I learned of MMM 6 days ago and this is my first post in the forums so please be gentle =) Single and 29, I wish I had been more aware of personal finance independence sooner (had a different definition in my mind back then), but better late than never! Reading MMM’s articles and browsing through the Badassity posts really motivated and inspired me. Thanks to all for that.
In this post, I’d appreciate your suggestions on best achieving two goals:
1. Pay off student debt as quickly as possible (I read about the Harvard MBA who paid off 90k in debt in 7 months which was inspiring, but I also want to continue building an emergency fund in case work stumbles)
2. Build a positive net worth; then look to buy a place sometime down the line if that makes financial sense
Here’s my current financial situation:
* Debt: Student loan of $60k at 7% interest (it’s a lot at a high interest rate. Not looking to explore why this happened since there’s much family and personal history involved, but focusing on the present and future)
* Income: $75-80k/year pre-tax; ~$4100/month after tax and other deductions such as disability insurance
* Retirement account: $33k in Roth IRA, newly invested in index funds (after reading MMM articles)
* Savings accounts: $15k
* Investment accounts: $5k in stocks
* Other asset: 7-year old car; decided to not buy a newer one after finding MMM =)
Monthly expenses:
– Rent: $900 all inclusive (am lucky to find this deal in this major city. I have roommates)
– Gas: $150 (not within walkable distance to public transit)
– Grocery: $150
– Eating out/entertainment: $150 – this is a goal right now, since I’m on my week 1 of Mustachianism…
– Car insurance: $30
– Cell phone: $10 after some employer reimbursement
Other: Company doesn’t have 401k offering; I max out on the annual Roth IRA allowed contribution.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts and encouragements on my path to financial independence!
switch2richnow 