Early 30s with Money: Now what?!

[michael1981]

@srla That's a lot sitting in a savings account, as others mentioned you may want to use it to invest - I'm personally wary of rental investments, but others are diving into that. You could pay down your mortgage and you'd get a higher return of 3.75% vs. 1% you're currently receiving from your savings account. Other types of investments like stocks tend to return more than either of those options but have higher risks, you'll typically want to hold at least 3-6 months of emergency funds. And with the stocks you could invest it in 401k, IRA, or taxable brokerage accounts.

 

[cheryl6397]

@srla You don't know what you want, and you want us to tell you what to do? Why are you amassing cash? It's not being used productively.

 

[srla]

@cheryl6397 ....that’s my question. I’m amassing cash because we don’t know what how to use it productively. How do I use it productively?

 

[cheryl6397]

@srla I can't tell you what to do, but other people invest in stocks, buy rental properties, pay off their mortgage early, start a business, loan money to others. There are probably many more ways, these are just the most common ones that come to my mind. Keeping money in cash for a long time is likely one of the worst options.

 

[islandbear]

@srla Stop spending so much and save until you can retire early.

 

[gracegrecia371]

@srla I am in my early 30s with personal finances almost exactly like your household (bit more income, bit less savings but everything else ties).

My advice: spend on your career. Go get drinks with your boss once a week. Another night for coworkers. And once a month a family dinner with professional connections. Buy all the household/life maintenance you need to make this happen. I'm talking maid service, dry cleaning, personal shopper - anything to free up you evening for career growth. Do you get enough sleep? Get a really high quality bed. Do a sleep study. Get your home smart enough to do gradual light and temperature change in the morning. You'll also need to be attractive: get a personal trainer if you need it. Lasik if you have poor vision. You see where all this is going?

At your income you are at the inflection point of a career. You'll either stagnate there or double your income a few times in the next decade. And it will mostly depend on weather people like you and talk about you favorably even when you aren't in the room.

 

[arda6297]

@gracegrecia371 Wtf

 

[afro8]

@gracegrecia371 I’m horrified.

 

[srla]

@gracegrecia371 Good one.

 

[kano71]

@srla Based on your simplicity when it comes to dealing with money, and opposing points of view between you and your husband I would look into Dave Ramsey. Not really that helpful since you don’t have a lot of debt. But he will get you investing, saving and handling money.
But honestly that car loan could be paid off with savings and then max our retirement, and kids college!

 

[collegemoderate]

@srla You should definitely look in MPI. There are no limit on contributions and produces 4X more income than any 401k or Roth IRA and isn't vulnerable during down markets (like corona).

 

[resjudicata]

@collegemoderate That’s very gimicky

 

[collegemoderate]

Here's a video: