I received the following excerpt in an e-mail from a reader yesterday:
I will never be able to live like you do. We are a family of four. My husband is 33 and I am 31 and we have two young children. Both my husband and I work fulltime and make a six figure income. There is no way we could ever own our home outright or pay cash for one like you are. We will always have a mortgage. We use credit cards to purchase the things we need so we will probably always owe those also.
You must have made a huge income to be able to be debt free, pay cash for a home and cash for all your other purchases. So fess up, how much did you make a year? $200,000, 400,000. or $500,000. a year?
I didn't print all of the e-mail because some of it was quite nasty. This e-mail at first, as Glenn Beck would say: "Made blood shoot out of my eyes!" But then I realized that perhaps the writer was really looking for an answer to their own problems. So I will make an attempt to respond to her question.
Let's clear up the income issue right away. When we first got married way back in the 60's, we made $5,000. a year. It took DH many years of working and going to school nights to get an advanced degree to get us up to a middle 5 figure income. The last couple years before DH retired, we made a high 5 figure income. I will also tell you that DH chose for most of those years to be a public servant which paid a whole lot less than he could have made in the private sector with his Engineering Batchelors Degree and his Masters Degree. We chose for me to be a stay at home mom for most of DH's career. I could have easily worked and we could have easily made a six figure income. But that is not the path we chose for ourselves and one that we have never regretted. I did go back to work for 6 years when the boys were 1/2 way through attending a very prestigious private military junior high and high school and to help with college expenses. I guess my small income did put us over the $100,000. mark for a couple of years but every penny of the money I made went to pay thousands of dollars in tuition and associated costs for the boys. We never used one penny of that money to live on or to save for anything. As soon as I had covered those costs, I quit working. I am a homebody and I loved taking care of my family and home. I HATED working with a passion because it took away from our home life.
We never made as much as you do now at your young ages and believe me we live on a whole lot less than you do now.
All of that being said, I see no reason why you can't be mortgageless in a number of years. If you choose to pay your mortage off early, you have the income to do it. We have paid for three homes in the years that we have been married. We are about to pay cash for a $300,000. one. It is all about choices which I have written about extensively here on my blog over the past couple of years. You are still young enough to be able to make the choices that you need to, to be totally debt free when you retire. You have to remember that what DH and I can do today is because of a lifetime of choices that we made that were best for us. When you don't pay for your needs on credit cards, especially when you make a six figure income like you do, you don't pay interest. When you aren't handing over interest to credit card companies, you are able to use that money for yourself. You need to reassess what you believe are needs. I would bet you that most of your needs are wants. When you pay off your mortgages early, you get to keep all of that interest that you would have paid. Oh yes, I have heard that ridiculous argument that you should not pay off your mortgage because of the tax write offs and the fact that your money would make more in the bank and the stock market. First, as I have said before, you only get a small portion of that interest back taxwise depending on your tax bracket. Secondly, the stock market is risky as we have seen only so well over the past few decades. The banks pay hardly any interest, especially now. So paying interest is a huge waste of money.
I have seen so many retired people who chose wants over needs over their 30-40 year careers. They can't even remember what they spent their money on and now are living at poverty level thinking poor me. They have nothing of any real value that they could even sell to make their lives better. They owe mortgages on their homes because they used them like piggybanks to pay off credit card bills or other debt every couple of years. There is only one reason in my mind as to why someone who purchased a home with a mortgage 30-40 years ago SHOULD still owe a mortgage. That reason would be because they needed that money to pay medical for a very sick child or relative. But the majority of people just made poor choices. They own a car or two but owe car payments on at least one. They wonder how they will pay their property and school taxes every year because they have not planned for them. Do you want to be that person? I know you are thinking that retirement is years away. Believe me when I say that life is short. It flies right by. So make good use of all of your choices while you are young and your money will snowball. You will be able to do what we can do, if that is what you want.
