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Expensive-Cow5368 t1_j9zjnbm wrote

Counter argument: I budget for two paychecks a month, so every month is 28 days. Every couple of months I get an extra paycheck that compensates for whatever slip-ups or miscalculation I did during the previous months.

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timmyboyoyo t1_j9zlcuo wrote

When do you get extra

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blay12 t1_j9znti5 wrote

They get paid bi-weekly (once every 2 weeks) rather than semi-monthly (twice a month, usually the 15th and either the 1st or 31st), so occasionally the offset lines up and gives you three checks in a month (e.g. your payday falls on the 1st, second payday on the 15th, third on the 29th).

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FiddleTheFigures t1_ja1hilg wrote

Happens twice a year if you’re paid bi weekly because you’re getting 26 paychecks (52/2) vs the 24 checks for a semi monthly (some would say bi monthly) arrangement.

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AlexandrinaIsHere t1_ja03cb9 wrote

The down side to it is that it swaps the date you can expect a check from the first week of the month to the second week. So it's a little bit before I feel like I can relax and spend the "extra"

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hearnia_2k t1_ja0u596 wrote

Getting paid every two weeks, or twice a month are both unusual, except in the US. IT's much more common to get paid once a month.

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blay12 t1_ja0yqoj wrote

Lol ok, but I wasn’t commenting on what’s normal in different places, I was just explaining how a bi-weekly payment schedule can result in 3 checks a month.

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hearnia_2k t1_ja138ru wrote

Edit: I misread, indeed it makes sense now.

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blay12 t1_ja146zp wrote

Lmao what? They…literally said they get two paychecks a month, why are you trying to turn this into an argument lol?

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paxmlank t1_ja13rni wrote

"I budget for two paychecks a month."

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blakeh95 t1_ja1f8m7 wrote

2 checks x 12 months = 24 checks.

But you actually get paid every 2 weeks, so that’s 52 weeks per year / 2 weeks per check = 26 checks.

26 checks received - 24 checks budgeted = 2 extra.

For bonus points, there are occasionally years with 3 extra checks because 52 weeks x 7 = 364 days, not 365.

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5l4 t1_ja3rnjr wrote

In very rare years you could also have 27 cheques (if January 1st was a pay day or January 2nd and it’s a leap year).

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blakeh95 t1_ja4d734 wrote

…yes, this would be the years with 3 extra checks that I mentioned.

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Impossible_Memory_65 t1_ja1t1ba wrote

There are 2 months during the year that have 3 pay perioda if you get paid bi weekly. I think it's October and May . One is on the first, one in the middle, and the third on the last day . I budget for two pay checks per month ( between the first and last day of each month) so the months with three checks between the first and last day seems like a bonus

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SophiesUncle t1_ja5njqr wrote

Lol it's not October and May. Everyone gets paid at different times of the week. Some get paid on Thursdays, some Fridays, etc. Also, different weeks, maybe we're both Fridays but your pay is this week and mine is next week, that'll change the months that get the 3rd paycheck. Also, every year it changes too, not always consistent. The only month you know it probably won't be would be February. Unless it perfectly works out that when a pay occurs on Feb 1st, it's also a leap year.

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Prometheus188 t1_ja3kdbz wrote

There are 12 months in a year and you get paid every 2 weeks. So you might think “Oh that means I get paid 24 times a year”, since 2 weeks is about 1 month”. But that’s wrong because 2 weeks is not 1 month, it’s only 28 days. And biweekly pay actually results in 26 pays per month, not 24.

So you should be getting paid twice a month for about 10 months, and for 2 months in the year you’ll get 3 payments. For example, if you got paid January first, you’d also get paid on January 15th and January 29th. That’s 3 payments in a single month. That should happen twice a year.

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aerodeck t1_ja11o7f wrote

Do you always set your clock 15 minutes back so that when you’re late you’re actually on time? Weird way to live

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awsamation t1_ja18oqq wrote

It's not that weird when you consider that they get paid bi-weekly.

Every month is guaranteed 2 paychecks for them, so budgeting around 2 paychecks is an easy way to make sure expenses stay lower than income every month. But every once in a while they'll get 3 paychecks in a month because that's just how the bi-weekly schedule lined up.

Since weeks and months have nothing to do with each other, the paychecks (delivered bi-weekly) and expenses (charged monthly) will never have a nice consistent match. So working like you seem to be suggesting would mean budgeting every month based on how many paychecks will arrive that month. While their system allows a consistent budget that can be reused month to month with minimal need for change.

Every month is guaranteed 2 paychecks. So if the budget assumes 2 paychecks worth of income, and one month's worth of expenses, then as long as the budget balances they never have to worry about overspending because they thought they were getting 3 checks when they only got 2. And for bonus points the times when they do get 3 paychecks in a month, that 3rd paycheck is loose money. It isn't assigned to a specific use so it can be given to wherever it'll give the best value. Maybe it all goes to savings, maybe it helps pay of an emergency expense, maybe some of it gets used for a fun treat for themselves.

The important point is that they never need to think about how many paychecks they'll be receiving in a given month. So the budget only needs to be adjusted for large-scale changes like rate of income or cost of living, which are much less predictable at an individual level.

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SophiesUncle t1_ja5ojup wrote

Yeah it's not a weird way to live at all, because almost everyone's expenses are monthly (mortgage/rent, utilities, cell phone, etc). Most people that get biweekly, or weekly, pay, budget their 2 cheques (or 4) to cover these expenses and leave extra for savings/whatever. So, when that extra cheque in that month comes in, it does feel good and does feel like extra money.

Maybe you're lucky enough not to live pay cheque to pay cheque, but not everyone is, and to make a comment like this shows what type of person you truly are. Why make a comment basically making fun of someone's financial situation?

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