crossed threshold this year. Hopefully market doesnt dive and take it away.
36
36
millionaires
484,420 Views |
2083 Replies |
Last: 1 mo ago by jamey
sirhc said:
crossed threshold this year. Hopefully market doesnt dive and take it away.
36
You crossed $1M net worth this year? Or you increased you net worth or investments by $1M this year?
Either way, huge congratulations!
If your age is 36, at your age I did not even have $300k with me. I remember getting mint when I was 37.5 and checking and I had $350k. WTF? But I turned my life around since then.
Red Pear Realty
Joined:
Aug 2, 2018
Posts:
3,779
User Profile
Private Message
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Sponsor
AG
Congrats! That's huge. What advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Sponsor Message: We Split Commissions. Full Service Agents in Austin, Bryan-College Station, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Red Pear Realty
Red Pear Realty said:
Congrats! That's huge. What advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Commitment, discipline, drive, but also don't be overly obsessive about it or not take time and money to enjoy the wealth you've built along the way.
lol crossed the threshold. def did not add $1m this yr. Also this is a joint NW of $1mil (with my wife and I as we share finances). maybe this is less impressive.
Live within your means, and don't become obsessive about "keeping up with the joneses".
Manage debt - currently only debt we have is house debt (will need to add car debt though in year or two).
I have a spreadsheet where I track my savings - how much goes into brokerage/retirement/etc with goals set for the year.
If you have the opportunity, invest in real estate. We were fortunate to be able to make a nice profit off our first house (austin area) and didnt get hit with the cap gains. I know people that will buy a primary residence, and then arent afraid to move in 2-3 years depending on the market conditions to keep the appreciation tax free.
Manage debt - currently only debt we have is house debt (will need to add car debt though in year or two).
I have a spreadsheet where I track my savings - how much goes into brokerage/retirement/etc with goals set for the year.
If you have the opportunity, invest in real estate. We were fortunate to be able to make a nice profit off our first house (austin area) and didnt get hit with the cap gains. I know people that will buy a primary residence, and then arent afraid to move in 2-3 years depending on the market conditions to keep the appreciation tax free.
Red Pear Realty said:
Congrats! That's huge. What advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Don't live with a scarcity mindset. Scared money don't make money.
With investments don't focus on the return as much as just making sure you don't lose the money.
Gordo14 said:YouBet said:Smith said:aged horriblyYouBet said:
Could reverse this thread to log who all has lost at least a million under Biden.
Oooh, you got me!
Ignore the fundamentals at your own risk though.
Or just don't make investment decisions based on your political views. America is much stronger than that even if Fox news and CNN can pump you with enough fear porn you actually make it your identity.
Fundamentally the market looks like it has a lot of tailwinds right for the forseeable future. That has nothing to do with [current president or former president]. Everything to do with how business and the consumer is actually doing in this economy. Everywhere I go more people than ever are spending money and seem to have strong economic footing. Anecdotally, all of my friends' careers and purchasing power have gone up 2,3,4x in the last 5 years. I go to the airport and it is crazier than ever. You travel internationally, it's full of Americans. I bring this up because these are luxuries and the definition of discretionary spending.
Hope you haven't missed on the 23+% this year from S&P500. And if interest rates keep coming off, you very well might miss on a better 2024... In spite of, or better yet, uncorrelated to [current president].
You are preaching to the choir. I've never changed my investment strategy because of politics. I was making a half joking comment way back then because at the time things were not great. And they still aren't great. The stock market is wholly separated from the actual economy at this point. We are in unchartered territory with this beast.
And I disagree on consumers having strong economic footing. A few do; most don't. We are over leveraged as a populace at the highest level ever measured. All that consumer spending is credit card fueled. Half the population has $0 in retirement. The average nest egg is somewhere between $40-80K. Again, the fundamentals are crap. This entire experiment is a house of cards at this point.
Furthermore, while politics has historically been over weighted when it comes to the economy we already know that won't be the case going forward if certain political parties get their way with taxing unrealized gains and "reforming" 401ks as have been proposed and campaigned for. Thus, at some point, politics will matter because the largest untouched pot of gold are our retirements and they will be needed to fund our massive debt spending.
