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Life is about balance but that statement is typically an excuse for not being more financially responsible
Saving 13% of our income at this age is financially responsible. It will have 3 to 4 decades to compound, and my earliest years were placed into a Roth. I can’t imagine most couples made in excess of 100k a year during their 20s and poured it into retirement.
I’d add to that that we also financed our own wedding, she paid down her entire student loan before we met, my student loan is half eliminated, and we got into the housing market and have gained tens of thousands of equity. Unlike most young people, I know money as a CPA, and I made 6 to 8k off of credit card companies while building solid credit instead of having to “learn a lesson”. I’d hardly say I’m financially irresponsible.
As a child, I never left my home state. In the last decade, I’ve probably been to about half the states now traveling and doing stuff. That is what I value. I wouldn’t change nearly anything about the way I allocated our money.
You can always optimize your expenses to be more financially responsible. Hell, I could stop eating out and eat rice and chicken every day. I could trade down all our vehicles, house, and cut out half of our discretionary expenditure. I could optimize my income by doing independent CPA work on small business clients in my free time outside of my corporate job No thanks.
I’m good with saving what we do. It’s the balance I’m comfortable with. I don’t work this hard to pour everything into an account to grow on a financial statement.
Last edited by Thatsright19; 09-22-2019 at 12:56 PM..
Saving 13% of our income at this age is financially responsible. It will have 3 to 4 decades to compound, and my earliest years were placed into a Roth. I can’t imagine most couples made in excess of 100k a year during their 20s and poured it into retirement.
I’d add to that that we also financed our own wedding, she paid down her entire student loan before we met, my student loan is half eliminated, and we got into the housing market and have gained tens of thousands of equity. Unlike most young people, I know money as a CPA, and I made 6 to 8k off of credit card companies while building solid credit instead of having to “learn a lesson”. I’d hardly say I’m financially irresponsible.
As a child, I never left my home state. In the last decade, I’ve probably been to about half the states now traveling and doing stuff. That is what I value. I wouldn’t change nearly anything about the way I allocated our money.
You can always optimize your expenses to be more financially responsible. Hell, I could stop eating out and eat rice and chicken every day. I could trade down all our vehicles, house, and cut out half of our discretionary expenditure. I could optimize my income by doing independent CPA work on small business clients in my free time outside of my corporate job No thanks.
I’m good with saving what we do. It’s the balance I’m comfortable with. I don’t work this hard to pour everything into an account to grow on a financial statement.
All of that to say, if you are fine with it then fine. 13% and the rest of your commentary is excuses for not saving more. You financed your own wedding? Congrats. She paid her student loans off? Cool. You made free money off credit card card companies? Great but irrelevant really. With all that said why aren’t you able to save more than 13%?
All of that to say, if you are fine with it then fine. 13% and the rest of your commentary is excuses for not saving more. You financed your own wedding? Congrats. She paid her student loans off? Cool. You made free money off credit card card companies? Great but irrelevant really. With all that said why aren’t you able to save more than 13%?
I never said I couldn’t save more. Almost every person could. I don’t value saving beyond 13%. With my income and how early we saved, the most likely outcome is being a millionaire anyways.
We all have our own balance and value decisions to make.
We save 7 percent to get my dollar for dollar 401k match and my wife saves her 6% to get her 6% dollar for dollar match. So 13% or 26% depending on how you want to look at it. The only other “saving” we do is putting all credit card rewards and bonus into a permanent emergency fund.
The rest goes to debt service (mortgage, student loans), ongoing payments, and traveling/fun.
wouldnt that really be 6.5% (whatever the weighted avg is of yoru 7% and her 6%)?
if you save 7% of 100k, thats 7k.
she saved 6% of 100k, thats 6k.
together you saved 13k out of 200k which is 6.5%.
unless im missing something. you say the other way to look at it is 26% so i guess im missing something.
Yes, post 8 and 9. It’s 13. I basically posted a mistake.
ah that other poster is sharper than me. i didnt realize that the smaller number was not including the match and larger number was including the match. got it.
Agreed, you’re right. Not sure what I was spewing in those moments. Lazy, broken math without thinking about it. In general, I make about 2/3 of our income but it’s kind of skewed because insurance comes off of my income and her company pays her extra money for not using their insurance.
I don’t really care to save more than that. I’d rather do stuff when we’re young.
We’re at the cusp of me being promoted to make serious money. I still haven’t decided if Id rather start paying to buy back my time aka paying for house cleaning/yard work, or being serious about pouring more money into retirement. Or just making it pure fun money. Most likely, it will be a little of each.
The best way to buy back your time is to save/invest/pay down mortgage. Just paying someone to clean your house is a short term move that keeps you in the matrix longer.
I never said I couldn’t save more. Almost every person could. I don’t value saving beyond 13%. With my income and how early we saved, the most likely outcome is being a millionaire anyways.
We all have our own balance and value decisions to make.
Do you have a number? Meaning a total waste investable asset level in which you would confidently be okay the rest of your life?
Saving 13% of our income at this age is financially responsible. It will have 3 to 4 decades to compound, and my earliest years were placed into a Roth. I can’t imagine most couples made in excess of 100k a year during their 20s and poured it into retirement.
You think you have another 3 to 4 decades in the work force, but what if you don't? A lot of people get tired of the workplace grind in their 50s and want to at least downshift. Often, they're booted out of good paying employment. This idea that you're going to work that good paying career until 65 or 67 is a myth. Take a look around. How many people in corporate jobs last that long?
13% is a good start, but it won't give you the option to downshift in your 50s. IMO, that needs to be a goal for most people. You don't think it's a worthwhile goal now. But your 50 year old self will. I can almost guarantee it. I've seen it happen to people who hit 50 soooooo many times. Doesn't matter what personality, what job or industry. They always say "I had no idea when I was 30 that I'd be so tired" (physically or of the general BS / rat race..or all of the above. Or they say "I had no idea my industry would change so much that the job work looks nothing like it did / is much more stressful than 15 years ago".
Of course, they almost never have the money to make that transition because they said stuff like "I'd rather do stuff when I'm young". This would be fine if their 50 year old self would connect the dots between decisions made at 30 and their current situation and own that choice. But their 50 year old self usually doesn't do that.
Last edited by mysticaltyger; 09-22-2019 at 03:33 PM..
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