According to Nibud, you need at least that much savings | Home & Garden

The more, the better, you might think. And that is certainly true. Still, it’s nice to have some sort of target number. What is the minimum amount of money you should have on hand?

How high your financial buffer can best be depends on a number of factors. Everyone’s washing machine can of course break down, but logically you should have more on hand if you have a car, child or house to buy. Because if the brake discs of your car need to be replaced, your child needs medical help or your leaking roof needs a repair, you want to be able to pay for it.

Nibud advises to have 3,400 euros in reserve in any case. This is based on a single person with a minimum wage and a rental home. If you want to find out how much savings you can have in your specific situation, you can use the BufferCalculator of Nibud.

rule of thumb

A rule of thumb that you often hear is a financial buffer with which you can pay your fixed costs for at least three months to six months.

So calculate how much you have spent on rent/mortgage, subscriptions, insurance, etc. to find out whether you now have enough money in your savings account. And whether you need to save more.

The reason to keep three months to six months worth of fixed costs is that you can absorb several financial setbacks at the same time. Even if you get fired, in this case you have enough money not to get into trouble right away. In the Netherlands, of course, you have unemployment benefits, but do not forget that it only amounts to 70 percent of your wages. That is quite a drop in salary, and then saving is probably not an option.