The challenge will be when do you weight politics as a significant enough input to alter your investment strategy because it's inevitable simply based on the current math and our trajectory.
Back to your regular programming.
You're young, it's a great milestone, and don't let anyone here (or elsewhere) make you think it isn't.sirhc said:
lol crossed the threshold. def did not add $1m this yr. Also this is a joint NW of $1mil (with my wife and I as we share finances). maybe this is less impressive.
No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See full Medical Disclaimer.
The 2nd million will come much faster than the first, congrats!Kool said:You're young, it's a great milestone, and don't let anyone here (or elsewhere) make you think it isn't.sirhc said:
lol crossed the threshold. def did not add $1m this yr. Also this is a joint NW of $1mil (with my wife and I as we share finances). maybe this is less impressive.
I love when people say only the lucky can get to be millionaire when it is a simple math issue/compounding interest and discipline.
If you save $5000 per year starting at 19 and earn just 6% per year, you are a millionaire at 61 and worth $1.7mm at 70. If you get a long term stock market return of 8%, it changes to 54 for millionaire status and $3.6mm at 70.
How do you do this, go out and earn an extra $5k each year which if you take a job at only $15/hr is around 350-400 hours per week depending on marginal tax rate or 8/hrs per week (given many side jobs are now paying well above that, it should take fewer hours than that). As you get older, your pay will likely go up to where you use your raises to cover it rather than working 8 hours per week. The key is to make saving money for retirement a priority. The other key is to spend within your means.
There are many other ways as well such as building a business but not everyone has the skill to do that. Where many people fail, it is in growing impatient when they see after a few years they only have $10-15k in the account and they want to go on a fancy vacation or buy a new car so they drain the account to do it.
If you save $5000 per year starting at 19 and earn just 6% per year, you are a millionaire at 61 and worth $1.7mm at 70. If you get a long term stock market return of 8%, it changes to 54 for millionaire status and $3.6mm at 70.
How do you do this, go out and earn an extra $5k each year which if you take a job at only $15/hr is around 350-400 hours per week depending on marginal tax rate or 8/hrs per week (given many side jobs are now paying well above that, it should take fewer hours than that). As you get older, your pay will likely go up to where you use your raises to cover it rather than working 8 hours per week. The key is to make saving money for retirement a priority. The other key is to spend within your means.
There are many other ways as well such as building a business but not everyone has the skill to do that. Where many people fail, it is in growing impatient when they see after a few years they only have $10-15k in the account and they want to go on a fancy vacation or buy a new car so they drain the account to do it.
Red Pear Realty
Joined:
Aug 2, 2018
Posts:
3,779
User Profile
Private Message
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Sponsor
AG
I know someone who owns a blue collar type service company. They make good money and go on a couple of vacations a year. One of their employees popped off one time about how much their vacations must cost, so they did the math for him on his nicotine habit. The nicotine habit was more expensive. Point being, everyone can come up with an extra $5k a year if they really want to.
Sponsor Message: We Split Commissions. Full Service Agents in Austin, Bryan-College Station, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Red Pear Realty
sirhc said:
lol crossed the threshold. def did not add $1m this yr. Also this is a joint NW of $1mil (with my wife and I as we share finances). maybe this is less impressive.
I'm guessing you got there faster than we did but don't recall. Congrats and keep at it.
Red Pear Realty said:
I know someone who owns a blue collar type service company. They make good money and go on a couple of vacations a year. One of their employees popped off one time about how much their vacations must cost, so they did the math for him on his nicotine habit. The nicotine habit was more expensive. Point being, everyone can come up with an extra $5k a year if they really want to.
Without a doubt there are many ways to get 5k or even a lot more to save each year toward people's retirement.
My GF is worth just north of $4mm. Her advice to any high earning males out there would be to not screw around on your wife if you want to stay rich. Her lawyer even got her ex to pay all the legal fees. I'm worth about 60% of what she is and got there by staying married (she died 4 years ago, minimal insurance), not overbuying our house or cars, saving 15% of my income and investing every penny in my brokerage accounts in equities.in short, live for tomorrow, not for today.
geeze...if your buddy is spending $14/day on nicotine, they have more to worry about than an extra vacation or two.
