I love reading about other people’s lives, even when they are different than mine. I hope people do enjoy a small glimpse into my life in return.
Welcome Denise! I enjoy your posts and I can relate to the single on one income deal :) My goal is to get down to only needing 50% of my income then it will feel like 2 incomes!
I have no doubt you will hit that goal soon, LaTisha!
Thanks Denise for sharing. Believe it or not, i was just thinking about the disadvantages/advantages of being single last night because my wife is away at a work conference for the week… you basically summed up many of the points I was thinking about. It seems you were quite fortunate growing up.
I was fortunate growing up. My parents had good financial heads on their shoulders, and they taught me well. I am thankful for that.
When I was single, housing was cheaper for me because I was able to buy and maintain a small condo, which was a lot cheaper than the house we bought once we got married and started a family. But, we’re re-financing on Friday which will help just a tad anyways :)
Great news on the refinancing, MoneyBeagle! Do you have any plans for spending or saving the money you will be saving?
There is totally a gap out there on personal finance for single people! I advise my single friends to have a larger savings than the standard. As you know, if you lose your job you don’t have a partner to fill in the gaps. I was a single parent for several years and can remember the stress that went along with it. On the other hand I was living next door to my parents and had help with childcare.
Hi Molly! Nice to see you here! Having parents help with childcare is a BIG help (mine help with pet care – lol).
Great to meet you, Denise! I’ve been reading your blog and truly enjoy it. So glad you decided to join the Yakezie.
Thanks, Little House. I enjoy your blog, too as I am fascinated by smaller homes, which is how I initially found your site.
Glad to have you as an “official” member now, Denise! I know you’ve done well so far, and you’ll do well in the future. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Beating Broke! It is a nice feeling to be official. I hope to continue contributing to the group in the future.
Denise. So cool to learn more about you. I love your puppies. So cute. It is great to learn a bit more about you and your story, especially since you also write on my site. I really like your perspective on being a single saver- it is a niche. Great tips too. Thanks.
Thanks, Miss T. They are greyhounds… a great breed of dog!
Great intro post. You bring a great point of view to the yakezie and the rest of the financial blogosphere – there are lots of debates about which parent should stay home and yadda yadda, but looking at that through a different lens like yours is great!
Thanks, Jeff. I appreciate your kind words.
Welcome to the network! I love your ideas and posts about being frugal!
Thanks, College Investor. I love frugality… I am glad you enjoy those posts on the subject!
Welcome to Yakezie Denise! Great to meet another Gamma member. Keep the single people encouraged!
Hi 20 and Engaged. I am sorry we didn’t get to meet at FINCON… just wasn’t enough time!
Welcome to Yakezie! I like being married, for all the reasons you listed. :)
Haha… hope those aren’t the only reasons you like being married! :)
Welcome! What is going to happen to your site when you are no longer single?
I have that covered. If you check out my logo, it actually says “The Single (and small family) Saver” so as long as I don’t end up with a half dozen kids I am protected.
I like your blogging outlook. It should be fun. Best of lick wiping your mortgage, and then retiring early.
I don’t think I remember being single, it was so long ago. It is quite different now! Thanks for sharing.
Glad to have you! I’ve been single for years but come next year I’m going to be married. It’s going to be interesting to see how I change my money habits when I have a wife!
I’ve been married for 7 months now and being single and sharing a life with someone are very different, financially. For now since my income from my day job is our main income, it’s been tougher married. But once my wife graduates from school and starts working, then it’ll be a huge burden lifter.
Congrats on your recent marriage, Charles!
So true, I know a lot of financial blogs are written by people who are married or in a relationship so sometimes the advice doesn’t seem to fit for us single folk who experience life a bit differently in terms of budgeting, expenses and financial planning!
Being single doesn’t have to be a drag, there are a lot of great things about it, so I love your attitude!
I have noticed that many of my favorite blogs are written by mothers to large families who homeschool… SOOOOO not how my life is. Much of the advice doesn’t really apply to me, though I appreciate their outlooks on frugality. So I try to tailor their advice and tips into ways that singles can also benefit.
Welcome to the Yakezie! I remember the expenses when I was living on my own, and I was paying as much to live in a smaller cruddy (well, it was ok but still) apartment as I do now to live in a brand new condo with my girl!
Thanks, Invest It Wisely! You know, I pay less in mortgage now than most I know pay to rent a 1 bedroom apartment… but I also put a big % down and I have other expenses, like property taxes, so I guess I am ultimately paying more but I think it is a good investment.
[…] Denise at from the Single Saver […]
Indeed both single and married have their own set of advantages and disadvantages. So, now you ask, stay single or get married? The choice is up to you.
I really think financially you are better off married, as long as your spouse has the same financial goals as you do.
Hi Denise, nice to meet you. I agree with you on the food angle for single people. You can eat pretty much as good or bad as you please. On the other hand, it’s hard to get motivated to cook elaborate dishes for just one person.
Not for me, 101 Centavos… I enjoy eating good food and as I can’t really afford to eat out at a nice restaurant every night I have had to learn to cook a lot of dishes, myself. I sort of enjoy it simply because I enjoy good food.
You can make money decisions without checking with anyone. I guess that has its advantages and disadvantages :)
Good if you are smart with your money… bad if you are a spend-a-holic!
I am another single person and I can relate to a lot of what you discuss. I actually find a lot of benefits in being single. I don’t argue about money. I make more than enough for myself so I can save a lot (no kids/pets). I have financial freedom in my own way, which I like for now.
Seems like you have a very realistic and balanced view of personal finance as it relates to singles vs. those who are married. Some of the issues are the same, but some are clearly different. Good points!
Hey Denise, welcome! What’s wrong with fluffy? I love fluffy…
You are dead on about making content fun- life is tough enough. It also helps prevent burnout. Who could write encyclopedic posts every day?
One of the areas that married couples must have compatibility is finances. Incompatibility in that area can lead to trouble, as many have found out. And like many aspects in life, sometimes we change our outlook and focus on financials, too.
Balancing out some of the drawbacks that you mentioned, being single affords the ability to manage finances as one chooses. For better or worse, save or spend, invest or blow money.
But being single, no matter which way a person tends to lean financially, it can be much lonelier.
Welcome aboard, always nice to have another point of view represented. I’m currently working on paying off the mortgage as well, so I know the feeling of almost being debt free. I look forward to reading your posts.
Denise I love reading your blog. We are forever indebted to you for your concept of small seasonal teams within yakezie. I do have a small family of two. Housing is our biggest expense too. COngratulation on becoming member and wish you all the best
Welcome to the network Denise! My mom is single and she keeps the thermostat super low in winter and bundles up with extra layers to stay warm. She’s saved a lot of money that way. I do the same when I’m home alone and wait until my husband is home to turn the heat on for some savings. Congrats on being close to paying off your mortgage!
You found a nice niche in the PF blogosphere. Welcome to the Yakezie and I enjoyed meeting you at Fincon!
I agree with you but I also must say I saved a lot more money when I was single. Having 2 kids and a wife who loves to shop eats away at the finances.
It is good that your parents were able to model financial responsibility to you. Mine did as well, but I didn’t learn the lessons as well as I should. I hope to get on the right track and make amends for some of the less than wise decisions that I made in the past.
Being a single adult is something I have no experience with. I married right out of college and have been married ever since! Welcome and congrats on finishing the challenge – I did too!!