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Those are two words (federal heath care and pension) that usually equal that you have it made. Congrats. OK, four words. Lol
Right. The years of cash is basically paying for peace of mind. Which is fine of course if that’s your choice.
#2 is exactly what I'm doing, and it seems way easier than tracking all my receipts in a spreadsheet. I took our income and just subtracted out our annual retirement savings. I figure we are spending everything else, so that's my "spend." That "spend" includes setting some money aside for inevitable home repairs, new cars, helping out the kids, etc. In other words, it includes short- and medium-run savings goals, just not retirement.
You and me both. I'm glad to finally start drawing down that 529. I've been looking at that thing for 15 years. Feels like a mini-retirement.
I only had about 2 years saved up so I'm trying to skim some out of my month to month so I can spread the 529 over the 4 years
I don't think I have even that much. Once ibonds became attractive, switched to that and then once they went down, just moved that over to a mma. The 529 should last about 1.5 years. I'm just clearing that out so I can be done with it. Then the mma is next. Finally it will be the brokerage account.
That’s how I look at it. We don’t make $650k, but not having college payments, not taking out max for 401ks, lower tax rate, hopefully not spending as much per kid, etc. puts our necessary income much lower than current income. I probably won’t need this but I’d love to get to $150-200k per year. Honestly, it’s going to depend on exactly what our profit is from selling our current house and how much our lake house will be. Ideally, we have no mortgage but I can’t see the future. We may end up selling the house sooner and get a small place a bit closer to where we’d be building. Housing costs would actually go down (property taxes, insurance, utilities…) and probably profit a bit on the equity.
Yeah, I wish we put way more in the 529, but my wife wasn’t working for 12 or so years so that really squeezed us with 3 kids and a nice house/newer cars. 529 didn’t last long for first one out of state. Luckily, she more than made up for it (she’ll be my sugar daddy, I hope!) but we’re a couple months from being 6 years out of 12 paid. Next two years will be a bit tougher since we’ll have 2 at once. We’ve been able to handle it with our current income so hoping that continues. Last one is very money conscious and got the best grades/SATs/activities so far so crossing fingers that he gets some nice offers. I’ll make him the same promise as my middle son. If he goes in state, he won’t have to take out loans. Oldest has a small (comparatively) loan balance but he went out of state and scholarships didn’t cover the full difference. He’s doing great on his own so far so the $200 a month is no problem at all.
One of the more interesting factors for us, at least right now, is that we are reaching the end of what either of us can stomach in the job in exchange for the very high cash comp.
In the middle of it and the mental drain has been much worse that I ever figured. First it was buying the retirement property, I thought once that was done it would be a huge relief. Getting contractors in to do repairs that needed to be done. Then it was moving all our stuff 2000 miles across the country, worrying about that and somehow getting the movers in and getting it done just before Hurricane Helene hit. We've got missing and damaged stuff, but, not irreplaceable. Now we're ahead of schedule living on an air mattress at our old home we're trying to sell, but, haven't had much luck and are going to lower the price today. Still working, they want me to stay to the end of the year and I need to officially be an employee January first, but, I have enough vacation time stocked up to get me to February 1st (extra month of company insurance). Hoping the house sells, figuring out how to peel away from work into vacation days and someday loading the dogs and wife into the trailer to make the final journey across country. Ugh. Plus there are a series of financial decisions I need to make and execute correctly at the end/beginning of the year.
I always found time limited items like this to be somewhat palatable as you know there is a distinct end date. Still, it sucks.
I'm definitely not in a forever home, but moving is teh suck so we will be here for a while longer.
Our garage door spring just snapped and needed to be replaced.
Yeah, we’re moving when the youngest graduates HS. I’m looking forward to the new place, but definitely not the move!
How many cycles you thinking?
I feel that. Our first real move, from Phenix City, AL to Kansas was like that. We lived in a hotel for a month with two dogs. No kids at that point. We were also “homeless” for 7 months when we left Kansas for Fort Campbell, KY, while I spent 4 of those months in a hotel in Charlottesville, my wife and our oldest two, 2 and 4 years old, spent the whole time in her parents guest room. (Yeah, she’s a saint)
That's about what we have dialed in. We probably spend just less than $150k today which feels quite fancy yet includes items like day care and a car note (at least as long as the tax adjusted yield of short term instruments > auto loan rate) that are not really part of a longer term plan.