Diggity said:
geeze...if your buddy is spending $14/day on nicotine, they have more to worry about than an extra vacation or two.
At current prices, it isn't even 2 packs a day although he definitely is at risk of not having a long retirement.
Red Pear Realty
Joined:
Aug 2, 2018
Posts:
3,779
User Profile
Private Message
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Sponsor
AG
Cigarettes and dip are expensive. My buddy owns the place, for clarification, and their employee is a good dude. Just has an expensive habit that some might deem wasteful. That was my point. If you want to come up with an extra $5k a year, you can do it.
Sponsor Message: We Split Commissions. Full Service Agents in Austin, Bryan-College Station, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Red Pear Realty
Saw this thread had been bumped and realized I hadn't updated since a significant life event.
41 now and net worth is just over 5M after the sale of my portion of a startup tech company. Now just to have to figure out what to do with the rest of my life, lol.
This thread has truly been inspiring for me in ways most can't appreciate. We need more transparency around money; especially for people sincerely rooting for one another.
My encouragement for anyone reading this that feels "behind" is that my net worth was 250k just seven years ago.
41 now and net worth is just over 5M after the sale of my portion of a startup tech company. Now just to have to figure out what to do with the rest of my life, lol.
This thread has truly been inspiring for me in ways most can't appreciate. We need more transparency around money; especially for people sincerely rooting for one another.
My encouragement for anyone reading this that feels "behind" is that my net worth was 250k just seven years ago.
Lock her down!OldArmyCT said:
My GF is worth just north of $4mm. Her advice to any high earning males out there would be to not screw around on your wife if you want to stay rich. Her lawyer even got her ex to pay all the legal fees. I'm worth about 60% of what she is and got there by staying married (she died 4 years ago, minimal insurance), not overbuying our house or cars, saving 15% of my income and investing every penny in my brokerage accounts in equities.in short, live for tomorrow, not for today.
aggiefan2002 said:
Saw this thread had been bumped and realized I hadn't updated since a significant life event.
41 now and net worth is just over 5M after the sale of my portion of a startup tech company. Now just to have to figure out what to do with the rest of my life, lol.
This thread has truly been inspiring for me in ways most can't appreciate. We need more transparency around money; especially for people sincerely rooting for one another.
My encouragement for anyone reading this that feels "behind" is that my net worth was 250k just seven years ago.
Well done
OldArmyCT said:
My GF is worth just north of $4mm. Her advice to any high earning males out there would be to not screw around on your wife if you want to stay rich. Her lawyer even got her ex to pay all the legal fees. I'm worth about 60% of what she is and got there by staying married (she died 4 years ago, minimal insurance), not overbuying our house or cars, saving 15% of my income and investing every penny in my brokerage accounts in equities.in short, live for tomorrow, not for today.
Shouldn't her advice actually be to marry someone worth $8 million so you can take half if/when it comes to that? Or is that strategy only allowed for women?
On a side note that seems to be relevant to this thread, are you taking that advice?
My wife and I are at roughly $6MM Net Worth split $4.5MM after tax and $1.5MM retirement/pre-tax. We are both 39.
I include home equity, private investments, cash/bonds, stocks and retirement accounts in this number. We have some land that is not included and would alter the number but my wife has to decide if she wants to sell and it currently has a negative carry cost for us.
Goal is to get to $10MM total investable assets with $7.5MM before tax by 50 The goal at that time is to also have the house paid off. My goal is to get to $300K per year in passive income with a paid off house and school/college pre-funded.
I've been pretty focused on accumulating money/working a job that sacrifices alot to get the money. A few things I've learned/experienced.
1) Health is wealth. If you're in a profession that leaves little to no time for exercise, hobbies or eating healthy, you should reevaluate your goals/path. This is also true for jobs that have exceptional risk/demands as your mental health is something that you cannot take for granted.
2) Time with young kids is invaluable, being present but not mentally present isn't fair to your kids. They would much rather live in a smaller house, public schools and have happy, engaged parents.
3) Accumulating money for what ? You need to have an end game, it's not like you're going to accumulate wealth and struggle and claw then all of the sudden kick your feet up. That is idealistic. As you accumulate, think about a second career, something you can do to earn income/stay competitive. If you have kids, they need to see you work and struggle to an extent so they learn it and able to do it in their lives.