I sensed a bit of jealousy in your e-mail. There is no reason to be jealous of us. We made the choices that we knew would be best for us in retirement and we worked toward that goal for years. We lived a beautiful life while we were getting there without spending thousands of dollars frivolously. We have not missed out on a thing. We lived our life exactly the way we wanted to. We made our choices and we are now enjoying the fruits of our choices in our retirement. Anyone can do what we did! But you have to do what is best for your family. If you believe that having a mortgage, owing money on credit cards and having other loans for cars, etc., is the way to live and retire, go for it! But you will have no one to BLAME but yourself!
You have told told me you are new to my blog. If you really don't believe having a mortgage, owing credit cards and having other outstanding loans is the way to retire then go back and read my other posts. Start with these:
http://frugalmakescents.blogspot.com/search/label/money,
http://frugalmakescents.blogspot.com/2008/11/should-they-retire-early.html ,
http://frugalmakescents.blogspot.com/search/label/retirement ,
http://frugalmakescents.blogspot.com/search/label/Saving%20money%20today
You are young and have at least 25-30 years before retirement. You can change your attitude and be where we are when you retire. Even if you are older and reading this, it is never too late to make your situation better. It can always get better if YOU make the right choices! As I have said before, I would like to see all of you be debt free and have a wonderful life.
65 comments:
Sorry you got a nasty email!
Well said .....and yes, I do enjoy your blog, plus I do make choices and then there are the ones which are made for you. But that only means pick yourself up and keep doing the best ....
thanks for sharing
Very well spoken!
I love reading your life example of what a life 'snowballing' your money can do... and how awesome the pay-off is in the end!
Thanks, I'm glad that you chose to share this post!
Amen. What a great response.
Precious-DH and I are in our early/mid 20s, and knowing you the past few years has helped us to start thinking about retirement, lifestyle choices, and make ourselves develop a financial plan and goals. We're the only ones we knew who started planning at 22(we're almost 25 now). And I am glad we did it. Thanks for the inspiration! Because of that we have been able to pay cash for a new boat-DH says it's for cruising the lake-I saw it's for skiing and tubing. Either way we've been able to pay no interest and may end up paying cash for 70-80% of our house we plan to buy in 2011 or 2012. :)
Great response! I just don't think people realize the diligence it takes to not live beyond your means. I would be willing to bet that family has no idea what they spend their money on and should probably start by tracking every penny spent so they can see what is a need and what is a want.
Thank you so much for your blog, it has helped me so much. I'm looking forward to retiring in 20 years and being very well prepared since I focus on every penny my family spends now.
hi precious...i just want to say thank you for this post!!
while i am NOT the one that sent this email, i have to tell you, this helped me a lot!
we are in our late 20's making a mid-5 figure income. i have been following your blog for probably about six months and have been so inspired. i take in everything you say, and work to apply each tip into our lives. but i do have to tell you that there were days when i would get so discouraged and start to think - these people must be millionaires and that this will never work for me.
so i greatly appreciate your honesty in your blog today!!!! it has helped me to see that financial freedom is possible on a "smaller" salary.
i enjoy reading all your advice! keep it coming!
amanda
Excellent post! I applaud your choices to stay out of debt! It can be done, it just takes choices and discipline.
Thanks for all of your ideas and tips on your blog. You inspire me to think of different ways to save more money! I enjoy reading it.
Lynn
Precious just reading those comments to you made my blood boil a bit. You are totally right it's all about choices. We are a family of 3 and live off a low 5 figure income and we do just fine with plastic. I know lots of people that hate this month becaue the Christmas bills come due, but I don't understand spending so much on trinkets that will more than likely soon be forgotten that you are in debt. I'm a big believer in paying cash and if you don't have the cash for it you can't afford it. That's why I'm having such a problem with the thought of taking on a mortgage. Some people were destined to live in debt because they have to keep up with the Jones's I guess. I hope that person reads your past posts and sees the light.
Oh I know you where talking about dry cleaning, we just got next weeks Walgreens ad and they have Dryel on sale for $7.99 with $3 RR back. I haven't bought it in ages so I don't know if that's a good deal or not but I thought I would pass it along.
Thanks to all of you for your comments. DH and I are headed out to our home lot to see what they have been up to. I promise that I will respond, as usual, to each and every one of you when we return.
Way to spin a nasty comment into a pleasant response and lesson for all of us. Well done - I think we can all learn from your past decisions, regardless of income level.
