I’ve been inspired by reading personal finance blogs to write down some of the personal finance things that I have been thinking about. I currently plan to write three articles about this intermixed with my normal articles on programming. We often hear, in personal finance books, and on personal finance websites that we should make a point of having an emergency fund for dealing with unexpected expenses. I think, however, that many of these “unexpected expenses” can not only be planned for and budgeted for but they are related to items that most people in the world do not even own. We, in the western world consider them to be necessities. Not that they following items aren’t important, I’m just trying to put it into perspective.
| Item | Lifetime (years) | Cost Range | Monthly Range |
| Car 1 | 10-15 | $10,000 - $20,000 | $55.56 - $166.67 |
| Car 2 | 10-15 | $10,000 - $20,000 | $55.56 - $166.67 |
| Refrigerator | 12-15 | $400 - $1200 | $2.22 - $8.33 |
| Washing Machine | 12-15 | $600 - $1200 | $3.33 - $8.33 |
| Dryer | 12-15 | $300 - $600 | $1.67 - $4.17 |
| Dishwasher | 12-15 | $400 - $1200 | $2.22 - $8.33 |
| Vacuum | 5-15 | $250 - $450 | $1.39 - $7.50 |
| Laptop Computer | 3-5 | $400 - $1200 | $6.67 - $33.33 |
| Desktop Computer | 3-5 | $350 - $600 | $5.83 - $16.67 |
| TV | 5-10 | $500 - $1500 | $4.17 - $25.00 |
| Total: | $138.61 - $445.00 per Month |
If you are a typical family with 2 cars, modern appliances and 2 computers, you need to be saving AT LEAST $140/month to make sure you can replace modern items of convenience as they wear out. This is on top of any normal savings you do, to make sure you are actually saving money and staying ahead.
