Living Beyond Your Means

Whether you consider yourself to be financially responsible, or you always seem to come up short on cash, there are a few key indicators that may indicate you are living beyond your mean.
不管你覺得自己生活富余還是經常會財政短缺，下面這幾個小信號都需要注意一下，它們預示著你可能要財政赤字了哦。

And being aware of them can save you loads of money woes in times of a cash emergency.
注意這些能幫你省下一大筆錢以備不時之需。

Income

You couldn’t live without your job’s income for at least six months.
存的薪水不夠你花半年

Need some motivation to start saving? Sit down and add up how much money you make each month. Then, multiply that amount by six.
需要讓自己省錢的動力？那就坐下來算算每個月能賺多少錢吧，然后乘以6。

Assuming you have a stable job, that’s the minimum balance you should have stashed away in an interest bearing, FDIC insured deposit account that is earmarked solely for emergency needs.
假設你的工作很穩(wěn)定，這些錢是你需要存起來以備不時之需的最低標準，聯邦存款保險公司有專為緊急需要的賬戶。

Clients frequently underestimate life’s uncertainties and discount the need to have cash available for unexpected events like unemployment, illness, disabilities, and family emergencies.
人們往往會低估人生的不確定性，在遇到突發(fā)情況（如事業(yè)，疾病，殘疾，和家庭緊急情況）時我們對金錢的需求其實很大。

If you have a less-than-stable career or you’re self-employed, we recommend saving as much as 12 months worth of income. If you don’t have anything near that amount saved, and worse, you’re in debt, you’re living beyond your means.
如果你的工作并不穩(wěn)定，又或者是自己創(chuàng)業(yè)，我們建議至少要存有12個月的收入。如果你的存款沒有這么多，甚至還在負債，那么你就已經入不敷出了。

Vacation

You vacation on credit.
用信用卡旅游

You work hard and you’ve earned that vacation, right?
努力工作覺得可以旅個游來犒勞自己啦？

Consider this financial rule of thumb when it comes to credit purchases: If it takes you longer to pay for the purchase than the actual “l(fā)ife span” of the item, you can’t really afford it.
但如果需要用到信用卡，就想想這個重要的準則吧：如果還款所需的時間比實際的旅游時間還長，算了吧，你其實付不起。

Start a plan to save money for vacations well in advance of the time you’ll need to book tickets or make reservations.
提前制定旅行計劃能省一大筆錢，你需要訂票和預約酒店。

Make sure you pay the balance down before you’re charged a dime of interest and be realistic about all the “extras” that can add to the cost of a trip, like tips, parking, and baggage fees.
確保自己在支付利息前能付清所有的錢。記得要把那些小費、停車費和行李費都算進去。

Car Loan

You only consider monthly payments when buying a car.
買車時只考慮了月收入。

Aside from a home, a car is one of the most expensive items you’ll purchase in your life. While it’s understandable to focus on monthly payment amounts when determining how much car you can buy, your ability to afford a monthly auto loan payment doesn’t mean you can afford the car.
和房子一樣，車子也會是你人生中購買的最貴的東西之一。在決定購買什么價位的車時，月收入的確需要考慮進去，但你能付清每月的車貸并不代表你就能買得起這車。

If you’re in doubt, consider the duration of the loan: If it’s longer than three years, and doesn’t result in owning the vehicle outright at the conclusion of the loan, you’re shopping out of your true budget.
如果你還對我的話有所懷疑，那不妨想一下還貸期限：但如果還款期限超過了三年，直到還貸結束才真正擁有這輛車，你得基于自己的實際預算來購買。

The same premise holds true for auto loan refinancing: If you’re refinancing because interest rates have dropped considerably since you initiated the loan, that may be a money-smart move.
車貸重新按揭也是如此：比如由于車貸降息，你選擇重新按揭，這是個理財方法。

If you are refinancing only to lower your monthly payments, and refinancing means that you are extending the life of the loan, you’re not actually saving money — you’re just stretching out the payments.
但如果你重新按揭只是為了減少每月的還貸，同時還貸期限延長，那么你并沒有省錢——反而多花了錢。

Mortgage

You’ve arrived at the home you can afford based on a 30-year fixed mortgage.
買房子，你能支付起30年的固定抵押貸款。

If you’ve calculated the amount of home you can afford based only a 30-year fixed mortgage scenario, you may be taking on more than you can really afford.
考慮買房子的時候，你也許已經算過30年固定抵押貸款所需的金額，但也許比你實際支付的還要多。

Instead of strapping yourself to a 30-year fixed mortgage payment, consider how much more affordable less house with a shorter loan term is—despite the higher monthly payment.
與其把自己綁在30年固定抵押還貸上，不如想想短點貸款期限是不是更省錢——即使月付更高點。

By opting for a four percent, 15-year fixed mortgage on a $250,000 home loan over a comparable 30-year fixed loan, a homeowner could save $97,020 in interest over the life of the loan. Further, he owns the home in less than two decades.
比如25萬美金的房子，貸款15年是百分之四的利息，相比于30年而言，房主能省97020美金的利息。更何況不到二十年他就能完全擁有這房子了。

Overdraft

You’ve paid an overdraft fee in the last 12 months.
過去一年你已經支付過透支費了。

If money is so tight that you have to rely on overdraft protection in order to float your lifestyle, you’re living beyond what you can afford. Period.
手頭有點緊，不得不靠著透支保護來繼續(xù)這一生活方式，那么你目前已經入不敷出了。

Credit Limit

You’ve exceeded your credit limit.
你已經超了信用卡額度

Exceeding your credit limit doesn’t just cost you in over-limit fees.
超額使用不僅僅要交付超額費。

Because your credit score is based largely on your debt-to-utilization ratio, your credit score is lowered when your credit balances are high and it signals to lenders that you’re in over your head.
由于你的信用額度很大程度上基于你的資產負債率，一旦超額使用，你的信用就會降低，銀行會認為這意味著你入不敷出了。

If you are approved for new lines of credit—including a home mortgage—your future interest rates will be sky high.
如果你申請新的信貸，包括房屋按揭，你將來的利息稅就會超高。

Paying Others To Do Your Job

You’re in debt but you pay someone to do a job you could do yourself.
盡管負債，你還是花錢請人來做那些力所能及的小事

Are you too busy to clean your house, walk your dog, mow your lawn, or manicure your nails?
難道真的忙的沒有時間打掃屋子、遛狗、修剪草坪甚至修指甲嗎？

Instead of paying someone else for skills you possess, do the task yourself and put the savings toward paying down debt, building your emergency savings accounts and funding your retirement.
與其花錢請人干那些你力所能及的活，不如自己干，省下來的錢可以付賬單，存入緊急賬戶或是退休基金。