Money in my 20s, specifically late 20s was plentiful. I graduated at 26 with a professional degree and I was lucky enough to get employed in a company that was just starting up and it took off and took me with it.
I didn't respect money much then. I assumed it would continue to flow to me and made no effort to save anything. It wasn't until I was 2 hairs away from maxing out my $25K line of credit (only took 1 1/2 yr of living it up) did I stop and smartened up.
The only wise thing I did do back then was go back to school (Masters) full time (academics was easy for me) in order to take advantage of a government program which allowed me to pay off my loans interest free. I managed to pay off my loans in the same time frame it took me to rack up my line of credit.
Never did I grumble about it because I was and still am so grateful for the loan. Otherwise there would have been no way I could have gone on to grad school. My family couldn't afford to help me out with educational costs.
Money in my 30s got harder. Somewhere near the middle of them, I burned out from working like a fiend. The funny thing was that I didn't know I was burning out or even could burn out. I just felt tired and angry and depressed. I thought I just needed to get in better shape. Never did it dawn on me it could be mental/emotional.
I still made a lot of money and I would say I peaked in my mid 30s in terms of income but I was unhappy. Those early years where I was in the invincible honeymoon phase were a distance memory. Almost everything was starting to or already was bothering me. I no longer wanted what I had.
And I can tell you, those kind of feelings eat up a lot of energy. And because I am a professional, I never let it show and as I used up my extra stores of energy to keep going, I slid further and further down in mood. I didn't care about how much money I made anymore. I wanted to quit and take time for myself.
It was in my 30s my current lifestyle plans came to be. I got serious about designing my life and taking steps to make it happen. I slashed my work hours so I had a chance to slow down to hear myself think.
As I start my 40th year, I'm working part time and slowly starting to appreciate what all those mortgage payments and prepayments have allowed me to do. All that hiking, swimming, skiing, travelling etc I wanted as part of my life is now available. I just need the energy to do it all.
Money from my mid 40s to 50s to retirement will be mostly on autopilot. Savings will be fairly easy as we intend to be mortgage free soon, hopefully making up for lost time. And if I continue to work, what I describe now will be "my retirement". D plans to work until his mid 50s and at that point consider contract work.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Money in Your 20s/30s/40s/50s/Retirement, see womensmoneyweek.com.
I would like to Thank Elizabeth Sanberg, Wise Bread writer and co-founder of GoGreenTravelGreen.com and Jackie Beck, MoneyCrush.com for the invitation to participate in WMW 2012.
This is my last post in the series but the week is not over. There are 2 more days of great topics so head on over to read more.
Showing posts with label carnivals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label carnivals. Show all posts
Friday, March 9, 2012
Thursday, March 8, 2012
WMW 2012 -- Budgeting
My husband D and I have differing styles of money management. He is more a "live for today" type of person favoring small luxuries whereas I prefer delayed larger goals such as overseas travel and real estate.
In order to reach our goals of multiple home ownership and quick mortgage pay down, we were pretty brutal to ourselves for a number of years -- ie. $20 a month allowance etc.
I manage the money for our household. My husband knows about everything and would be able to take over but he prefers I deal with things on a day to day basis.
Of course there is a cost to him for handing over the reigns like that. I'm more extreme than he is with respect to money management.
It was I who decided to go for a short amortization on our mortgages (12 yr or less). It was I who slashed and cut out vacations for a few years. And it was I who decided to max out our yearly allowable mortgage pre-payments.
I would be lying if I said this was an easy job. Who enjoys being "the bad guy"? I've warped it into a full time job as I am a control freak and like to account for every penny and (still) hate it when monetary surprises crop up.
Neither of us wish to live those uber tight days again as I still (and I'm sure D does too) have some mental scars from the whole ordeal. However by adopting some lean behaviours, we were able to have 9 yr or less in our various property mortgage amortizations.
