Who wants to be a millionaire

[Gailete]

AM I too old any more? Why would a woman want to go to the effort to spend 3 grueling years to earn a doctorate, just to turn around and work part time or not at all? I would have serious doubts about hitting a million by 40 with possibly marrying someone with $20K in debts already that you are planning on wiping out your emergency fund to pay off. What then happens if you have an emergency? Was this debt caused by school loans exclusively or just as a way to pretend she had more pay than she did. If she had spent it all on shoes and clothes, expect that type of spending to continue! What is the wedding and honeymoon going to cost? How did a house that you just bought gain $85K in equity already? Are you aware of the cost of raising little munchkins? So many variables and I don't know why the push to be a millionaire by a certain age which is way to close to get to that point. I think that you will find that having an unemployed wife and children will stall your plan much more than you are thinking about at this point.

[disneysteve]

AM I too old any more? Why would a woman want to go to the effort to spend 3 grueling years to earn a doctorate, just to turn around and work part time or not at all?

Thank you for posting that. I was thinking the exact same thing. Do you really need a doctorate to be a stay at home mom? Seems like a colossal waste of time and money.

[~bs]

assuming she makes a similar income to him, it's really doable unless she has lots of debt or high expenses. I'm not married, but one great thing that's possible about marriage is to more than double your savings rate because you're utilizing economies of scale.

Rough example: Say you make 68k/year after tax, spend $28k. That means you save 40k. Your spouse should also save 40k/year too right? WRONG. If he/she moves in with you, you aren't paying 2 mortgages, 2 electric bills, 2 internet charges, you can share a car, you can buy bulk quantities of food, etc. So your combined expenses may go up by 10k (probably pushing it), so your total savings is now 40k + 58K = 98k or 2.5x your original savings rate.

If your net worth is 285k, you have 7 years to grow your money, and are saving 98k/year, 1 mil should be easy unless the stock market takes a huge crap.

[pancake syrup]

The information you offer leads me to believe you will be lowering net worth not increasing it. If you've your emergency fund totally cash it suggest you are not a risk taker which could be one way to reach the millionaire status you desire. Present day faculty are not paid the value of their educational credentials that other careers receive. You've doubled down Fiance asset since she has $ 22K SL and you plan she will be a SAHM.

What are you currently holding in your retirement plan? What is your risk tolerance? Could you sleep at night with Mutual Funds investing primarily in emerging countries, tech and medical? There is potential as a ten bagger there but huge risk too.

I disagree (respectfully). My investments are in the range of aggressive growth. Having $20K in cash is not b/c I have an aversion to risk. It means I have over six months of expenses for a raining day or the roof needs replacing, etc. It's wise to stash some cash.

[pancake syrup]

And why would being a millionaire be important to you?

It's not so much being a millionaire that is important to me. It's having a goal and striving towards it. Like Wayne Gretzky said - "You miss 100% of the shots you never take."

[pancake syrup]

AM I too old any more? Why would a woman want to go to the effort to spend 3 grueling years to earn a doctorate, just to turn around and work part time or not at all? I would have serious doubts about hitting a million by 40 with possibly marrying someone with $20K in debts already that you are planning on wiping out your emergency fund to pay off. What then happens if you have an emergency? Was this debt caused by school loans exclusively or just as a way to pretend she had more pay than she did. If she had spent it all on shoes and clothes, expect that type of spending to continue! What is the wedding and honeymoon going to cost? How did a house that you just bought gain $85K in equity already? Are you aware of the cost of raising little munchkins? So many variables and I don't know why the push to be a millionaire by a certain age which is way to close to get to that point. I think that you will find that having an unemployed wife and children will stall your plan much more than you are thinking about at this point.

The SAHM option is if she decided against getting her doctorate...which just in the last 24 hours she has decided to go for it. She will be utilizing it even if it is part time at first to spend more time with a child (if we have one).

For arguments sake here is how it would look as an estimate:

Year 1/2/3 - $14,000/yr income while getting the doctorate - $82,000 total income.
Year 4/5 - part time (let's say $20,000/yr) - $88,000 total income.
Year 6/7 - full time ($45,000/yr) - $113,000 total income.

This doesn't factor any change in income for me..which would happen barring any health problems.

[pancake syrup]

AM I too old any more? Why would a woman want to go to the effort to spend 3 grueling years to earn a doctorate, just to turn around and work part time or not at all? I would have serious doubts about hitting a million by 40 with possibly marrying someone with $20K in debts already that you are planning on wiping out your emergency fund to pay off. What then happens if you have an emergency? Was this debt caused by school loans exclusively or just as a way to pretend she had more pay than she did. If she had spent it all on shoes and clothes, expect that type of spending to continue! What is the wedding and honeymoon going to cost? How did a house that you just bought gain $85K in equity already? Are you aware of the cost of raising little munchkins? So many variables and I don't know why the push to be a millionaire by a certain age which is way to close to get to that point. I think that you will find that having an unemployed wife and children will stall your plan much more than you are thinking about at this point.

To answer a few of your questions:

I would not wipe out my EF to pay off her debts. I have over a year to save more money. I could wipe out half of my EF to pay off her debts but I would still have $20K or so ideally.
She is a spender but her debts are primarily student loans and her car. She made bad decisions in the past but she is making better ones now....only buying clothes from Goodwill/cutting up credit cards as an example.

The wedding would be very cheap and she has already bought her wedding dress from Goodwill (I'm serious). The honeymoon will be costly I'm sure but guess who is already cash flowing that...this guy.

I paid $82K down on my home hence the $85K equity.

