30-something ERA: do you feel financially secure?

[ngower]

I'm speaking primarily to the US-based folks, but anyone can chime in.

Do you have savings? Do you own a home or feel like home ownership is possible? Are you in debt? Is your income good/stable?

I feel like I'm only recently making decent income, and at that it's still pretty low. My retirement is tiny, my savings are tiny, I can't afford even a condo anytime soon...I definitely feel like I'm doing enough to stay afloat without too much fuss, but if I were to be laid off or had some crazy expense I'd probably be back to square one. This pandemic's shone a light on a lot of the financial precariousness in my life, and I'm wondering if others feel similarly?

I'm fully aware of the systemic reasons for this--and how so many are closer to bankruptcy than to being wealthy. But the point isn't about financial mobility or anything of that ilk: just about financial security.

 

[Deleted member 70788]

I do. I'm not super wealthy, but we're very lucky. I also am a worrier and COVID makes even me feel like it's at risk. We live in a country where medical bills can wipe out all but the wealthiest of people. So I doubt I'll ever feel secure enough to not worry.

 

[AliceAmber]

Hahahahah no. But I'm doing better than I was a few years ago so at least there is progress.

 

[shnurgleton]

I'm 31 and very secure. I don't a home because the median home price in my city is insane but I have like a half year of cash savings and at least a year's worth plus in retirement accts and investments

 

[Kill3r7]

Mid 30s, married with kids. My wife and I both work well paying jobs. We are not wealthy but we do have enough money set aside if things were to suddenly go sideways. We do own our home, although not fully paid off. Our expenses/budget are such that we can live on a single income if push came to shove.

 

[BossAttack]

Yeah, I've got a good amount tucked away. Still don't make as much as I should and I don't own a home since prices around here are insane. Oh well, just gotta keep saving.

 

[N64Controller]

Officially out of debt as of about a month or two ago. Been piling on since then. I don't have a lot saved up, but with my spending habits + no debt + all the bonuses that are coming, I have no fear for the future. Took me a while to offset my bad past decisions. But I made it :)

 

[electricblue]

Yeah more or less, I don't ever worry with bills its all automatic. Credit card is paid off every month
More coming in than going out, some small investments- i'm saving more lately because of COVID
My gf just quit her job because nobody wore masks (in Georgia) but I think we'll be fine

 

[Mathieran]

Kinda. We will be done paying off our house in a few years and our son is out of daycare and going into kindergarten so our disposable income is going to double. Gonna start putting a lot more into retirement. But currently my retirement account only has about 5k. But I also have a pension.

so we are comfortable now but I'm not feeling good about retirement. Luckily we have no debt other than our house.

 

[sphagnum]

Nope.

 

[El_TigroX]

Top end of my 30s, and the shock of the Great Recession had me in a similar situation as you - realizing how close I was to falling apart at a layoff or an issue. That caused me to dramatically rethink how I do everything from budgeting to saving for retirement.

It was a painful few years, but I have made progress. I am saving for a property of some kind... but I'm still fairly far away from where I want to be.

I followed a few financial tips and plans that slowly got me into a place of safety - saving the 6 months of emergency funds, putting enough to get company match in 401k, after a few years of just stabilizing that and putting some more money away... was able to get to a place where I could open an IRA. I would say I only have started to feel "security" in the last 2 years.

I often re-do my budget and get ruthless about cutting expenses, just so I can take another $20-$100 a month and put into savings.

 

[clearacell]

No longer in debt but I don't have stable job (not full time). I think once I finally get a full time job I will be much more stable as I dont require much that costs money, I'm a very simple guy.

 

[Interested Observer]

More-or-less. We're fine day to day, all the bills and the mortgage is paid. We borrowed 500k euro to buy our house which we can manage fine on a monthly basis but it definitely impacts our ability to save/afford stuff in the future. We have a couple of kids so they really are the focus financially until they hit adulthood. We definitely need more of a buffer, I have about 3 months wages stashed away but my wife has virtually nothing having gone 5 months unpaid after having our kids. We're still getting back on an even footing after that.

 

[thekonamicode]

39 here, so I'm almost unqualified to reply.

I'm fortunate to be working from home since March with no change in pay. We're building our second home, about to put the current home on the market. I'm able to max out 401k every year, have a little play money in the market, and have 3 months of expenses in savings, planning on having 6 months tucked away by the end of the year.

Had trips planned to Vegas, LA, Switzerland and Paris this year and that all fell through obviously which is why we decided to build a new house.

I mean anything can change, but my wife and I are DINKs, so I feel like we're cheating a bit there.

 

[Deleted member 4367]

Yeah we're good.

 

[Viewt]

Yeah we're doing well. We have enough tucked away to weather a major emergency or a period of unemployment. Though a good chunk of that will be spent next year when we put a down payment on a home.

I'm 31 and my wife is 30. We live in Chicago.

 

[weekev]

I'm 35. The past year is the first time in my entire life I've had more money coming in than going out. I have a path to financial stability but it will be a while till I can buy a house.

 

[Deleted member 11985]

No. I'm 32 and only just got back up to $0 net worth for the first time since I was 18. I have retirement accounts, but nowhere near the levels that are recommended for someone my age, and I still have a ton of student loan debt. I'm also depressed as fuck at my job, and I'm seriously considering turning in my two week's notice on Monday, which will probably put my finances back on edge for a little while, and put my net worth back down into negative territory.