Don't get me wrong. Every penny is still accounted for. The difference now is half my income can afford to be spending money. This was in part made possible when D started a job with a defined benefit pension plan as well as being at the tail end of mortgage debt.
Over the years we've been together I've learned to enjoy the lattes and D has experienced the feeling of having large goals actualized -- Something he had never bothered to strive for as he thought them too reachable.
I wouldn't necessarily recommend people follow our extreme ways. It was at many times a very unhealthy way to reach our goal of a healthy, sustainable and balanced life. I lost sight of forest while getting all caught up in the "pay things down in the fastest time" game.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Budgeting, see womensmoneyweek.com.
This was supposed to be my last post in the series but I found time to participate once more tomorrow! The topic will be Money in Your 20s/30/40s/50s/Retirement.
In order to reach our goals of multiple home ownership and quick mortgage pay down, we were pretty brutal to ourselves for a number of years -- ie. $20 a month allowance etc.
I manage the money for our household. My husband knows about everything and would be able to take over but he prefers I deal with things on a day to day basis.
Of course there is a cost to him for handing over the reigns like that. I'm more extreme than he is with respect to money management.
It was I who decided to go for a short amortization on our mortgages (12 yr or less). It was I who slashed and cut out vacations for a few years. And it was I who decided to max out our yearly allowable mortgage pre-payments.
I would be lying if I said this was an easy job. Who enjoys being "the bad guy"? I've warped it into a full time job as I am a control freak and like to account for every penny and (still) hate it when monetary surprises crop up.
Neither of us wish to live those uber tight days again as I still (and I'm sure D does too) have some mental scars from the whole ordeal. However by adopting some lean behaviours, we were able to have 9 yr or less in our various property mortgage amortizations.
Don't get me wrong. Every penny is still accounted for. The difference now is half my income can afford to be spending money. This was in part made possible when D started a job with a defined benefit pension plan as well as being at the tail end of mortgage debt.
Over the years we've been together I've learned to enjoy the lattes and D has experienced the feeling of having large goals actualized -- Something he had never bothered to strive for as he thought them too reachable.
I wouldn't necessarily recommend people follow our extreme ways. It was at many times a very unhealthy way to reach our goal of a healthy, sustainable and balanced life. I lost sight of forest while getting all caught up in the "pay things down in the fastest time" game.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Budgeting, see womensmoneyweek.com.
This was supposed to be my last post in the series but I found time to participate once more tomorrow! The topic will be Money in Your 20s/30/40s/50s/Retirement.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
WMW 2012 -- Saving & Investing
Savings for my husband D and I have always meant more than just money in an account. First and foremost it is about building a sustainable lifestyle encouraging health and balance.
I am not an expert investor or day trader. We diversify our holdings with my working with an investment advisor investing in more aggressive stocks, D self managing his own value based investments and we have low fee ETFs and tax free saving accounts with ING.
The largest portion of our net worth is real estate related. We own 3 properties without any family help, lottery winnings, or rental income. And are within 3 yrs of having everything paid off.
The main reason this was possible is due to where we live. In our area of Ontario it is possible to own a spacious home for $285000, a true cottage 3 hrs away for $83000 and a ski condo (not timeshare or fractional) in British Columbia the size of a tiny hotel room for $78500.
So for the price of a moderate house in a major city center, we get to enjoy a lifestyle that a lot of people think belongs to the rich and famous and we are neither of those. It is a bonus our cottage has almost doubled in value in the last 10 yr.
I just turned 40 and D is 44. We are fortunate that D will receive a defined benefit pension. Our monthly costs aren't as much as you may think as we are pretty good with conservation. Since D can work remote, we can be up at the cottage or out west without him having to take too many days off.
Because we are able to scale our expectations we found options that are manageable financially.
If anyone out there dreams of an additional property, it is worth spending the time searching the mls and driving around new areas that aren't shown in the dramatic makeover section of the newspaper.
There are lower cost options. And if anyone is considering a move, really consider this: The less a house costs, the more money you have left over to live with. There are opportunity costs associated with each major financial decision.