4) Whatever number you set, it will change. Build a budget backwards and solve for optimal cash flow, not a number. When I started, really focusing on this at 30, I thought $5MM was enough.
5) Spend money on travel, and experiences with your kids. Doesn't have to be extravagant, but let them learn/see other cultures/living conditions.
I think almost everyone is seeking freedom of time/their day, that doesnt have to be exclusive to not working, find something that fills the day with a passion once you've hit your number.
6) Get the wife on board with the goal, this is easier said than done in a lot of instances. We try to do a quarterly review of spending and a nice dinner. Re-evaluate where each is on the plan an trajectory as being flexible is key.
To make the money to get there, you need to be prepared to suffer, do something most people do not want to do and assume a certain level of risk to get the payoff. I'm not sure there is a way around this. It is best to do this in your late 20's/30's if possible
I include home equity, private investments, cash/bonds, stocks and retirement accounts in this number. We have some land that is not included and would alter the number but my wife has to decide if she wants to sell and it currently has a negative carry cost for us.
Goal is to get to $10MM total investable assets with $7.5MM before tax by 50 The goal at that time is to also have the house paid off. My goal is to get to $300K per year in passive income with a paid off house and school/college pre-funded.
I've been pretty focused on accumulating money/working a job that sacrifices alot to get the money. A few things I've learned/experienced.
1) Health is wealth. If you're in a profession that leaves little to no time for exercise, hobbies or eating healthy, you should reevaluate your goals/path. This is also true for jobs that have exceptional risk/demands as your mental health is something that you cannot take for granted.
2) Time with young kids is invaluable, being present but not mentally present isn't fair to your kids. They would much rather live in a smaller house, public schools and have happy, engaged parents.
3) Accumulating money for what ? You need to have an end game, it's not like you're going to accumulate wealth and struggle and claw then all of the sudden kick your feet up. That is idealistic. As you accumulate, think about a second career, something you can do to earn income/stay competitive. If you have kids, they need to see you work and struggle to an extent so they learn it and able to do it in their lives.
4) Whatever number you set, it will change. Build a budget backwards and solve for optimal cash flow, not a number. When I started, really focusing on this at 30, I thought $5MM was enough.
5) Spend money on travel, and experiences with your kids. Doesn't have to be extravagant, but let them learn/see other cultures/living conditions.
I think almost everyone is seeking freedom of time/their day, that doesnt have to be exclusive to not working, find something that fills the day with a passion once you've hit your number.
6) Get the wife on board with the goal, this is easier said than done in a lot of instances. We try to do a quarterly review of spending and a nice dinner. Re-evaluate where each is on the plan an trajectory as being flexible is key.
To make the money to get there, you need to be prepared to suffer, do something most people do not want to do and assume a certain level of risk to get the payoff. I'm not sure there is a way around this. It is best to do this in your late 20's/30's if possible
A great CNBC article about four great habits to have to get ahead
1) don't impress people
2) have an abundance mentality
3) think long-term
4) scratch each others back (I would change it and say don't get jealous when others are successful, be happy for them and let them help teach you)
https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/12/27/i-became-a-millionaire-at-age-27-unpopular-rules-rich-people-follow-that-most-dont.html
1) don't impress people
2) have an abundance mentality
3) think long-term
4) scratch each others back (I would change it and say don't get jealous when others are successful, be happy for them and let them help teach you)
https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/12/27/i-became-a-millionaire-at-age-27-unpopular-rules-rich-people-follow-that-most-dont.html
We hit $1mm net worth in October of this year. 60% investments, 35% house, 5% cars/cash.
We are both 32.
Retirement saving rate has been at/around 23% of gross.
A fun milestone to hit. Would like to keep my foot on the gas until 40 and then try going into business for myself.
We are both 32.
Retirement saving rate has been at/around 23% of gross.
A fun milestone to hit. Would like to keep my foot on the gas until 40 and then try going into business for myself.
Cyp0111 said:
My wife and I are at roughly $6MM Net Worth split $4.5MM after tax and $1.5MM retirement/pre-tax. We are both 39.
