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If like to know that at the cusp of entering the 30s what was your situation like?
How much in savings did you have
How many years into your career were you and how satisfied with the pay/personal life.
At 29 I was 4 years into a 40 year welding career.
No savings.
Pay was too small but personal life was great. My wife and I were living in the Colorado Rockies at 9,000 ft. in a primitive cabin and driving my old 1951 Jeep 42 miles to work everyday in Broomfield.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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At age 29 I was in my 6th year and and 4th promotion, to supervisor responsible for 23 employees. I started there at age 23 as a temporary employee. We married at 22/21 and had bought our first house when
I was 26, had our first kid at ages 28/27. As for savings, we both were paying into retirement systems, but probably had only a couple of thousand in the bank savings account.
Yes, as Arthur said everyone is different. That said, at 29 I was a DINK (double income no kids). Hubby and I decided no children when we were married. We just purchased our house, nothing significantly saved and a small retirement. I had just changed careers and moving into a new direction and starting over at the bottom of the barrel.
Two months later my husband's mom passed. Something in me changed and I wanted kids. Luckily the hubster agreed and bam, 9 months later I was a mom.
So, my life completely changed!!! For the better of course
I would strongly advise against benchmarking your life's progress against others.
Quote:
Originally Posted by veuvegirl
Yes, as Arthur said everyone is different.
What they said. I was 29 in 1999, and we partied like it. Working at a start-up that just went IPO a year earlier. Essentially the apex of the dot com era. If I was born two years later, my life would likely have been very much different at 29.
I would strongly advise against benchmarking your life's progress against others.
Great advice, being that the average person by the age of 29 here has 1.2 million in savings, a supermodel wife, works from home, makes $200,000/year, has a 401k with about 3 million bucks, and does yoga nightly under the moonlight as a relaxer.
I'll be 29 in a couple of months. Currently making $50k in a low to medium cost metro with about $4k in savings. I didn't get my first professional job until I turned 27, surviving in call centers for a few years after college. I'm behind the curve compared to a lot of the people who lived in urban areas all their lives on this board, but doing fairly well benchmarking against fellow Tennesseans.
Had been out of work since April of 1982 when I was medically discharged from the Navy. Unemployment lasted 26 weeks back then.
Had pregnant wife who had been non-renewed as a teacher due to her pregnancy. No unemployment there.
Remember this was the time when you could "walk in off the street and get a good paying union job where you'd retire after 20 years with a lifetime pension.
All of the mining in the area had shut down knocking the bottom out of the railroads. The overall economy had most of the other manufacturers laying off half or more of their workforces, most never recovered.
Picked up some substitute teaching a couple days a week and tutored for food.
Yet us Boomers never had any bad times.
Moved to MD in 1984 for work after cashing in a life insurance policy.
I'm 29, 7 years into my career in administrative work, been with current company over 4 years, and work in a management role. College experience but no degree. Two income household, married and have a kid. We bought a house 2 years ago, and combined we make a wealthy living. On my own I make 1/4 of what hubby does. Live a nice lifestyle, I have a horse, hubby is a car enthusiast. But he's a bit older than I am, turns 40 next month. (shhh, I didn't say that!)
I have a 401k that just started last year, and combined we have a small retirement fund. We also have a joint savings account, with a couple thousand in for emergencies plus our own accounts. He drives a 2014, and 2005 vehicle. Mine is from 2009.
Again, don't benchmark others lives to decipher your own. I know plenty of 29's bartending, partying, no kids, and living it up.
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