Why are you here?

[Mesem]

My question to you is what brought you here? Was it issues with debt? Were you just browsing around or some other reason? My reason is I wanted to find individuals who also wanted to make more money.

[Like2Plan]

I joined about 5 years prior to retirement-- I was checking out a lot of different resources to make sure I was on the right track.
I've since retired, but I 'm still here. The advice is always very relevant to keeping on teack post retirement, too.

[SeanH]

Wanted feedback concerning whether I should pay-off a student loan. Came to find out that I was doing a lot of other things wrong too

[cardtrick]

Just to keep me on track. I need a constant reminder that I should save up as much as I can. My current goal is to get to $50K in liquid assets. Home equity and retirement assets don't count.

Joining this forum had got me thinking about my finances a lot more. I will be saving aggressively to meet that goal in the next 3-5 years.

[shaggy]

I'm a late bloomer; I didn't make enough money early in life. Now I have a lot of catching up to do on my savings. This forum helps me stay focused on personal savings.

[MonkeyMama]

Personal finance is my *passion*. So, basically, I will never bore of reading about it or talking about it. (Though most people don't find the topic that fascinating).

I think the best thing I get out of this site is the perspective. I was in my late 20s when I first found this site, and just very used to, "What are YOU worried about money for? You have no debts and you have more than $5 in the bank." Meanwhile, a $5 net worth should not be the height of financial success. I have really great financial mentors (much older) but just kind of missing any other relevant frame of reference. This site keeps me grounded. Reminds me we could always improve.

[kork13]

I was in my junior year of college, and was just starting to learn about more advanced personal finance topics (beyond "save some money & pay off credit cards in full every month"). I found these forums, and have never looked back. I guess what I was originally looking for was to learn about budgeting & investing. Since then, I've learned alot about those topics (plus a whole lot more), hopefully helped teach some people, and enjoy it quite thoroughly.

[bjl584]

I came here in 2006. I had recently purchased a house and opened up a brokerage account and a Roth IRA. I was looking for general advice on saving, budgeting, and investing.

[debtfreeme]

I can't remember how or why I found the site back in 2005 but I stay because it is a community of supportive people who are all focusing on one goal: making the best financial choices and plans they can through sharing their information and stories.

[Doublejm1]

To aid me in financial decisions ranging from buying a house to saving up for my wedding.

[moneybags]

Personal finance is my *passion*. So, basically, I will never bore of reading about it or talking about it. (Though most people don't find the topic that fascinating).

This! I feel the same way.

[neatdesign]

When I joined SavingAdvice.com back in spring 2005, my then-husband and I were in the early stages of getting into massive credit card debt in order to stay afloat. I needed help and support and found it here. This was particularly important because it seemed that, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get that help and support from him.

After we separated 18 months ago, I worked very hard to create a budget for myself, to build up my emergency fund and pay down my debt. After being in some form of debt for 12 straight years, I became completely debt-free 8 months ago. Now I'm looking into possibly buying a house (my first), bulking up my retirement savings, and just generally moving on with my life.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Found this site when I got into personal finance. Before kids like MM we were always "okay". Now I'm definitely more aware since I stopped working and we had kids. This site keeps me in line.

[phantom]

I found this forum while I was looking for more to read on personal finance. I like seeing various opinions on how to handle financial situations and handing out some of my own opinions when I can. But, mostly, I stick around because it keeps me humble. Relative to most of the world, I know I've got a pretty good handle on my money. But, that's setting the bar pretty low. Comparing myself to people here, I can see that I could be doing even better.

[Blessed]

I was looking to learn about investing.