I include home equity, private investments, cash/bonds, stocks and retirement accounts in this number. We have some land that is not included and would alter the number but my wife has to decide if she wants to sell and it currently has a negative carry cost for us.
Goal is to get to $10MM total investable assets with $7.5MM before tax by 50 The goal at that time is to also have the house paid off. My goal is to get to $300K per year in passive income with a paid off house and school/college pre-funded.
I've been pretty focused on accumulating money/working a job that sacrifices alot to get the money. A few things I've learned/experienced.
1) Health is wealth. If you're in a profession that leaves little to no time for exercise, hobbies or eating healthy, you should reevaluate your goals/path. This is also true for jobs that have exceptional risk/demands as your mental health is something that you cannot take for granted.
2) Time with young kids is invaluable, being present but not mentally present isn't fair to your kids. They would much rather live in a smaller house, public schools and have happy, engaged parents.
3) Accumulating money for what ? You need to have an end game, it's not like you're going to accumulate wealth and struggle and claw then all of the sudden kick your feet up. That is idealistic. As you accumulate, think about a second career, something you can do to earn income/stay competitive. If you have kids, they need to see you work and struggle to an extent so they learn it and able to do it in their lives.
4) Whatever number you set, it will change. Build a budget backwards and solve for optimal cash flow, not a number. When I started, really focusing on this at 30, I thought $5MM was enough.
5) Spend money on travel, and experiences with your kids. Doesn't have to be extravagant, but let them learn/see other cultures/living conditions.
I think almost everyone is seeking freedom of time/their day, that doesnt have to be exclusive to not working, find something that fills the day with a passion once you've hit your number.
6) Get the wife on board with the goal, this is easier said than done in a lot of instances. We try to do a quarterly review of spending and a nice dinner. Re-evaluate where each is on the plan an trajectory as being flexible is key.
To make the money to get there, you need to be prepared to suffer, do something most people do not want to do and assume a certain level of risk to get the payoff. I'm not sure there is a way around this. It is best to do this in your late 20's/30's if possible
Do you mind me asking where you and your wife were at around 33? What was the thinking that led you to set your goal at $300K/year in passive income?
Thanks for the tips and congratulations!
We are at 3 mill in this last stock run up (2.5 in the s&p 500 and 0.5 in my home). 38 yo with 3 kids. I still have no idea what the target number is. My goal is to give myself options in the future.
Looking back and we were right around $2MM at 33. My income has grown 3x since that time.
$300K was built off of some budgeting/forecasting work where we both sat down and discussed what we wanted flexibility to do and what we felt a budget was ex kids school/mortgage which would allow freedom. We settled on $25K a month. If we want/need more because we want to do something crazy, continue working in a lower stress role to supplement.
I do not expect to be able to completely stop working, my mind seems to struggle shutting off/being complacent. I know for sure I can stop doing my current profession/role. If I can leg out 2-3 more years in my role, I consider that a success.
$300K was built off of some budgeting/forecasting work where we both sat down and discussed what we wanted flexibility to do and what we felt a budget was ex kids school/mortgage which would allow freedom. We settled on $25K a month. If we want/need more because we want to do something crazy, continue working in a lower stress role to supplement.
I do not expect to be able to completely stop working, my mind seems to struggle shutting off/being complacent. I know for sure I can stop doing my current profession/role. If I can leg out 2-3 more years in my role, I consider that a success.
I'm another one who really appreciates this thread. 2022 and much of 2023 were rough on my retirement and investment accounts - to the point that I quit recording my progress (which I had done consistently for YEARS). I did spot-check, but I didn't put the totals in my spreadsheet because they were depressing.
But I never wavered with my saving, and even added mega backdoor Roth contributions this year, and things seem to finally be turning back around.
My personal investment account is finally back to what it was at the end of 2021. 401k, Roth, and HSA have grown because I kept contributing, and I've had some significant market gains the last few months.
2023 wasn't great for spending, but that's what happens when you put a kid in college. With scholarships and my dad paying the difference, he's on track to graduate debt-free (like I did), but he needed more money than just what he owed the school. Dad wasn't able to help like we expected, so it fell to me.
