re: Setting yourself up early financially

Doesn't it have be a lot, I'm starting my first real job at 24 next month I've put 10k in a Roth over the last 3 years.

Haven't missed a dime of that money.

You're so young, swing for the fences

1. buy multiple penny stocks and hope one booms and you get rich
2. do an MLM, build your team wisely
3. leveraged options trading makes people rich too

In all seriousness, you're young, save up, but focus on having fun. If you wanna put a few $k away do it, but you're so far away from retirement assuming you want a normal career and retirement that you should just be enjoying your life and living below your means. Save up what you can and plenty of good opportunities will arise, stocks are a great investment once you have all your ducks in a row: career,housing,car,student loans, etc.

Got pulled away today at work but so far thanks everyone.

I have a newer car (parents pay, thanks mom and dad, yep "spoiled".

Have student loan ready to pay off, only to build the credit a little. Small loan but I have a scholarship for college.

I usually save okay.

One poster mentioned even only fifty dollars a month in a Roth? Any further thoughts on that? I can very easily do a small amount like that, anywhere from 100-150 a month if it would actually be worth the time.

Ok edit: read the second page. More mentions of the Roth. I wouldn't take that extremely seriously

Thanks every body

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One poster mentioned even only fifty dollars a month in a Roth? Any further thoughts on that? I can very easily do a small amount like that, anywhere from 100-150 a month if it would actually be worth the time.

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You have to consider where you open your Roth IRA as well. Some companies will require a minimum payment to activate an account, so you might pay say $3000 to open your Roth then $50 ever month after.

save as much into a roth as you can. after you match 401k

Put at least 93% of your salary into retirement plans every year. You should have plenty left over to pay for your mortgage and every other monthly and daily expense.

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One poster mentioned even only fifty dollars a month in a Roth? Any further thoughts on that? I can very easily do a small amount like that, anywhere from 100-150 a month if it would actually be worth the time

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When I started working after college my employer offered a 401K with employer matching, I did not think I could afford to put in enough to get the full employer matching funds so only made a small contribution for the first year. After that, whenever I got a raise I upped my contribution into the 401K to equal whatever percentage the raise was. I was already living OK without the raise so I didn't really miss it. After a few years of doing this I had maxed out my contribution limit. It was just a mental trick to help me invest, the same mindset could also be used today with a Roth,

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2. Delayed gratification. The single biggest factor in spending, especially for a young person, is the difficulty in delaying gratification. The purchase often fuels the same centers of the brain as addiction. You should be spending money on experiences, rather than things, anyway. As you normally have to plan and budget "experiences" more so than impulse purchases, you generally get into less trouble (although you can spend too much on experiences, too)

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The are articles about how people enjoy the anticipation of a big purchase more than the actual purchase itself. So, enjoy the anticipation and save money.

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The are articles about how people enjoy the anticipation of a big purchase more than the actual purchase itself. So, enjoy the anticipation and save money.

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A guy I work with has been talking himself into buying some ridiculous car for the last year now it seems. To him it's just a dream. He is driving a truck that he paid off 5 years ago. He could easily buy an 80K car cash and he doesn't. He loves thinking about it though.

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He could easily buy an 80K car cash and he doesn't. He loves thinking about it though.

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That's the real fun of buying a powerball ticket when the jackpot hits 9 figures - all the fantasies about what to do with the money. That's almost as good as winning....almost.