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One of my sons (38) has bought two rental homes. One already produces income & the other pays for itself. His plan is to buy more rentals and retire early. He also has a 401K but I have no idea how much is in it. Pays cash for his cars and pays off cards monthly. I'm pretty proud of him!
Here's a dissenting view. Suppose that the OP's children comported with all of the wise advice, saving diligently etc., so that by 45 or so, they would be "financially independent". Pray tell: how would a bad day in the stock market affect them emotionally? What, too skittish to invest in stocks? At 45, there may be 40+ years remaining. Countenance the risk, or watch your millions evaporate, even if you spend nothing.
It is better to be a high-earner with atrociously bad spending habits, but a stable job, and already advanced years... than a younger frugal go-getter. If I were doing it all over again, I'd spend the first decade or so, of early-adulthood, in utter debauchery and dissipation... then settle into a humdrum cubicle job, and die at my desk.
First, perhaps, you might need to tell the "kids" to stop watching depressing, shocking, fearful World News stories, and stop hearing of our spiraling foreign debt load! That would be a good start!
Mine figured it out when I stopped giving them money. I still give gifts but make it constructive - groceries, new shoes or a coat, auto repair, etc. One Christmas before I announced the change I paid off son's credit card to give him a clean start and daughter got an equal amount of cash. He didn't like that much but I think it was a good eye-opener for him.
It's a relief to me that we don't have to do that anymore. Of course I'm still here and would never let either of them flounder but the reasons have to not be of their own making and they know that. They're old enough, experienced enough and have had enough help to know what the good decisions are.
In my opinion neither of them are planning well enough for their senior years but at this point it's no longer my business. It's too much work at my age to try to run my adult children's lives. I'm just here to give the emotional support.
Exactly the same approach here. Ready to help if needed in a crisis but they all know that they need to exhaust their own self reliance and initiative before coming to us for cash. Same approach my parents took with us.
The $1 million figure is so last decade, and reflects a pretty minimal lifestyle. Even today, if you want to accommodate periodic major purchases like a replacement vehicle or two, you will need more like $2 million. Forty years from now, with inflation, your kids are going to need $2.5 million to $5 million in retirement savings.
For that matter, Mom and Dad better hope we don't go back to 5% inflation, or they will lose half their retirement income in only 10 years.
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