How far are you in reaching your financial goal to close the distance?

[CandiCandi]

My SO and I agreed we should aim for about $1,300ish when I was at the bus station before I went home. $1,000 for the apartment. $160 for a bus ticket. $200 for stuff to eat on the way and to buy some things I need once I get back home (I am officially calling Wisconsin home). Well, we knocked $200 off because my parents are agreeing to help with that portion. I am getting a 10% discount on my next bus ticket through Greyhound and it will be only $152.00 now. I've knocked off about $45 of the first $1,000 of the apartment the past few days as well. Counting down how much left we have to go makes this process feel better. I like how it shows that we're making an effort and we're being productive. He's pitching in too, but he has a lot of bills to take care of the next week. He estimated he'd be able to have $600 left each month. So, we're doing a pretty good job, I think. How far are you in your financial goals to save?

[kittyo9]

Living in the states and having the good fortune of having been taught super saving habits from childhood, as well as having received numerous scholarships and financial support from my parents while at college, I have had more than enough saved up for long-term plans for a long time, but it's always on my mind, regardless. I am always willing to do small jobs here and there to make a little money so that I don't have to dip into my savings.

My boyfriend is a different story! He lives in Peru, where the average person makes far less than they would in the US. And, up until he met me, he had never really saved any money or worked much at all, aside from tutoring occasionally. Now he works doing research and receives a modest amount every month. If he had not applied for a visa twice, he would have somewhere near the $1000 range... which was our goal for him, at least to start. He'll need much more to move out of Peru, though. In actuality, he has about $650 saved up from working, and plans to save as much of what he makes in the near future as he can.

[lucybelle]

This might sound spoiled, but for us money was never the issue. I worked since I was 16 and don't like "things" so I had (and have) plenty of money saved up. Plus I had a full-time job in the USA and lived very frugally. My SO doesn't get paid well in US standards (well below poverty line) but he's a hustler and makes lots of money on the side (LEGALLY) We didn't have an amount of money we needed to save up, we just had other things that had to be taken care of first.

[Haley53]

Well, we're closing the distance in a year for a year. It's not permanent, but the savings are going fairly well. I feel like it's not too fair of me to complain because even though I'm working 20+ hours a week, it's very well-paid work (in the double digit range) and so assuming I can escape taxes (students have a cap they can make before they have to pay), I should have more than what I need in 4-6 months' work. The time of really cracking down and dividing money between phone bill and savings, however, will happen after the summer, as I tend to budget on my holidays but still spend. :P Everything then will go into savings, because I not only have the base minimum to pay for air fare, travel insurance, the visa application, etc., but I want to be able to have enough in case I need to start paying rent immediately, and of course I'll be pitching to pay for bills.

[Manoek]

Unfortunately money is definitely a issue.. Now I'm in a expensive relationship. My SO lives in the States and I live in The Netherlands, so it's gonna be pretty expensive. I also have to go through the whole emigration process en that will cost us. I also still have to get my drivers license (about 2500 dollars), and it's impossible to save for a ticket and to save for my drivers license at the same time.

When we are going to set a date to close the distance I will move back in to my moms place for a couple of months to save money and to sell everything in my apartment. His dad also want to help us with the money, if we really need it he would lend it to us.

[BlueCat]

I am far from it. I've only just managed to get regular work again, after having been home for four months since our visit. I only work 15 hours a week, which is next to nothing (but better than nothing). I'm going to need $2000-2500 for flights, some ridiculous amount for our fiance VISA process, probably also around a grand. We need some money saved for a small and simple wedding. I want to have money saved to help get us a car, and extra money so that we can rent somewhere and I can contribute for a while until I can get a job. On top of that, I'll probably want some travel insurance which will be at least $600 just to cover myself until we get ourselves sorted.

