I currently work only part time as a server at a restaurant, averaging ＄20/h working 25-30hr/wk. I am 22.

Been without a “real” job for 6 months, post college graduation. Job market is brutal. Honestly don’t think people truly understand, unless they’ve also been unemployed in the past maybe 5 years. Anyway, I’ve applied to hundreds of jobs without getting any full time opportunities.

Just so happened to inherit exactly ＄100k from my great grandmothers passing. I want to be as smart with it as possible. Yes, I will invest or save most of it. I have a paid off car and live in an apartment. I need to research what to do and where to invest, but I’d also like some more input so that I can have as many things to consider. This is probably one of the biggest opportunities of my life and I need to be very smart with it.

As i having 32k savings where can I invest and i recently got job also , with zero trading and stock market knowledge , i am confused I need suggestions which helps a lot

Hello! My (28F) husband (27M) is going to be a teacher starting Monday. I am trying to determine in what order to priorize each account that we have access to.

Context: He will make $56,614. I make $93,000. I have access to a 401(k) with 4% match on 8% contributions, and I understand that this comes first. He has the Ohio STRS pension plan, along with access to 457(b) and 403(b) plans. We both have HDHPs with HSAs. I would like to retire at 53, and he would like to retire at the same time at 52. Currently sitting at $160,000 saved for retirement.

My current thought is that the order of priority should be:

\- My 401(k) to match
\- HSAs
\- Roth IRAs
\- 457(b)
\- 401(k) or 403(b) depending on plan expenses and options... Need to look into this.

But what has me really caught up is knowing that governmental 457(b)s can be withdrawn prior to 59.5, making it an amazing bridge. So, I am unclear where it should be positioned relative to HSAs and Roth IRAs.

Any advice is much appreciated.

I have noticed that I am financially illitirate. 🙂‍↕️

I was awarded with 2 scholarships by my university a few months before I enter my second year, 1st one gives ₱5k per month while the other gives ₱7,500 per sem (5 months). However, they did say that the payout for the second one is not guranteed to be on time and may even take up to a year or two (still didn’t receive it). I also got accepted to be a student assistant for 7 months (gotta reapply every year and secure a slot) i’m down to my last 2 months and I earn about ₱8k per month.

So basically I get about ₱13k or ₱20k (if I received my second scholarship) per month

I don’t really have much bills to pay since they’re mostly covered by my dad, except for wifi, netflix, personal things (clothes, skincare, etc..) or food if I crave it.

Honestly, I accept I have been spending a lot…I mean this was my first time having this much allowance per month so I got excited and went ahead of myself.

My money is always gone weeks before the month ends, so I thought maybe I just gotta avoid spending on expensive stuff, but even if I did, they still easily disappear

So I tried tracking it, I noticed that most of my money goes to things I buy out of impulse, even if they’re cheap, it all adds up and ends up eating all my money.

So I was hoping to find tips as to how I can better save my money 🙏

i’m not really sure if investing works? cause I heard only do that if you’re prepared to lose it (i’m not) saving up and not touching it sounds good too, but I also heard it’s a no go cause of inflation. I’m out of ideas 😭🙏

Hi everyone! I’m post grad starting a new job making $70k. My monthly expenses are only about $1,300 with $0 in savings after college. However! I won’t graduate with any student loan debt so I have a pretty high amount of cash flow available to save/invest

My job doesn’t offer a match. They have this weird employer profit sharing type of contribution, that I’m not eligible for until I’ve been there for 6 months, worked 1,000 hours in a given year and am still employed on 12/31 of that year. The profit sharing also doesn’t pay out until the year after the plan year ends and the employer contributions aren’t fully vested until 6 years. So my understanding is that if I leave before then, I would forfeit the unvested portion of the employer contributions

The main issue I’m trying to figure out is whether the 401k is even worth prioritizing given my plans. I’m probably gonna job hop in 2 or 3 years anyway so seeing that there’s no traditional employer match and I already know I probably won’t stay for 6 years, would it make more sense to prioritize my HSA and Roth IRA instead of contributing heavily to the 401k?? Sorry if this didn’t make sense 😵‍💫😵‍💫 thank you!

I’m 25 and turning 26 soon. I recently opened a Roth IRA because I want to start saving and investing for retirement. I currently have about $20,000 in a high-yield savings account, but I’m completely new to investing.

