Morning all, looking for some direction/guidance/suggestions from the board on what my wife and I should be doing differently financially to help ensure a great future for us and our children. I know that's a very broad target, but my thoughts are a steady income in an early retirement and setting a foundation for our kids to do the same. Neither of our parents really talk finances too much. I try to have discussions with friends and coworkers (just big picture, no specifics), but nobody really seems comfortable discussing.
Some info below that should paint a picture of where we're at now.
What we're doing for our one (currently) kid:
I've always tracked my finances very thoroughly. My current excel sheet goes back over 5 years with account balances updated every pay period. However, I had some discipline issues and came into our marriage with a decent amount of CC debt from toys and travel. On the other hand, my wife never really tracked anything but was extremely disciplined. After the birth of our first son last year, it really motivated us to get things squared away because I want to be able to spend as much time with family as possible and not feel like I'm forever tied to work. We started with Dave Ramsey, but kinda broke off at the whole pay off your mortgage before any investing over 15%.
My goal is to retire around 50 with a target of $2.5mil invested. Nothing scientific about this number, I've just based it off the 25x rule and feel $100k annual income would be very comfortable.
The big things we have coming up are:
That wound up being a lot more than I intended. I appreciate any feedback.
Some info below that should paint a picture of where we're at now.
- Both 30yo
- Both employed, combined income between $150k-200k
- Only debt is one vehicle and home.
- Reasonable mortgage (1500sf house <4% loan), about $100k equity in home.
- Fully funded emergency account (5 months) in Ally "high interest" savings (3.4%)
- I have always contributed to 401k to max employer match, but current employer does not offer.
- Wife has 401k, we plan on maxxing this year. Dialing the contribution up every month.
- Both have Roth IRAs with automatic monthly contributions set to max at $6,500/ea.
- Any bonuses will go into brokerage account.
- Pretty much everything invested in S&P 500 index funds.
What we're doing for our one (currently) kid:
- 529b with automatic $250/month contributions. Invested in Fidelity 2040 target fund.
- Custodial brokerage account with same monthly contribution. Invested in S&P 500 index fund.
I've always tracked my finances very thoroughly. My current excel sheet goes back over 5 years with account balances updated every pay period. However, I had some discipline issues and came into our marriage with a decent amount of CC debt from toys and travel. On the other hand, my wife never really tracked anything but was extremely disciplined. After the birth of our first son last year, it really motivated us to get things squared away because I want to be able to spend as much time with family as possible and not feel like I'm forever tied to work. We started with Dave Ramsey, but kinda broke off at the whole pay off your mortgage before any investing over 15%.
My goal is to retire around 50 with a target of $2.5mil invested. Nothing scientific about this number, I've just based it off the 25x rule and feel $100k annual income would be very comfortable.
The big things we have coming up are:
- Childcare for our son. Grandma is getting a little old to watch him four days a week, so we're looking into other options, including my wife quitting her job. That would obviously have major impacts on our finances, but we both want what is best for him.
- A second child. Further pushes us to wife staying home.
- Moving. Really wanting to buy some land and build a house outside of town. We could "afford" it, but I hate seeing it push my retirement projections back.
That wound up being a lot more than I intended. I appreciate any feedback.