Btw Precious - did you ever have someone else paint your house in AZ? I'm not sure I trust anyone else (without paying an arm and a leg), but I also don't have the time to paint mine...so just thought I'd ask if you have any resources! This homeowning is quite a chore, and can suck your wallet dry!
Hi, Precious. That email sounded a bit on the jealous side to me, too. Your response is great. It IS all about choices. Some people just don't want to face making the correct ones.
Precious - When I started your blog today I was mad that you got a nasty email. But as I continued reading I realized that I was her 6 months ago, I just assumed that we would always have debt (mortgage, Credit Card) but after finding your blog and others. I now realize that it isn't just th way it is. What wonderful role models your boys had and many of us are jealous that we didn't know the trick (I know there is NO Trick) to be debt free sooner. Thank you for taking time out of your life to help teach us how to have a wonderful life without all the extra stuff (CC, loans, etc). I hope that your emailer sees your blog today and our responses because I would tell her - In my 40 years I never thought that I could live like you but that just this Christmas i put nothing on CC and that alone is a miracle - keep reading what Precious has to say becuase we can learn a lot from her to help our children not do what we did.
Sorry you got a nasty email. I have been meaning to tell you that your blog inspires me and I love to see how you save money!
Teresa
Precious -
You hit the nail right on the head! I appreciate your blog and truly thank God that I was able to come across it when I did. My husband and I have now been married for a year, are in our late 20's and have no children. Your blog inspires me daily to make wise choices with our money so that we too, may enjoy the financial freedom that you and your spouse do! Please continue to keep the posts coming :)
Precious,
Wow, reading that email from that reader really upset me. What gives someone the right to say nasty comments like that to someone who is only trying to share their experiences and help others?
I have been reading your blog for about a year now and can't say thank you enough. I have learned soooo much from you and become so inspired to live more frugally and make smart choices. My husband and I are both 30. We have a 2 year old and another child on the way. We do make a combined income around 75,XXX but try to live much below that income level. In the past year, thanks to your inspiration, we have been able to pay off most all of our debt (except our mortgage), and put a substatial amount of money away in our savings account, towards our retirement, and also towards our 2 year old's college savings. We didn't do that because we are millionaires or make hundreds of thousands of dollars. We were able to do that because of the smart choices we made and the diligence we had. Again, I can't thank you enough for all of your tips and inspiration. This year I am doing my own Money Saving Challenge, although I don't have a blog to share it on. I take all of your tips and ideas and try to apply them to my own life. I hope that in doing that, we will be able to save even more and pay off even more of our mortgage this year.
I hope that this reader who sent this email re-evaluates their priorities. And really thinks about the choices they are making.
Happy New Year!
Carrie
Hi Lucky,
Thanks! But I hope my response gets her on the right path.
Hi Ursula,
Thanks! You are right. Sometimes life gives you lemons like this delay on the building of my home. But DH and I are making lemonade out of that.
Hi Laura,
Thanks! It has been an awesome life and I am still enjoying every minute of it.
Hi Lynnie,
Thanks. I just hope that I have helped her.
Hi Mrs. G,
Thanks for the kind words.Keep doing what you are doing and you will have a million or two when you retire.
Congrats on paying cash for that boat! That is wonderful at your young age. Can I go skiing with you? I love to water ski and it has only been a few years since I was up doing it. I also love riding a jet ski.
I am routing for you all the way right up until you buy that house. And then I bet you, you can pay it off in no time flat! :-)
Hi, I really love your blog, you really provide good detail. Please continue that way you are.
I'm glad you posted this.
Hi KathieMc23,
Thanks. I agree with you. Hopefully they will track their money and see where it is really going. It could be the beginning of a great life for them.
I hope when you retire that all of your dreams are fulfilled. :-)
The first step is admitting that you have a problem. You CAN get your finances under control once you've done that. I think the problem is that many Americans think there has to be a quick fix for everything and that's not the case. It may take you years of diligent, hard work to get our of debt.
Thanks, Precious, for a well thought-out response!
Hi Amanda,
I know that you are not the one who sent the e-mail. I know who it is! :-) I have offered her to correspond with me by e-mail if I can help her in any way.