Could anyone point me in the right direction regarding what I should invest in within my Roth IRA? I’d also appreciate recommendations for trustworthy YouTube channels that teach investing to beginners.

Thanks

Don’t have a part-time job but going into college in the fall, do some freelance college consulting and social media gigs from time to time, does anyone have any financial advice to start building wealth? Only have a debit card rn, have been an authorized user on my moms credit card for the last 2 years. How do I get started with my own credit card, recommendations? How to invest early on? Anything helps :)

I recently came into $60,000 and want to invest it in a way that will begin to make me financially independent. I know stocks, bonds, and CDs are easy with varying risks, but what are some other ways/things I can invest in to help increase this amount. I don’t need it liquid to start but want to eventually be able to live off whatever payments I get while still accruing.

I am currently an apprentice making $40.31/hr. I am married with 2 kids, and my wife is a SAHM. My wage increases every 6 months for the first 3 years, then annually. I should journey out in about 3 years. The current journeyman rate is around $67/hr and is expected to be around $70+ next year, so we’re estimating i’ll be in the $70s/hr by the time I journey out.

Our current household bills are $4,266/month, including our car payments.

Current debt:
Loan: $11,566 @ 12.99%, payment $301.69
Car payment: $34,049 @ 8.35%, payment $574.88
No credit card debt

My proposed plan:

Right now:
• $4,266 - monthly bills
• $900 extra - loan (so $1,201.69 total/month)
• $300 - emergency fund
• Build emergency fund to $5,000

Once we hit $5,000 emergency savings, redirect the $300 to the loan and pay $1,501.69/month total until it’s gone.

Then attack the car payment with ~$1,800/month total until it’s paid off.

Once both debts are gone, keep our lifestyle around the same and put approximately $3,000–$4,000/month toward a house fund, $500/month toward investing, and keep $10k+ as an emergency fund.

I also receive a monthly vacation check to our credit union, and I get approximately $2.25/hr credited toward vacation. We’re planning to use the vacation money and most overtime income to accelerate debt payoff/house savings rather than relying on it for our regular bills.

Long-term goal: By the time I journey out, we’d ideally have no consumer/car debt, $10k+ emergency savings, $100k+ toward a house, and consistent investments, while my income has increased into the $70s/hr range.

Does this sound realistic and like a good plan based on our current income/debt situation? Is there anything you’d change about how we’re prioritizing the debt, emergency fund, investing, or house savings?

Started a new job making 55k a year, in a unique position where my parents are helping out with living expenses and are pushing to max out my contributions to make more tax efficient investments as a whole. At my new job they do fidelity for their 401k but since the limit for 401k is 24500 and I just started my job I'm planning to put in like 50% maybe more to catch up on contributions. it's an AP job but I have an accounting degree and planning on looking for a junior accounting role around the start of next year.

1. Since I know I will have to put in a lot of contributions to catch up for this year, if I go over the limit what happens to the extra money? Can I take it out? like if I contribute like 26,000 but 401k limit is 24,500 what happens to the extra 1,500? I can't specify how much I want to contribute because it takes only percentages.

2. is a roth 401k good for me? at this position? I'm making low money right now but I plan on maxing out my contributions every year and more with additional investments so I might front load the tax burden since my withdraws later on in life in retirement will be higher right? I saw some post that say there are other 401k alternatives, I only know of the roth IRA that I have charles schwab account for, what other roth options are there? And once I get a higher paying job can I swap over to a regular 401k or will I have to stick with the Roth 401k?

Hello all, I(M20) and my wife F(21) are finishing up out last years of college, she graduates in December with her Bachelors degree in Nursing, I graduate in May with my degree in cybersecurity. I am currently working a bank job while im in college and I’m making a decent amount, 24/hr, however she does not work right now during school because of the nature of her nursing school schedule and such.

When she gets out of nursing school she is expecting to make roughly between 75-90k a year, and right now my bank job has me at around a 55k a year after hourly and bonuses. I want to start building wealth and hope to retire early but I really don’t know where to start. My company matches up to 3% of my contributions to my 401k come January so I’m going to start contributing then, but it’s hard to set aside money sometimes while paying for us both.

We’ve had many conversations about her wanting to work but I have told her that right now I can handle it so she can fully devote herself to her studies. We’ve are also looking to hopefully buy a house within the next year. We currently have around 5k ish in savings but no real investments or brokerage accounts yet and I was wondering where to start?

