Money can’t buy happiness but saving it might cheer you up
It is also no secret how we feel about ourselves and the world, in general, is connected to how much money we have, and savings play a big part in that.
My monthly Savings Rate report: July 2020
If I had to describe July in one month it would be 'fun'. Bit of a weird thing to say during a pandemic, no? Thanks to a couple of trips and celebrating my wife's graduation from her Master (yeaaaah! well done!) we were able to forget the return of the coronavirus.
Buying a first home: pay attention to these costs
Having gone through the process of buying my own home I wanted to share all the costs that came with this crazy adventure. There are a lot of costs associated with getting your first home, whether it's a house or apartment. I was quite honestly a little surprised by all the paperwork and meetings that come with it. This overview should cover the majority of costs, both recurring and one-time for both the notary and the bank.
My monthly Savings Rate report: June 2020
After a live-changing May, June was a lot less crazy. That is not to say that nothing happened in June. I actually invested quite a bit in the site. These investments made my SR drop but thanks to my holiday pay, I was able to keep the damage to a minimum.
Paying too much taxes? My Belgian pay slip explained
In 2020 (and beyond) Belgium is still the country with the highest average income tax and tax wedge in the world (OECD, 2020a). I’m willing to bet Americans’ blood would boil seeing my payslip at the end of the month. 52.2% of what my employer pays for me ends up in the hands of the government. For comparison, the US tax wedge for a single with no kids is 29.8% (OECD, 2020b). So, where do these taxes come from? and are there any benefits to paying so many taxes, besides the typical usage such as firefighters, roads, public buildings, etc.?