You should have asked me what we made. It never occurred to me that anyone would think that we made a huge income every year. We did end up with really significant money though to carry us through retirement. But that was as a result of careful planning and socking away at least 10- 50% of our paycheck. More as the children got out on their own.Also a result of compounding interest and investments all those years. We have a small pension that has pretty much stayed the same for over 8 years of prices rising.We choose to live way below that and our investment income so that we never run out of money. To me there would be nothing worse than to be 70+ and run out of money and have to compete with all of you young people for a job.
Was it easy to save? No, it took a lot of discipline. There were days that I would get discouraged also. But you have to realize that you will have those days, and then just carry on.
I believe that you can have financial freedom no mater what your salary is. It isn't how much make. It's how much you KEEP!
Hi Lynn,
Glad I can help! I hope I inspire people. That is why I write about our experiences. Perhaps this blog will be my legacy someday! If I can just help one person be financially free, I will have done what I started out to do.
Hi Tiffany,
You and your blog should be inspiration to a a lot of young people. You are definitely a young person who "Gets It!" Cash is King in my house and should be in everyone's. If people can handle using their credit card and pay it off in full EVERY MONTH, then that is terrific. But if they can't, they should not be using credit cards. It will derail them quickly! I can't even imagine charging something for Christmas and then having to worry about the bill. If I can't pay the bill on the due date, it doesn't get charged. We use our credit cards as a convenience. It would just about KILL me to have to pay interest on one. If I couldn't afford to pay for Christmas presents, I wouldn't buy them.
Keeping up with the Joneses is not all it is cracked up to be! That nice new car that your neighbor purchased is mostly owned by bank for a few years. Those huge McMansions most likely carry huge mortgages. I just could not live like that. It would be too stressful for me.
You should buy your house if you think it is a good time to do it. I know Florida has a depressed market, so it is great for the buyer. Just don't listen to the banks about how much you can afford. Only purchase what you know that you can afford and want to pay. Make sure that you ONLY take a mortgage with no pre-payment penalty. Then pay extra on the principle every month and you will pay if off in a few years.
Thanks for the tip on the Dryel. I think it is a price that I am willing to pay.
Hi Heather,
Thanks for your kind comments.
Are you talking about an outside house paint job or just a room inside? We never painted the outside of the house in the years we owned it. It was just coming time to do it when we sold it.It was still in really great condition and the buyer was well aware that she would have to have it painted in the next few years.
We hired an interior designer for most of the large rooms in our home there. We paid her and she paid the painters and faux painters. So I don't have a clue. I'm sorry that I can't be of more help.
Hi Frances,
You are so right. I didn't print the entire e-mail. Believe me it was dripping jealousy and I really couldn't understand why. I was perplexed!
Hi mellissar,
Your comments made be feel so good. I am so glad that you realize that there is no trick.....just discipline day in and day out. And keeping track of where your money is going is so important. If you don't set goals and don't budget, you just go in circles....never really getting anywhere. I have seen so many people just not pay attention that it is heart wrenching. I am glad that I could help in some small way and that you have no Christmas debt this year. Yeah! It is never too late to learn or change your ways. Congrats to you. You are ONLY 40 and that is young so keep watching that money snowball.
I hope that I was a good example to my children. That was very important to me! They both seem to be doing all right for themselves.
Hi Teresa,
Thanks for your kind words. :-)
Hi Natalie,
Thanks so much. I love being able to mentor so many people through this blog.
Hi Carrie,
I am not sure why she felt the need to say what she did in her e-mail. I just hope that she learns something from this blog. Because if she keeps going the way she is, I would hate to be her in 25-30 years.
Now kudos to you for making the right choices. To be as young as you are and have no debt except your mortgage, be putting money away for retirement and your child's college education is a GREAT accomplishment.
You have learned the lesson of: It isn't what you make, it's what you keep! That is so important and so many people never learn that. They spend every penny they make sometimes months before they make it. They never get out of debt. So I applaud what you and your DH are doing!
I am so glad that you are doing the Money Saving Challenge even though you don't have a blog to share it. Please feel free anytime to leave a comment and share with us some of the things you do. We all learn from each other.