I haven't actually really bought myself anything since I got back home though, apart from food. I used to buy a lot of books, some movies, plants etc. And I've limited myself really well on that stuff. My biggest expense since I've been home is petrol. If I work 5 days a week, that's a whole tank gone and it costs me $60-70 to fill the tank. On top of all that, before I go, I need dental surgery, so I need a few thousand saved to pay for that. Yay, it looks so promising :P

[kittyo9]

Unfortunately money is definitely a issue.. Now I'm in a expensive relationship. My SO lives in the States and I live in The Netherlands, so it's gonna be pretty expensive. I also have to go through the whole emigration process en that will cost us. I also still have to get my drivers license (about 2500 dollars), and it's impossible to save for a ticket and to save for my drivers license at the same time.

I have a few friends in the Netherlands and they told me about how expensive it is to get your driver's licence. In Peru, it's like $30? So I told my boyfriend he should get it there while he can. Some states in the US will give you a driver's license as long as you have a social security number (which means you'd need to have your visa approved for working), so if you don't plan on driving immediately when you get to the states or will live somewhere with some public transportation, you might consider just waiting until you get to the US. I just looked it up and apparently even if you're an illegal immigrant, you can still get a license in Utah. xD Anyway, just something to consider.

[books]

Well, I'm really focused on trying to pay off the bulk of my grad school loans before we close the distance. On top of that, I'd like to have a decent amount of savings split into 3 categories- $1,000 emergency fund (have that now), $5,000 other savings, and $5,000 house fund (to put towards building our house). As far as the school loans go, it's really discouraging to think that before I went for my Masters abroad I was totally debt free (worked my way through undergrad) and had a decent amount of savings. But then I think about all the amazing experiences I've had as a result of pursuing my education and of the doors that it's opened up for me. I have no doubt that I will reach my financial goals in time (hopefully within a year). I'm working very hard (2 jobs) and trying to stay focused on the end goal. Thankfully my boss will be promoting me next month and in turn, my salary will increase by about 10%.

[kteire]

Ugh, I have no idea how much money we'll need to close the distance to be honest. I have about £500 saved up now, and should be able to save up another £8-900 more before we move. So far my train ticket to London will cost about £29, and a hostel for a week will be about £170 each. And then I have NO clue what to expect for a deposit on a flat, but I'm assuming at least £1800 between the two of us. Fortunately, Loic has a very good job and minimal rent in Dublin, and barely spends anything. Like, this boy and I literally set his bed on fire with a space heater in December, and he has yet to buy a new duvet (his cost about €15) or sheets, or a new bed set. Right now we're sleeping on Betty Boop sheets that he got as a gag gift, and with a charred duvet. So he's got waaay more in savings than I thought he did, fortunately!!

[lademoiselle]

We don't have anything saved at the moment. We're years away from closing the distance; at the moment it doesn't feel necessary to make financial provisions for that time and money goes towards funding visits. I think in a couple of years we'll start making serious plans.

[kat4301]

Uggg, I feel like savings wise I am fine to close the distance in August (our situation is complicated - technically we are closing the long distance next week by having my SO move to me in the summer, but in order to not separate again in August I would need to quit my job and move to him). I have started applying to jobs in the city where he goes to school but I am starting to have some anxiety about it all. The place he lives is somewhat rural and I hate not having a job. We also want to start planning a wedding but I refuse until I have a permanent job where he lives. Being fresh out of school and in a tough economy, I hope I have not overestimated my ability to get a job. But we shall see, hopefully someone will hire me and we can permanently close the distance in August.

[Kerry]

I've been able to save more money than my SO. next year we'd like for him to move up here, buy a house and to be married. we're no where near this happening though, unfortunately.

[Sierra]

21 days away. I need to change my ticker.
I have my apartment rented, enough money saved ... I'm still scared.

[kteire]

Gah, not as close savings-wise as I'd hoped, I killed my laptop today by spilling 7up on it, so I'm gonna have to spend a chunk of my savings on replacing it!!

[lyonsgirl]

I've been putting money away for a year, some months more than others, for us to be able to put towards something like... our wedding. It's not nearly enough, but it's something. Since I don't see us closing the distance this year (or getting married, since he hasn't even asked yet.... ) I'm not too worried about it. But I'm glad I saw this-it reminded me that I need to put some money in that account!