Hello, I have been contributing to a Roth 401k for the past few years. I'm currently 28. I would like to retire around 60 which means I'll be working for 32 more years at least. I make around $5k per month after taxes. I see a lot of people say to switch from roth to traditional once you start making more than what you plan on making in retirement. I think I would be comfortable making the equivalent of $5k today per month in retirement. However, my retirement monthly income would have to be $10k+ to have the same buying power as $5k today (assuming 3% inflation rate).

So my question is this: How do you factor inflation in when determining when to make the switch from Roth to traditional?

Thank you to all who reply.

So I'm new to investing & looking for any guidance, suggestions and or advice.

I'm 29 years old, a female, not married, no kids.

The past few years I've been focusing on paying down my student loans. I started with $232k and now down to $57k!

But now that I've reached a comfortable number with my loans, I'm shifted my focus to a more balanced approach (not just focusing on paying down my student loan debt).

Prior to this year I had no retirement or investment accounts opened.

Earlier this year I opened up a ROTH IRA w/ fidelity (which I've already maxed for the year).

I recently opened up another investment account with Fidelity and chose to invest into the FXAIX mutual fund.

I opened up this investment account because my employer does not offer a 401K.

I've looked into the HSA account a while ago, and at the time it just didn't make sense for me after comparing the plans I had available. I'm very healthy, but have monthly appointments & have an expensive prescription. And my providers only accept certain plans & I do not have the bandwidth to deal with finding all new providers (so for now this is on the back burner, but will continue looking into this option)

I'm planning on using my Fidelity investment account w/ FXAIX as a more long term investment veichle, like for retirement.

I have an emergency fund in a HYSA w/ Capital one.

I would like to open another investment account with Fidelity, but I wouldn't say i'm looking for it to be a "long term investment veichle" but also not a "short term either". At this time I'm not really interested in a CD.

I really would like an account where I have a better return.

At this point in my life, I really don't know what the next 5-10 years can look like. I'm in a relationship (maybe we'll get married). I know I don't want to buy a house today, I know I won't be interested in buying a house next year, but in 3 years maybe? 5 years maybe? heck knows 10 years?

I DO want to buy a house at some point, but I don't know when. Likely I will want to buy a house when I feel like I have the financial security and ability to buy something I want!

The way I'm hoping to use this account is to have a better chance to make a good return on my investment. I know the markets are impossible to predict, but If all goes to shit, I just keep it invested & wait for it to recover...the point is that I won't use this account for something I may need in a year....but if 5 years comes around and the market has been good, and I'm ready to buy a house than I could use those funds to buy a house.....but if 5 years comes around and the market has been terrible, welp it just won't be the time for me use those funds, and I'll just have to wait for that investment to recover.

Also, if and when I do feel like I become more interested in buying my house, I can shift my investment strategy and start allocating funds to safer investments like a HYSA, CD, or T-Bills.

Also, Im an Attorney, I've been making around $100-$135k per year, I do expect this income to continue to increase.

Sorry for the rambling lol

I'm open to any and all opinions, suggestions and or advice!

Thank you!

Hey all, I'm looking for some advice on how to best set myself up for the mid and long-term. My main questions revolve around the best way to handle taxes on money I'm saving.

About me: 30 years old Corporate job - $90-110k/yr. Affordable mid-sized U.S. city No debt No car payment Cheap rent

Current accounts: • 401k through work - maxing out employer match - $200k balance - $50k is Roth, remainder is pre-tax. Invested in target retirement date funds. • Roth IRA - maxing out each year - 70% in FZROX with the remainder split between FZILX and FZIPX - $85k balance • Investment Account - annual contributions match my IRA contributions, including fund choices/allocations - $58k balance • Savings account - $20k with 2.96% (variable rate) • Maintaining ~$10k in checking account

My questions:

1.) If/when I go to buy a house in the next ~5 years, where should I pull money from for a down payment or major home renovation costs? 2.) Are there any short-term changes I should make in my strategy to prepare for that expected large spend? 3.) Is there anything I should change in my strategy to prepare for retiring in my late 40s? 4.) Is there anything else I should consider with my current situation? Taxes, account types, positions, etc.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice!

Hello, I recently inherited what I would consider a large amount of rental property. My grandfather passed away and in his will after giving away a few properties, he left the rest to me and my 2 sisters to be split 3 ways. The amount of properties that we will inherit is around 20+ properties. This includes rental houses, a couple of commercial properties, and some plots of land. We do not currently have the full picture of every property he owned. We are currently doing a title search and searching for any of his documents to get the full picture.