Happy New Year to you and your family also!
Love your blog Precious!! Single mom here with a teenager. No car payment and no credit card debt. Wooohooooo!!! I have not worked toward paying more on my house every month but I think that is my next plan of action.
Thanks for for sharing with us!!!
Sunnie
Hi lifero,
Thanks for your kind comments!
Hi ThriftyPuppy,
You hit the nail on the head! A lot of Americans think if it isn't easy, then they aren't going to do it. It does take diligence and it isn't always easy! But it sure pays off more in the long run than any other way!
Precious, I'm sorry you got a nasty email, but you turned it into a perfect lesson. I remember when I first started reading your blog, I had more questions than answers on how you managed to live so frugally.
In the months I've been reading your posts - I've leanred so much and saved so much. I learned that while most people live up to and beyond their means, I don't have to. It's seldom easy to choose a frugal path, there is so much temptation to be "like everyone else". It sounds like this person has a difficult choice to make - whether to be like everyone they know, or they can choose to be their own person and follow a life (and budget) based on their core values.
You've been such an inspiration to me and so many others - it's great to know that at ANY income level, you can live, save, and plan for the future!
Hi Chicagolandia,
Thanks for your kind words. I am glad that I have a forum to help so many people. I am not a great writer nor have I done anything that all of you can't do. I'm just a person who lived way below her means and accounts for every penny we spend so that it is spent wisely. That way the net worth goes up and up and up! No one knows what tomorrow holds, but I want to be prepared for whatever happens. And I hope that all of you will be too!
Hi Sunnie,
Thanks for your nice comments. Congrats on owning your car and having and having no credit card debt! It is so freeing, isn't it? I hope you pay a bundle on your mortgage principle this year.
Oh boy...I hope you didn't get too angry with that e-mail. From the excerpt you showed us, it looks quite obvious that they were making things up to make you angry. Just think: why would they be reading this blog(or have been linked to this blog) if they weren't frugal already?
I sense a bit of jealousy and someone trying to boil your blood. We all know the truth! And you are an inspiration.
Hi Amiyrah,
At first, my dander was up. But then I realized what you just said.
I think she found my blog searching for help. I think she has bitten off more than she can chew but the fact that I am not in the same position set her off. I think she is frustrated with her own situation so the claws came out. I am just guessing because I really don't know.:-) However I have reached out to her and told her that I will be glad to help her on a one to one basis if she wants.
I think you handled the email well and turned it into a learning experience. I am a less than sixty year old widow with very little. But it was because we were stationed in Europe for a great many years and spent our 401K on that experience and experiences with our children. So not matter what life holds now, choices are made all along. I am not unhappy. Its also worth mentionigh though, that even at our age one can do things to improve life, and adjust.
Dear Precious;
I've been away (with no internet!) and so I was surprised to see you had a critic go off on you. That person sure knows how to waste time - instead of planning changes to solve her problems, she spends time venting on someone who has made better choices. I know I should NOT judge, but I'm afraid you are better at turning the other cheek than I am. I recognize myself and friends and family in so much of what you say, and am trying very hard to improve things. My in-laws bought their house for @ $40K, and when they died, they owed more than $125K. I distinctly remember her saying, Oh, you'll always have bills! When my FIL died, the pension stopped, so for 2 years, my MIL was living on Social Security of about $1250, with a mortgage of $1100 (she never discussed any of this with us, or we would of helped). She also paid $50 each toward two credit cards, which had been charged over their limit, and they charged her $25 each month as a fee for continuing to be over the limit! I almost cried when I saw those 2 bills after her death. You can imagine not much progress was made on the principal!
Anyway - sorry to vent - it's just that I know we make our own beds, and it's easy to look at other people's lives, and say - they have it easy - but you have to work on your own choices before you throw stones.
Happy New Year to You & Your DH - thanks for helping the rest of US!
Aloha, Hitenney
Precious-You are an inspiration to all young and not so young! I check your blog daily to compare my frugal ways with yours!
Thank you for showing us all the way!
Monique
PS could you post the pot sticker recipe? I really want to make them!
I just don't understand how people with that income have to put things on credit cards, have no savings etc...