[Gailete]

Well as an older person that has seen a lot of water go over the dam so to speak, I think you are looking at the next couple of years through rose colored glasses. Life doesn't always go along with our dreams and goals and ambitions. You have a very ambitious plan that only if everything goes absolutely perfect will it come out how you expect. Even your plan for becoming a millionaire is really one of you and your wife becoming millionaires together since her income would be absolutely necessary so it isn't 'you' but 'us'. I only bring that up since you only talk about yourself as the one becoming a millionaire, not the two of you together, unless I missed something in the posts.

Since you didn't mention munchkins, let me tell you that they cost more and take more time and come one after another so unexpectedly that they will be a huge variable in your life and finances. Just because you plan on only one kid or two doesn't mean that at times they come in multiples to everyone's surprise! Or come 9 months after a wedding when none were planned for 2-3 years.

Should you still keep trying, of course, if that is what you want, just don't be upset if you don't make it and don't be so frugal with your funds that you and your family can't enjoy life since the big dream is to become wealthy. Your need to be sure that your be all and end all in life isn't reaching that milestone. Not everything can be bought at Goodwill, as much as I wish I could get all I need at my thrift store, at times I have to spend real money. Houses need maintenance, marriages and kids as well and that needs taken into account.

[pancake syrup]

Update several years later....

I just remembered that I had posted on this forum. It is amazing to see things that I said then that I wouldn't say now.

I am now 37 (almost 38).
Very happily married with a 21 month old.
We will not be millionaires when I turn 40 (and that is ok).
Just crossed over $500K net worth.
My wife has been a stay at home wife and now a mom since we got married so all of this is on one income.
It's amazing to see how my desires changed since 33.
I now desire financial independence but first and foremost being a family man and caring for my family.

I just thought some of you might think it interesting to see the changes over several years.

[disneysteve]

I just remembered that I had posted on this forum. It is amazing to see things that I said then that I wouldn't say now.

I am now 37 (almost 38).
Very happily married with a 21 month old.
We will not be millionaires when I turn 40 (and that is ok).
Just crossed over $500K net worth.
My wife has been a stay at home wife and now a mom since we got married so all of this is on one income.
It's amazing to see how my desires changed since 33.
I now desire financial independence but first and foremost being a family man and caring for my family.

I just thought some of you might think it interesting to see the changes over several years.

Welcome back. I love when folks swing back around and update things. Congrats on the marriage and the baby. It sounds like things are going well.

You will need to make gains on your net worth to make millionaire in your timeframe either that or find yourself a rich cougar. A modest 10% ROI doubles your capital in approximately 7 years and your still not there.

The original post was in 2013. I don't think the numbers or the question are relevant anymore.

[pancake syrup]

You will need to make gains on your net worth to make millionaire in your timeframe either that or find yourself a rich cougar. A modest 10% ROI doubles your capital in approximately 7 years and your still not there.

Haha! Very true. See the post I just made.

[TexasHusker]

If you're at $500K at age 37 that is quite good. Congratulations.

And having your wife stay home and raise your kids is worth more than any dollar amount.

My wife did the same when our first was born. About 15 minutes after giving birth, she said "I quit!"

The time that she has shared with our children is PRICELESS. I left corporate america 4 years ago to be a stay at home dad right along with her. Again, PRICELESS!

I've always been amazed at the ease of willingness to institutionalize children starting at 2 or 3 months old, and having someone else raise them most of the waking day. It's a free country and all but my goodness that is a steep price to pay.

[disneysteve]

My wife did the same when our first was born. About 15 minutes after giving birth, she said "I quit!"

I've got you beat. We were having trouble getting pregnant. My wife felt it was due to all of the stress at her job so she quit in early December. She was pregnant by early January.

[TexasHusker]

I've got you beat. We were having trouble getting pregnant. My wife felt it was due to all of the stress at her job so she quit in early December. She was pregnant by early January.

As a physician, you likely know first-hand the effects on a woman's body from being in a high-stress workplace. It is totally non-PC, but I believe that women weren't generally wired for that, and are paying a heavy price for the expectations placed on them in the post-feminist world.

My wife has three sisters who have been in the work place in high stress jobs. One developed Hodgkins, one developed a benign brain tumor, one developed RA. All three are on disability now.

My wife has remained healthy overall, minus a back issue from an old high school injury from cheerleading, and she hasn't worked in 18 years now.

[Gailete]

As a physician, you likely know first-hand the effects on a woman's body from being in a high-stress workplace. It is totally non-PC, but I believe that women weren't generally wired for that, and are paying a heavy price for the expectations placed on them in the post-feminist world.

My wife has three sisters who have been in the work place in high stress jobs. One developed Hodgkins, one developed a benign brain tumor, one developed RA. All three are on disability now.

My wife has remained healthy overall, minus a back issue from an old high school injury from cheerleading, and she hasn't worked in 18 years now.

Amen - Preach it brother!

When I married hubby, we were planning on me working about 6 more months and then being a stay at home wife. Well the stress from the prior years hit me hard and in now time flat after we were married, I was no longer ablt to go out to work. I'm now a stay at home person but the taking care of home and hubby sure hasn't panned out the way I expected, and I still am having to work as we are both physically "phht!"

I think families that desire a lifestyle with mom staying home to raise the munchkins, have to be willing to sacrifice in one area, to achieve better success in another. I hated the fact that the woman that had raised my ex to be such a boob, was the one that was raising my boys for the most part. My ex was never willing for me to be home. He wouldn't have minded if he could sit around home doing nothing and me working 80 hours+ a week plus all the home work. I learned some really hard lessons with my first husband.