It is also worth researching job opportunities in a smaller city or town center. The key is the amount of money you are left with. Don't just focus on the salary. High monthly carrying costs can eat up everything.
We still have ways to go in the retirement savings department because of the money we've imparted into real estate. We feel by doing so, we are really investing in us. A great life now and along the way versus later.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Saving & Investing, see Savings & Investing Round Up.
I am not an expert investor or day trader. We diversify our holdings with my working with an investment advisor investing in more aggressive stocks, D self managing his own value based investments and we have low fee ETFs and tax free saving accounts with ING.
The largest portion of our net worth is real estate related. We own 3 properties without any family help, lottery winnings, or rental income. And are within 3 yrs of having everything paid off.
The main reason this was possible is due to where we live. In our area of Ontario it is possible to own a spacious home for $285000, a true cottage 3 hrs away for $83000 and a ski condo (not timeshare or fractional) in British Columbia the size of a tiny hotel room for $78500.
So for the price of a moderate house in a major city center, we get to enjoy a lifestyle that a lot of people think belongs to the rich and famous and we are neither of those. It is a bonus our cottage has almost doubled in value in the last 10 yr.
I just turned 40 and D is 44. We are fortunate that D will receive a defined benefit pension. Our monthly costs aren't as much as you may think as we are pretty good with conservation. Since D can work remote, we can be up at the cottage or out west without him having to take too many days off.
Because we are able to scale our expectations we found options that are manageable financially.
If anyone out there dreams of an additional property, it is worth spending the time searching the mls and driving around new areas that aren't shown in the dramatic makeover section of the newspaper.
There are lower cost options. And if anyone is considering a move, really consider this: The less a house costs, the more money you have left over to live with. There are opportunity costs associated with each major financial decision.
It is also worth researching job opportunities in a smaller city or town center. The key is the amount of money you are left with. Don't just focus on the salary. High monthly carrying costs can eat up everything.
We still have ways to go in the retirement savings department because of the money we've imparted into real estate. We feel by doing so, we are really investing in us. A great life now and along the way versus later.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Saving & Investing, see Savings & Investing Round Up.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
WMW 2012 -- Relationships & Money
My husband D and I have what we believe to be a fairly rare financial understanding compared to other couples we know.
It is our goal to be equal financial partners. What that means for us is equal contribution to assets as well as debt repayment. For some this philosophy can mean buy a home based on the lower salary. Personally I believe this to be a pretty smart move.
We both came into our relationship with homes and assets. I had a higher amount. When we made the commitment as a couple, D sold his house and we lived in my house until we found our home. In our case my husband needed to catch up. Neither of us had any consumer debt.
As we are both self made, it doesn't surprise me that D truly wants to own half. So he is currently paying what is left of our mortgage and car as well as an "annuity" to me equal to the amount I've overpaid.
I overpaid because we wanted to be debt free faster. If I could have done another year of mortgage pre-payments we would have been done in another year or so. But I had had enough of it mentally and emotionally.
We also believe in being each other's "back up". We make roughly the same now, so should one of us suffer an emergency and cannot work, the other can carry things without too much of a hiccup.
I am quite conservative with respect to monetary risk and surprises. And we're wise enough to know stuff happens anyways despite the best preparation. So we do what we can to mitigate risk.
We have accounts that cover the future cost of roofs, appliances, home improvement, cars as well as a year's worth of expenses. There is a small life insurance policy equivalent to the amount outstanding as we have no dependents.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Relationships & Money, see womensmoneyweek.com.
It is our goal to be equal financial partners. What that means for us is equal contribution to assets as well as debt repayment. For some this philosophy can mean buy a home based on the lower salary. Personally I believe this to be a pretty smart move.
We both came into our relationship with homes and assets. I had a higher amount. When we made the commitment as a couple, D sold his house and we lived in my house until we found our home. In our case my husband needed to catch up. Neither of us had any consumer debt.