WOW! I was really surprised by the email you recieved. I agree that she is probably sinking in financial burdens and cant see the light at the end of the tunnel. She should have emailed for guidance or answers to her questions about your income instead of bashing people who are proof that you can live happily debt free. You responded very well.
Precious I love your blog. It has truly inspired me to handle our finances better. My husband and I knew that when we had children we wanted me to stay home and raise them instead of some daycare. We lost more than half of our income, but with the changes we made we are in a better situation than when I worked financially (doesn't even sound like it makes sense huh?) It has taught me that when you make goals and stick to them they will come true with patience and diligence. When people have comments like the lady posted on your blog it is because they are jealous. I have heard working moms that have husbands that work and make plenty of money say that "I don't understand how women can afford to stay home". It sometimes makes me upset, because we make the sacrifices for me to stay at home. It is not all roses, we do not have brand new cars like they do and go on lavish vacations, but we have what we need and I feel very blessed. Anyways sorry for the long post, but I am thankful for you and your blog!!
Well spoken Precious! I love reading your blog, you both are such an inspiration. As a young married person myself I have learned these lessons early and hope to be living like you two during my retirement years. Well done!
www.thecravetosave.blogspot.com
Hi Barb,
Thanks for your kind words.
I am sure that you relish all of those memories with your children. :-)
We all make our own choices and have to take responsibility for them. I am happy that you are happy and I wish more older people would realize that they can be frugal and make a better future.
It does not take a lot of money to be really happy and I am glad that you are. :-) But most of the older people I know who are trying to make ends meet are extremely miserable. There is a difference between knowing you can survive and being stress free AND having planned so poorly that you don't know how you will pay for your meds, food, taxes, etc.
You hit the nail on the head, Precious! Excellent post! I have learned so much reading your blog. Thank you.
Hi hitenney,
I was getting worried about you since I hadn't heard from you. :-)
I can turn the other cheek for years on almost anything that is said to me. But say something about my children or my relationship with my children and you are history as an ex-relative has recently found out. This relative had the nerve to say to me that my children moved out of Arizona to get away from me. Nothing could be further from the truth! Both of them are thrilled that we have moved back to N.Y. and both of them would have loved for me to live where they live. We chose the area mostly based on the amount of cash we wanted to spend. It will be so nice to be 1/2 mile down the street from one of them. The others we will visit often. My DIL in Albany was just telling us last night, that she is about to get in the car and bring my grandaughter out to visit. She knows I would love that! I have a really loving relationship with my children and there seems to be a bit of jealousy on the relatives part there because she doesn't. This relative was striking out in anger, but that was not the way to do it. Say anything you want about me, argue with me, whatever, but how dare you ever bring my children into the argument. See, I am not perfect, I refuse to turn the other cheek when my children are unnecessarily brought into an argument. But that is the ONLY time that I will not turn the other cheek. That said. I am moving on.....
It's a shame that your MIL had to live like that. But I understand
her pride and not reaching out to you. I am sure that you would have loved to help her.
I hope that your MIL knew what was going to happen when your FIL died. That she wasn't kept in the dark. I have known couples where the woman is forbidden to ever open a bill. The husband handles everything. Most husbands that I have seen don't do that unless they have something to hide. Then the husband dies and the wife finds out that their financial situation is horrid - that they are in massive debt. Plus she has no idea how to handle a budget, a bill or anything. It's so sad. :-(
It is easy to throw stones and we do all make our beds. It's just easier for some of us to lay in them than others.
Sorry, I have rambled on way to long. Again I am glad to see you back! :-)
Hi Monique,
Thanks for you kind words. I'm only as old as I feel and today I feel 30! How about you? :-)
Here is the potsticker recipe that I use: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/pot-stickers-traditional/Detail.aspx
But this time I am going to use ground lamb because that is what I purchased cheap. I will use some ginger in them and the coleslaw mix which is basically shredded cabbage with a little shredded carrot. I will leave out the chili oil and water chestnuts. When I use pork, I follow the recipe exactly. Also you don't have to fry them; you can just boil them for a healthier meal. HTH!
Hi Abigail's Mommy,
They don't have to unless they have made bad choices.
Hi Debtfreemommy,
Thanks for your kind words.