Yeah I mean we went through and did it with mortgage payment, saving for a car each year to buy one/5 years (alternating, so we keep a car for ten years), kid stuff, normal eating out, etc...and we got to like 90. So then we added in at least one month long fancy vacation, a few more weekend or week long trips, a huge wine budget, and monthly couples massages, and we added like 50% to the food bills to allow for buying like prime instead of choice and stuff...and we still barely got it to like $150k.
Kids must be/are they expensive? We have 2 two week vacations included and a 10K expenditure (new furnace, furniture, remodel) figured in and we're still at 100K.
During our go go years, I fully plan on spending $15k monthly or more (adjusted for inflation). We’ve put off international or even long distance travel until then. But I don’t plan on being home more than half the year during our first decade. Things can change of course.
Yes, kids are expensive. Not counting the vehicle purchase we’re close to $140k this year in expenses. Of course that’s 5 kids but they don’t have travel sports or anything else that costs that much. This does include five vacations
We moved to our new house (same town) in 2018. This was moving out of our "starter house" (lol) that we bought in 1999. That process sucked, no doubt. Just staging the house was a huge PIA, and throwing out all the crap we had accumulated took us several weekends. That was not fun at all.
Yeah, and we're conservative about estimates. But like full time child care is ~$500/week/kid. Then that mostly goes away when kindergarten starts or if one of us stays at home...but then it's replaced with sports teams, clubs, scouts, activity xyz, lessons lmnop, etc. And if we're planning on helping with college, etc...probably targeting $150k each by the time they're 18 (the sooner you stat the saving, the less you save because compounding, yay!).
How much did y'all move growing up? We're coming up on 5 years in our house and I'm super antsy to move again, but I moved every ~4 years growing up and then college, then grad school, then wife's grad school...this is about to be the longest I've ever been in one spot.
It's almost like there is a whole industry whose mission is "this is too complicated for your wittle head. Just give us the money and trust us. "
My parents still live in the same house they built about two years after I was born. My dad was a farmer, and their house shares property with some grain bins and an old (no longer functional) seed plant, so they just stayed there. My sister and I will liquidate it when the time comes.
My parents named me their executor. My mom passed away a few years ago, so when my dad goes I'll have to figure all of this out. I had the thought that I'll just hire a lawyer to tell me everything to do and take it out of my share, but no idea if that's needed. My dad currently lives really close to me, but I think he plans on moving in the next few years so I might be in the same boat as you having to deal with this in another state.
I totally get that and you definitely should travel a ton. I don't really budget specifically travel though because it is so easy to pay for it out of earned rewards on credit cards and other tricks. I do track within my budget which categories are spent on card and what rates can be achieved. Get that it isn't for everyone.
I hear you, but I suggest doing strenuous travel earlier if you can. You stack up trips to take for your go-go years and you can run out of time and health. Just got back from Greece and saw many people who I bet wished they were scaling steps at the Acropolis or Lycabettus Hill a decade earlier. Many were struggling.
I'm like your parents, except I only have about 1/2 my money with the advisor. AUM and # of funds are similar, and rates of return are just average. He's doing backdoor Roth's, entree into some pre-IPO's (SpaceX), etc. Also will do tax harvesting but don't have much in my taxable accounts with him. I need to get educated enough to do all and then just shift to a bucket Vanguard approach. I know I'd get higher returns. Doing OK but I know I could be doing better
Easiest way is to have them sign over power of attorney. My brother had my mom do that a couple years before she passed, he was making all the decisions for her anyway. We were lucky that he still lived in the same town as her though.
Start by reading All About Asset Allocation by Richard Ferri. That will give you enough confidence to do it.
Good advice for most people, but this is OZ.
And those old European cities are not ADA compliant. It's really not easy to get around if you are not mobile. All of those cities are meant to be walked.
I’d like to. But with family, It’sa whole lot more affordable to drive places.
That seems like a lot of credit purchases. You go to Greece with the judge?
Lol.... 3 vacations and everything goes on the card. Car insurance is on it, cable, medical visits, tolls. I only have one card. That's pretty much ALL my expenses including entertainment