Single mom, one income (no divorce, so no divorce settlement), 45 years old, and I'm finally approaching $1.5, excluding home equity (I've been stalled around $1.3 for most of the last 2 years). Only debt is a mortgage.
Real estate transactions were never timed well enough to be able to make significant gains there, but I was fortunate to refinance to a super low interest rate 15 year mortgage that I'm half of the way through. Haven't had a car payment in over 3 years.
I have been more concerned about inflation this year (particularly groceries and insurance costs), and my property taxes are a losing battle, but I do feel very optimistic about the coming years.
I'm not one for resolutions, but I want to try to really cut back on personal spending this year. The older I get, the more I realize I just don't need more STUFF. I'm actually toying with the idea of no personal spending (other than necessities) for 2024 - I don't need more clothes, shoes, kitchen items, home decor, etc.
But I never wavered with my saving, and even added mega backdoor Roth contributions this year, and things seem to finally be turning back around.
My personal investment account is finally back to what it was at the end of 2021. 401k, Roth, and HSA have grown because I kept contributing, and I've had some significant market gains the last few months.
2023 wasn't great for spending, but that's what happens when you put a kid in college. With scholarships and my dad paying the difference, he's on track to graduate debt-free (like I did), but he needed more money than just what he owed the school. Dad wasn't able to help like we expected, so it fell to me.
Single mom, one income (no divorce, so no divorce settlement), 45 years old, and I'm finally approaching $1.5, excluding home equity (I've been stalled around $1.3 for most of the last 2 years). Only debt is a mortgage.
Real estate transactions were never timed well enough to be able to make significant gains there, but I was fortunate to refinance to a super low interest rate 15 year mortgage that I'm half of the way through. Haven't had a car payment in over 3 years.
I have been more concerned about inflation this year (particularly groceries and insurance costs), and my property taxes are a losing battle, but I do feel very optimistic about the coming years.
I'm not one for resolutions, but I want to try to really cut back on personal spending this year. The older I get, the more I realize I just don't need more STUFF. I'm actually toying with the idea of no personal spending (other than necessities) for 2024 - I don't need more clothes, shoes, kitchen items, home decor, etc.
chrisfield
Joined:
Sep 13, 2006
Posts:
12,337
User Profile
Private Message
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Sponsor
AG
TXTransplant said:
Single mom, one income (no divorce, so no divorce settlement), 45 years old, and I'm finally approaching $1.5 (I've been stalled around $1.3 for most of the last 2 years). Only debt is a mortgage.
This is honestly as impressive as anything else posted on this thread. I bet you're a great mom, too. You should be very proud.
Congrats on realizing you don't need more stuff. Once I got there about 10 years ago, I find I am happier and less stressed. I still buy a couple of things a year but I make sure I know they will make my life better/more enjoyable. My family stopped giving Christmas and Birthday gifts as well because we all realized there isn't anything they could give us other than their time that we would really enjoy.
We had the most outlier of outlier years in 2023 between large cash inflows and large outflows. The largest number we will likely ever see on the former and hopefully we never spend what we did on the latter again. All due to major life events (retirement, owning two homes and then consolidating to one and moving across state, new job).
Having said that, our cash inflow was still much greater than our cash outflow. We stayed cash heavy for much of the year due to the abnormal spend we were going to have and have started winding that down and putting back into equities or our bond ladder. Especially in light of the multiple rate forecasts planned for 2024. I do still plan to keep a relatively large number in cash equal to about 1.5 years of my salary. That is more than most, but this will be our first year on one income vs two incomes...ever.
We have no kids and right now our monthly budget for 2024 averages to about $17k per month. I think that's aggressive but it's our stretch goal. I expect us to ultimately come in around $20k per month, on average. Our largest spend group is Food & Drink by a good margin. We have historically spent gobs of money here but living in a small town now I expect that to drop. If it doesn't, we are doing something wrong.
Very happy to have "downsized" from two homes. We were no longer going to have the cash flow to support both come summer 2024 so our goal was to always sell by then and we got lucky and sold in October.
edit: also on the bandwagon of owning less stuff. While we have purchased quite a bit this year, we have also sold an enormous of number of things we simply do not need and will not use. We still have a full closet of corporate clothes we call our Department Store. You could outfit multiple rat racers with it. Still need to purge most of that.