Hi KadeandHeidi,
Staying home and having better finances makes a lot of sense to me! Daycare and other work expenses eat up a lot of income.
Working should be a personal choice. Many women can do it all and not have their lives suffer. Others can't and make a mess of things. I personally am grateful for so many women that work who are nurses, teachers, etc. Things that affected my every day life.
I am fortunate that DH and I thought alike and felt that our children would be better raised by me. We were always on the same page and for that I am thankful.
I am sure there are career women out there who would think that is nuts! It's all about personal choice. Oops, there is that word again. :-)
I am happy that you are happy with your situation. You do have to make sacrifices but are they really sacrifices? They never felt like it to me. Set your goals and be diligent like you are and you will have a wonderful life. :-)
Hi Gina,
Thanks. You are lucky to have learned while you are young. :-)
I am heading over to check out your website.
Hi bugsi033,
Thanks for your kind words.
Great post! We are a family of six living in an suburb of Los Angeles where the median home price is over $600,000. We have never made six figures partly b/c I have been a SAHM for all these years. I recently went part time to help fund college costs. Our house is 2 years away from being paid off and we will be entirely debt free this coming year.
I am always perplexed at six figure income families with few or no kids complaining about not being able to accomplish financial goals that are neccesary to support a comfortable retirement.
I can't say that we've had each and material thing we wished for but there has always been plenty of good food in the house, we are all dressed in clothing from stores such as Nordstroms, Gap, Ann Taylor etc and drive never paid for cars. How did we do it?
It is my belief that watching the pennies makes the dollars add up. Being discriminating about purchases and activities pays off bigtime. Too many folks just spend willy-nilly and then wonder where the money went. Precious, your blog is such a great day to day example of how to watch the little things in order to gain the big things that really matter. You rock :)
Hi itsmidnight,
Congrats on just about reaching your goal of having the house paid off. You are so right about watching the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves.
Precious, I'm cracking up rereading my post....never paid for cars, I think NOT! I really meant to say "newer" :)
Now that I think of it those "never paid" cars are probably contributing to what keeps your six figure lady from reaching her goals. So many things can undermine our financial goals and anything bought with borrowed money sits right at the top of the list!
Hi itsmidnight,
I am so glad that I am not the only one who makes mistakes and screws up what I want to say once in a while. :-)
Hi Precious,
I want to start off by saying that I visit your blog a few times a week and find it very helpful. I cannot believe that you received that kind of email!
I'm 26 years old and have been married for almost 3 years. I began couponing in October 2008. My husband and I currently live in a one bedroom apartment (housing in CT is kind of expensive), but we have been actively saving for a house. We plug away money in our savings account every month. We currently only have about $25,000 but we're hoping to grow that over time to make a substanial down payment on a house in the future.
I have to say that I do get a lot of flack/odd looks because I'm 'young' and use coupons - but I really do not care! I love using coupons and plan to continue to do so. It has helped us out in ways you cannot even imagine! We do not make six figures, nor have we ever (I'm currently unemployed), but we do not have any credit card debt, only student loan debt. I do agree that the person who wrote the letter did seem a bit jealous. I think way too many people dont see the value of saving money and they overspend and then get mad at the situation that puts them in.
I want to say kudos to you for showing that hard work and making the right choices will far benefit your family in the long run. I enjoy reading your blog and others like it because it's nice to feel connected to other people who share the same ideas and goals as I do.
I think you're doing a great job and do not get discouraged by nasty emails or people who just "don't get it"!
Hi Kimmie,
Thanks for your kind comments. $25,000. in savings is a serious amount of money. Keep saving and you will have a huge downpayment before you know it. :-)
Well, I'll add a final thing -- a few days late, I know.
What that person didn't even consider or take into account, is that you have decided to move to an area and build a home in region with a low COL. This means that the house you are getting for 300K is likely of the same quality and in a similar neighborhood to a house which could elsewhere cost you nearly twice as much.
You are doing well because you have made wise choices too.
I think you are realizing what a smart choice you made when you selected this area.
Hi Alex,
You are correct. This home that we are building would cost me $500,000in the Albany area. I know; we looked!
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