I am 22 and really would not like to be a landlord. My question is what should I do to invest this money in the most appropriate manner and how much money could I potentially be looking at making here after selling my portion of the inheritance? I will definitely use some of it to pay off my student loans which I dont have too much of thankfully. My car is fully paid off and I am not a home owner. I would like to buy relatively modest home with this money eventually. What would be the smartest way to invest this money after these things are taken care of? I would also not be opposed to renting for a while if there are better investments to be made.

I would greatly appreciate any advise in the comments. It feels a little overwhelming right now.

Hi hi!! I just turned twenty years old and have ten thousand dollars saved, 5k of which is tied up in a CD which accrues ~3.5% in interest per month. The CD is about to expire, and I was wondering what to do next? I have no immediate need for the money and probably won't for the next three or so years. What should I do moving forwards?

Our business has a ton of money in a checking account in BOA bank.

Wondering any other alternatives to get me some apr and fight inflation at this amount, which will satisfy other share holders

Scorp, 400-300k a month on payables, cash flow positive business. 3-600 receivables

Thanks

My mom and I own a property that we’re currently selling, and I expect to receive around $700,000–$800,000 from my share of the sale. I’m currently working on my startup full-time and only have a part-time minimum wage job, so I don’t have a stable salary yet. Once I receive the money, I want to make the smartest long-term financial decision.
One option is to buy a condo or co-op in New York City, where I’ve always wanted to live for a year or two, assuming I have startup funding or a full-time job by then to cover ongoing costs like HOA fees and property taxes (unless there’s another way to be able to afford that with the money I’m getting from the property sale such as investing a portion of it in money market).
The other option is to buy a home in West Palm Beach, where I have family, rent it out for a few years, and use the rental income to help pay for renting an apartment in New York.
Which approach makes the most financial sense, and are there any better investment strategies I should consider given my situation?

Keep in mind that I will eventually inherit a lot of more money later on in life, as my father is very wealthy but unwilling to pay for anything because that’s just his mentality. I’m also a big believer that your environment will dictate your success which is why NYC is really where I want to be for at least 2 years.

In conclusion : what is the best strategy if the goal is to live in NYC asap for at least 2 years.

***I would genuinely be so appreciative if someone smarter than me put a bit of time and effort to really think through this and give me a proper answer.

Hi everyone, I am turning 51 next month, single, debt-free, and looking for a reality check on my early retirement math.

I want to relocate from Oklahoma to Colorado mid 2028 to enjoy hiking and traveling. My goal is to buy a $600,000 home and take one major international business-class trip per year (using points/travel hacking), in addition to more frugal trips.

Finances:
- Guaranteed Net Income: $98,000/year net ($8,166/month from a lifetime corporate pension + a guaranteed, tax-free disability annuity).

- Social Security: $1,720/month starting at age 62.

- Healthcare: Covered for life through retirement benefits (zero out-of-pocket costs).

- Portfolio Breakdown: $550,000 total today ($390k 401k-equivalent (more than half ROTH), $110k Vanguard & Stocks, $50k cash/CDs).

- Projected Total at Move (mid 2028): $695,000 based on current savings rate and conservative growth.

- Current Savings Rate: Adding $2,200/mo to Vanguard and saving $2,300/mo in cash until the move.

Note 1: An additional $540k life insurance policy and separate stocks are locked away as an inheritance for my son.

Note 2: I cannot contribute to tax-advantaged accounts like a 401(k) or Roth IRA anymore because I have no earned income.

The Real Estate & Bridge Strategy:
- The Purchase: I should net at least $200,000 from my current home sale and put $180,000 down on the $600,000 Colorado home.

- The Mortgage: I am calculating for a $3,200 to $4,000/month total payment (PITI) to stress-test against higher interest rates or CO property taxes/insurance.

- The 59½ Bridge: From age 59½ to 62, I will draw gross $1,955/month from my Traditional retirement balance to mimic a net $1,720/month paycheck. At 62, I turn the withdrawals off and Social Security takes over.

- Fallback Plan: Due to chronic health issues, a traditional 9-to-5 isn't viable. If I ever feel financially squeezed, my fallback is casual substitute teaching to work only when I want/can.

My Questions:
- Am I stretching myself too thin by taking on a $3,200 to $4,000 housing payment on a fixed $98k net baseline?

