I have 35k saved at 19yrs old, need help/advice..

[DaveInPgh]

Jluke, totally agree with you regarding all of those expenses and the Corvette not being a wise financial decision.

Still he is well ahead of most 19 year olds.

wes, you never responded as to whether you sold those stocks for a loss or if you are just down on paper?

[ThinkingCapital]

You're doing well for yourself, especially considering your age. Congrats!

I (like many others here) would advise against the expensive sports car. You'll get much more benefit from being ahead financially in life at a young age. I also agree with those who say to stay away from individual stocks. Those are usually risky and you don't want to lose money. I'd say put your money in a mutual fund, ETF, etc. These have some risk, but not much, and you'll likely see at least some growth.

Good luck!

[wes467]

Jluke, totally agree with you regarding all of those expenses and the Corvette not being a wise financial decision.

Still he is well ahead of most 19 year olds.

wes, you never responded as to whether you sold those stocks for a loss or if you are just down on paper?

Yea I sold those stocks so I could file them on my taxes to get a little bit of a reimbursement.

Feels terrible. I knew it was high risk, I wanted a high reward, and knew I could afford losing big.. Just didn't turn out in my favor :/

I just opened up a Roth IRA and maxed 2016.

[wes467]

I didn't say AGE. It is a lot of money for a 19 year old.

But he is just starting out and there are a lot of big ticket items in his future.

go buy a house with 20% down (he even said 50%). Then furnish the house. Lawn equipment. Etc etc.

Travel, Wife, kids in the future?

Life is expensive.

That money will evaporate in no time.

Just trying to help him see that buying a corvette is not good use of this money.

I have recently been adopting the mindset of living in the present. It feels like everyone on here has a common theme of saving everything till your retire.

What happens when I save every penny from here on out and I get hit by a drunk driver at age ~35 and die. And never get a chance to spend any of the money I have been saving for 15yrs..

Why try and live life in the future?

I know I may sound irrational with my lack of experience, or I'm giving into fear, but it's something that has crossed my mind.

I understand the power of compound interest and how important it is to save early on. And I am sure I will take full advantage of that.

Side Question: How realistic is it to save ~50% of your salary?

Scenario: Starting salary 70k, post-tax $56,000. According to google, cost of living is 28k/year.

This means I could potentially save 28k/year or ~50%

Is that feasible?

[Jluke]

I have recently been adopting the mindset of living in the present. It feels like everyone on here has a common theme of saving everything till your retire.


Why try and live life in the future?

Side Question: How realistic is it to save ~50% of your salary?

Scenario: Starting salary 70k, post-tax $56,000. According to google, cost of living is 28k/year.

This means I could potentially save 28k/year or ~50%

Is that feasible?

I was only looking ahead 5 years or so for the big ticket items.

Do you know where you will live after graduation?

Do you want a home, townhome, condo?

Research homes to buy and places to rent in the area. Pay attention to property taxes if you buy a home. That can add another $500/month on top of the mortgage. I imagine owning a home will cost close to 15-20k/year.

Internet and cable can cost anywhere from 150-200/month.

Utilities, water, trash, home repair/upgrades as well factor in.

Guess you need to ask yourself what you will prioritize - fun toys, nice house, etc.

I remember when all I wanted was the car (I've always had 2 cars of my own at the same time since age 23), home theater, big tv, going to bars on weekends... you'll go through your phases too.

The key to You Only Live Once philosophy might be everything in moderation.

[Nutria]

I have recently been adopting the mindset of living in the present. It feels like everyone on here has a common theme of saving everything till your retire.

What happens when I save every penny from here on out and I get hit by a drunk driver at age ~35 and die. And never get a chance to spend any of the money I have been saving for 15yrs..

You're EE, and thus presumably good in math. So, go look up the statistics:

• What percentage of Americans die at age 35?
• What percentage of Americans live until age 65?
• Ditto age 75?
• What's the average life expectancy?

Given those statistics, what's the path that a guy who's as smart as you should take?

Why try and live life in the future?

You have this notion that we're misers who do nothing but count our gold all day, just waiting to move to a resort community in Florida.

I know I may sound irrational with my lack of experience, or I'm giving into fear, but it's something that has crossed my mind.

Yes. You asked for advice 7 months ago, did the exact opposite and lost 28% of your money. Obviously the lesson hasn't sunk in.

Side Question: How realistic is it to save ~50% of your salary?

Scenario: Starting salary 70k, post-tax $56,000. According to google, cost of living is 28k/year.

This means I could potentially save 28k/year or ~50%

Is that feasible?

Since you don't tell us where you're going to live and how many are going to live with you, any answer would be pulled out of thin air.

But you can do some quick calculations:

$28,000 / 12 = $2,333.33 / month

Following the 30% rule, your monthly rent should be no more than $700/month (doable in fly-over country, but certainly not in any city with a thriving tech economy). And auto insurance, the enjoyments of youth, etc, etc, etc.

So... no. Unless you want to live poor.