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Originally Posted by Big G
Currently I have a 401k which I put 5% of my paycheck into (my company matches part of the 5%) The 401k is split between 2 mutual funds:
BARON GROWTH and H & W LG CAP VALUE I (60/40 split) Besides that I put 3% into a company stock purchase plan (get to put stock at a discount, but if I sell the stock before a year I only get back what I paid) and finally $100 per paycheck into my HSBC account.
What else should I be doing with my money? I'm currently 24 years old and I earn about $32,000/yr ... I will be getting married this summer and will be moving over to my finance insurance I was thinking of upping the amount I put into retirement after I get rid of the health insurance expense. My job just started offering a Roth IRA ... should I take the money which was going into Health Insurance and put it in an IRA? What is the advantage of an IRA over my 401k? (Sorry for all the new questions, I'm new here and trying to get my finances on track)
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Goal #1 would be 10% overall savings based on gross pay. This means add your gross pay to your fiance's. Is 10% being invested for retirement?
could be 5% 401k+5% to Roth, but it needs to be 10% based on a few factors.
If you are saving 10%, you are clearly living below your means. If something happens you can stop the retirement contributions to get a 10% raise (short term). 15 or 20% savings rate would be even better, 10% is where it all starts (if you want some examples, please ask).
Goal #2 would be an emergency fund equal to 2-3 mos expenses of your new combined gross income.
You did not mention fiance's income, savings level, debt level etc... Prior to getting married, we needed to pay off my wife's consumer debt and do a few things to repair her credit score.
Have you taken a financial course with your spouse? We took one thru our church and it was a positive experience. We took a second during pre-canna. I strongly suggest starting financial discussions now... even after doing the two courses, we argue more about finances than we do anything else.