As we are both self made, it doesn't surprise me that D truly wants to own half. So he is currently paying what is left of our mortgage and car as well as an "annuity" to me equal to the amount I've overpaid.
I overpaid because we wanted to be debt free faster. If I could have done another year of mortgage pre-payments we would have been done in another year or so. But I had had enough of it mentally and emotionally.
We also believe in being each other's "back up". We make roughly the same now, so should one of us suffer an emergency and cannot work, the other can carry things without too much of a hiccup.
I am quite conservative with respect to monetary risk and surprises. And we're wise enough to know stuff happens anyways despite the best preparation. So we do what we can to mitigate risk.
We have accounts that cover the future cost of roofs, appliances, home improvement, cars as well as a year's worth of expenses. There is a small life insurance policy equivalent to the amount outstanding as we have no dependents.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Relationships & Money, see womensmoneyweek.com.
Monday, March 5, 2012
WMW 2012 -- Entrepreneurship / Making Money
My goal for this series of posts is to describe my life the way we are living it as a basis of comparison with the many other ways out there you'll get to read about over the week.
There are no right or wrong ways to design your life. Couples like us without children tend to lead lives that look different than those who do. Those who live in larger city centers have completely different numbers to work with than those of us in smaller cities or towns.
I believe there is huge value in reading and experiencing other ways to live because inevitably I learn something new and end up incorporating or modifying it to work for us. This is one reason why I love to travel so much. You see what is possible.
I am a one person part time entrepreneur in the health care field which means I do everything from answer phones to bookkeeping on top of working with clients. Full control can be a double edge sword.
My career took a drastic change a couple of years ago when my prior office, where everything was done for me, raised the rent to a point where it no longer made sense to stay. It forced me to step up and truly go out on my own.
My goal has been to work the least amount of hours I can while making the amount of money I would like. I realize not every one's job or career can be scalable like mine.
It goes against entrepreneurship to consider working less and making less money. My goal has never been to be the richest person. I don't have enough desire to work that much to make a goal like that happen.
My goal is to have an interesting life packed with world travel along the way. As time went on, my hours got trimmed and trimmed reaching where I am currently -- 12 hr direct client time, 8 hr admin, making a third of what I was at my peak. This has taken the last 14 yr to evolve.
I cannot see this schedule becoming leaner. Any smaller would mean retirement. It is no coincidence my decreased hours have coincided with better money management. The more adept I became at handling costs, the less I needed to work.
There are a lot of pros with being self employed. The most obvious are tax benefits. In my case, the ability to create office hours that jive well with my energy level is priceless. I do my 12 hr of client time over 2 afternoons and the my 8 hr admin is split over 4 mornings.
Lifestyle balance is something I work towards and am consistently pursuing. The route to what I describe today was not without major potholes. There have been many years where it was literally trial by fire. I've suffered severe depression and professional burnout. Effects of both I am still managing today.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Entrepreneurship / Making Money, see Entrepreneurship / Making Money Roundup.
Tomorrow I will give you our take on Relationships & Money.
There are no right or wrong ways to design your life. Couples like us without children tend to lead lives that look different than those who do. Those who live in larger city centers have completely different numbers to work with than those of us in smaller cities or towns.
I believe there is huge value in reading and experiencing other ways to live because inevitably I learn something new and end up incorporating or modifying it to work for us. This is one reason why I love to travel so much. You see what is possible.
I am a one person part time entrepreneur in the health care field which means I do everything from answer phones to bookkeeping on top of working with clients. Full control can be a double edge sword.
My career took a drastic change a couple of years ago when my prior office, where everything was done for me, raised the rent to a point where it no longer made sense to stay. It forced me to step up and truly go out on my own.
My goal has been to work the least amount of hours I can while making the amount of money I would like. I realize not every one's job or career can be scalable like mine.
It goes against entrepreneurship to consider working less and making less money. My goal has never been to be the richest person. I don't have enough desire to work that much to make a goal like that happen.