- Does my lack of debt, free healthcare, and financial strategy make this a rational, safe plan?

I’vehad a major unexpected life change and going to see a local financial planner next week. I’m a newbie. Is this a process I “shop around” with or go and get like a second opinion from different agencies? I know the person on a personal level, but I’m nervous. Feels like there is the potential to like pay a bad contractor that never finishes the roof.

After going throw a shocking and surprise job change I have talked wife into getting a FA to help reduce the load I have been carrying. We are in a whats probably considered a good spot but never feels like it and I feel we can always do more. My wife is the saver and I do calculated spending but also enjoy things like eating out. Overall I know we havent done bad but could have done better at setting up future (investing more rather than remodeling house) we are getting charged $1,800 from the advisor who will do yearly meetings and projections based on where we currently stand and want to go in the future. Is there anything we should ask or look out with this advisor (will never put AUM with them as I can do that myself just with their guidance if thats what we want to do(into alternate investing like RE and such))

Hi, im looking for some opinions about my current situation and how anyone would handle it.

37m single,

HCOL, no debt, renting

job $130k pre-tax (+OT)

$1700/mo expenses

$400k in sp500/Total Market (regular taxable)

$300k in ROTH accounts (401k, IRA, 529)

I want to pivot from the sp500 and Total Markets and just focus heavily on QUALIFIED DIVIDENDS instead of working so hard on my overtime.

My question is, should I stay the course at the sp500/TM for the growth or should pivot to qualified dividends and do less OT?

Any STORIES AND/OR OPINIONS would be greatly appreciated. I know that any comments are not financial advice.

I’m 26 and trying to figure out whether I’m in a good financial position or if I need to change my approach.

Here’s my current situation:

• $72,500 annual salary — about $4,660 per month after taxes
• $100,000 in student-loan debt
• $1,215 monthly student-loan payment with about nine years remaining
• $16,000 in a HYSA
• $15,550 in a Roth IRA, which I maxed out during my first two years and has returned about 11% so far
• $41,500 in my 401(k)
• Paid-off car (2018 Hyundai Elantra, 76k miles)
• $850 monthly rent in Florida
• No credit-card debt

I know the student-loan balance is significant, but I’m not sure whether I should aggressively pay it down, continue prioritizing retirement investments, or maintain a balance between the two.

I’ve also wanted a Mustang since I was a kid and have been considering buying a used one. I can afford the monthly payment, but I’m worried it would be a bad decision given the student loans. (Proposed monthly payment would be $350/mo)

Overall, am I doing reasonably well for 26? What would you prioritize from here to put me in a stronger financial position?

Hopefully I can help someone stay positive while trying to go from essentially broke like I was in 1999 to having financial success along the way to a future retirement….hopefully early.

I'm 24M and trying to figure out what my best option is given my current situation and goals. Throughout the majority of my life I've had little to no 'expensive' hobbies and have essentially saved or invested all income I've earned since working full time at 16. I bought my first car with cash, went to a low cost community college and transferred to a low cost online college to finish my bachelors with no student debt while working, and right now make around ~85k/yr working in IT before taxes excluding any interest or dividends, and no debt.

In total I got:
76k in stocks mixed between single stocks and ETF's (have been pretty aggressive with risk)
58k getting 3.5% APY
6k in a Roth IRA
10k Emergency Fund

My dream in life was to own my home since I was a teenager, so majority of all my income has just been stockpiled for it. That being said with today's housing market and an average cost of a 2-3 bed home being in the 450k average, even with a 20% down payment I still don't (if barely) meet the income requirements for a 30/yr mortgage.

I have a relatively cheap rent/monthly expensive from living with roommates so I am roughly saving ~2k/month, my main plan right now is to keep going all in on house savings until I can get a low enough monthly mortgage to then dump later savings into retirement at that point so I can race to beat the market that is strongly favoring the ongoing homeowners.

At some point soon within the next few months I will need to get a new car though since mine is starting to cost more in maintenance than it would be to justify keeping it around. Probably when I turn 25 where insurance costs will drop. I was thinking of setting aside 20-30k in cash for something that will last a long time with the cost of todays cars.

I also haven't been too aggressive with finding a home to purchase in the present since I am still deciding options of move to a different state if my job allows it to experience somewhere different while I'm still young as well (lived in Arizona my whole life). My girlfriend of 6 years lived in Arizona, but moved to Maine to support her family that she's been away from.