We are on a minimalist kick. About the only thing I care about buying at this point are watches and books.
Having said that, our cash inflow was still much greater than our cash outflow. We stayed cash heavy for much of the year due to the abnormal spend we were going to have and have started winding that down and putting back into equities or our bond ladder. Especially in light of the multiple rate forecasts planned for 2024. I do still plan to keep a relatively large number in cash equal to about 1.5 years of my salary. That is more than most, but this will be our first year on one income vs two incomes...ever.
We have no kids and right now our monthly budget for 2024 averages to about $17k per month. I think that's aggressive but it's our stretch goal. I expect us to ultimately come in around $20k per month, on average. Our largest spend group is Food & Drink by a good margin. We have historically spent gobs of money here but living in a small town now I expect that to drop. If it doesn't, we are doing something wrong.
Very happy to have "downsized" from two homes. We were no longer going to have the cash flow to support both come summer 2024 so our goal was to always sell by then and we got lucky and sold in October.
edit: also on the bandwagon of owning less stuff. While we have purchased quite a bit this year, we have also sold an enormous of number of things we simply do not need and will not use. We still have a full closet of corporate clothes we call our Department Store. You could outfit multiple rat racers with it. Still need to purge most of that.
We are on a minimalist kick. About the only thing I care about buying at this point are watches and books.
chrisfield said:TXTransplant said:
Single mom, one income (no divorce, so no divorce settlement), 45 years old, and I'm finally approaching $1.5 (I've been stalled around $1.3 for most of the last 2 years). Only debt is a mortgage.
This is honestly as impressive as anything else posted on this thread. I bet you're a great mom, too. You should be very proud.
Thank you very, very much. I'll brag a minute that my son finished his first semester as a chemical engineering major with all As (including calculus and chemistry) and one B (in an honors elective/seminar class that he said the professor took WAY too seriously).
I'll be honest and say that I thought we were in the clear, but this transition has proven to be more challenging than I expected. He's needed some resources that have resulted in additional financial expenses. I'm just glad that I am fortunate enough to cover them without a second thought.
I feel your comment about the closet. Granted, I tend to keep things a really long time (I have items that are approaching 20 years old), but so much of it I never have a reason to wear anymore.
The dress code at work didn't formally change, but with WFH two days a week, people have really gone casual. If I do need to dress up, I need to just "shop" my closet.
I sent several bags of clothes with my son to consign at a store where he goes to school.
The dress code at work didn't formally change, but with WFH two days a week, people have really gone casual. If I do need to dress up, I need to just "shop" my closet.
I sent several bags of clothes with my son to consign at a store where he goes to school.
The sheer volume of clothing my wife has purged, yet still has, is one of the more perplexing things I've ever seen. Our closets at old house while walk-in were not large at all - original from 1970 about 3x5 feet. And yet about every two months in the two years leading up to our move she would somehow pull anywhere from 10-15 trash bags full of clothing out of it. I do not understand how that is possible. D&D nerd joke here: her closet was a "Holding Bag". A Holding Bag is a magical bag about the size of small grocery bag that has unlimited storage space.TXTransplant said:
I feel your comment about the closet. Granted, I tend to keep things a really long time (I have items that are approaching 20 years old), but so much of it I never have a reason to wear anymore.
The dress code at work didn't formally change, but with WFH two days a week, people have really gone casual. If I do need to dress up, I need to just "shop" my closet.
I sent several bags of clothes with my son to consign at a store where he goes to school.
Anyway, even after the hundreds of pounds of clothing we've donated our guest walk-in room closet at this house (which is probably 5x10 feet) is packed to the brim. I am vexed; terribly vexed.
Featured Stories
See All
19:50
23h ago
5.0k
Donors can now earn priority points by giving to Texas Aggies United
by Texas Aggies United
5 Thoughts: No. 23 Texas A&M 78, No. 21 Ohio State 64
by Luke Evangelist
A&M's approach remains the same with NMSU coming to Aggieland
by Olin Buchanan
116:42
3h ago
775
27:22
13h ago
4.0k