My goal is to have an interesting life packed with world travel along the way. As time went on, my hours got trimmed and trimmed reaching where I am currently -- 12 hr direct client time, 8 hr admin, making a third of what I was at my peak. This has taken the last 14 yr to evolve.
I cannot see this schedule becoming leaner. Any smaller would mean retirement. It is no coincidence my decreased hours have coincided with better money management. The more adept I became at handling costs, the less I needed to work.
There are a lot of pros with being self employed. The most obvious are tax benefits. In my case, the ability to create office hours that jive well with my energy level is priceless. I do my 12 hr of client time over 2 afternoons and the my 8 hr admin is split over 4 mornings.
Lifestyle balance is something I work towards and am consistently pursuing. The route to what I describe today was not without major potholes. There have been many years where it was literally trial by fire. I've suffered severe depression and professional burnout. Effects of both I am still managing today.
This post is a part of Women's Money Week 2012. For more posts about Entrepreneurship / Making Money, see Entrepreneurship / Making Money Roundup.
Tomorrow I will give you our take on Relationships & Money.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Carnival of Personal Finance #233 Welcome to Webcomics
Check out this week's Carnival of Personal Finance over at A Gai Shan Life!
Monday, February 23, 2009
Carnival of Personal Finance #193
I am long winded today but I can't forget this...
Broke Grad Student has posted today's Carnival -- YouTube Edition.
There are some funny videos in there between a really wide range of articles.
Broke Grad Student has posted today's Carnival -- YouTube Edition.
There are some funny videos in there between a really wide range of articles.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Carnival of Personal Development
There is a relatively new Carnival in Town!
Today, it is hosted by Someday Syndrome.
Check it out for some neat and different perspectives!
Today, it is hosted by Someday Syndrome.
Check it out for some neat and different perspectives!
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
The 157th Festival of Frugality
This week's host is Miss Thrifty. She has taken a neat take on the theme as she is British. Check it out! My link is still not working for some reason so here is the url again.
http://www.miss-thrifty.co.uk/2008/12/23/the-157th-festival-of-frugality-the-queen%E2%80%99s-speech-edition/
http://www.miss-thrifty.co.uk/2008/12/23/the-157th-festival-of-frugality-the-queen%E2%80%99s-speech-edition/
Monday, December 22, 2008
184th Edition of the Carnival of Personal Finance
Saving to Invest is hosting this week's Carnival of Personal Finance. It is a big one, so check it out! The link tab was not working for me this morning so the url is below.
http://www.savingtoinvest.com/2008/12/massive-carnival-of-personal-finance.html
I'm happy to report that my article "Security Breach" is part of the group.
It looks like all systems are a go for my flight later this morning -- Have a wonderful holiday everyone!
http://www.savingtoinvest.com/2008/12/massive-carnival-of-personal-finance.html
I'm happy to report that my article "Security Breach" is part of the group.
It looks like all systems are a go for my flight later this morning -- Have a wonderful holiday everyone!
Monday, November 24, 2008
180th Carnival of Personal Finance
If you are looking for an wealth of information about Personal Finance, look no further than this week's Carnival hosted by Living Almost Large.
She has done an incredibly thorough job highlighting the different categories of personal finance and adds her own unique spin on the topics/articles chosen.
It is evident just how much time she spent on sorting, organizing and reflecting on the submissions. One of the most comprehensive summaries I've read to date.
I'm also happy to report that my "Wedding Bells" article was included in the mix! That means a lot when you consider the caliber of the other posts!
She has done an incredibly thorough job highlighting the different categories of personal finance and adds her own unique spin on the topics/articles chosen.
It is evident just how much time she spent on sorting, organizing and reflecting on the submissions. One of the most comprehensive summaries I've read to date.
I'm also happy to report that my "Wedding Bells" article was included in the mix! That means a lot when you consider the caliber of the other posts!
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