And then there's the ever-looming spectre of the American health care black hole that always freaks me out. If you have the misfortune of not being a perfect specimen of a human and have to visit the hospital, then you get fucked by a whole new set of debt.

 

[Deleted member 6173]

I'm 36. Single. Townhouse is paid off. Full time job and 75k in savings. I'm doing okay financially, but I had help. Lived with my parents until I was 32 and saved like a crazy person to get the amount of money needed to move out and get a home.

 

[Vanillalite]

Sorta. We are working on it. Last year we had a ton of medical bills due to my son having minor surgery, my 2nd daughter being born, and then my new daughter had to go into the ICU for a bit.

We both work and do well though my wife is way more of the bread winner than me. We are working towards full financial independence this year though. We've paid off most of our non house debt, and we are working towards creating a nest egg along with doing some home repairs/upgrades.

 

[BennyWhatever]

Doing pretty well. Wife and I both make just a hair more money than we need, so we're building a little nest egg. Obviously my 401k is shit right now (it was so good this time last year). We have had some unexpected expenses like a $4k surgery for a dog and HVAC stuff, but otherwise we're doing fine and can actually donate money without it hurting us as badly (which feels good).

 

[sirap]

Yeah, I feel pretty secure.

 

[J_ToSaveTheDay]

I'm 33.

Income is stable. 50k/year salaried, frequent overtime due to my workplace being staffed by 4 when we're supposed to have 9. I work as a 911 dispatcher.

I still have 15k in student loans. I have about 2k left on my car loan; credit card debt at about 700, which includes recurring costs like internet and phone bills and that I pay off every month.

Rent is 1280 a month for a one bedroom apartment. Utilities varies month to month between 80 and 150 bucks.

I don't have a chance of home ownership in my area, and no savings. I don't quite live paycheck to paycheck but I don't really save. I have been in a habit spending on material goods in excess since I got this job in 2015, playing "catch up" I tell myself to the decade of my 20's where I either lived paycheck to paycheck or actually not being able to cover my bills at some points.

Oddly enough, I feel better off than many of my peers and direct friends and acquaintances, especially in light of COVID-19.

I live with a partner that's contributed about 500 monthly to all expenses and only worked part time pre-COVID. My partner has had reduced or no contributions monthly since March due to their job's closure — still had a basic payout this whole time but at much lower amounts, but at least no layoff or furlough. They work at a local art and science museum, and reopen next week, but my partner doesn't feel safe about it and has medical conditions that could make COVID very awful if they caught it. I don't mind, I've cut my own spending in ways to keep us afloat as their contributions reduced to pretty much nothing.

 

[Skade]

Yup. I'm not rich or anything but i don't have any debt apart for my appartment, i can put several hundreds or Euros in my saving account every month while still buying stupid shit on a whim. I'm fine.

I might ending up having some difficulties would i enter a relationship or worse, spawn kids. But has none of that is planned to happen (at all), i'm perfectly content with my earnings.

 

[djplaeskool]

I still got debt, but between good steady employment, growing savings and retirement, and a decent side hustle, I'm the most financially stable I've been in my life right now.

 

[Fatoy]

I'm nearly 38. We own more than half the value of our house, and we both work from home on our own business. We have savings and investments which definitely aren't enough to live off for any serious amount of time, but they'd tide us over for a year or so if business dried up.

From those points of view, we're pretty secure.

But that's just income; expenses are also a big consideration. We also have two children in private school (obviously a choice and a privilege) our business has gone through a few rocky patches, and we're paying off a car loan. There's a lot of money going out each month, even though we try to live frugally in terms of food (we almost never eat out) and clothes and holidays.

I've been in debt before. After university I was in a particularly bad way, with credit cards and loans I'd had to use to stay afloat. It took years to claw that all back, so that's part of the reason I try to keep a big safety net these days. And also, because my wife was a full-time mum for five years, we needed a big buffer in case anything happened to me work or health-wise.

 

[linkboy]

I've got nothing.

I'm basically fucked if things get shut down again.

I'll lose my car, and my wife's car was totalled in a hail storm, which we're still trying to figure out what to do.

The only saving grace is that my rent is tied to my income and will basically be nothing if I don't have a job.

 

[Violence Jack]

I'm in my late 30s, and I'd say that I'm pretty financially stable. I have a house, a wife, and a kid. Once said child is out of daycare in a few years, we'll be even better off and can start paying off our student loans while paying more towards our monthly mortgage. We have an emergency fund, a couple of Roth IRA accounts, pretty healthy 401ks, and excellent credit scores. Despite that, we still live rather frugal lifestyles because we'd rather save for later than splurge on meaningless stuff now.

 

[Ziltoidia 9]

For now. Who knows what the Corona age will bring. The economic impact will be felt for the entire 2020s.

 

[____]

I am, much more than I deserve to be.

But I do work hard, so there's that.

 

[Forerunner]

I'm 31 and it's a non issue atm.

I have more than enough in my checking and savings.

I have great retirement because of FERS.

ROTH IRA through my bank.

TD Ameritrade account for stock investment funsies.

I have no noticeable debt beside my car and that's not an issue. The only thing I'm really missing is homeownership, but that can wait. I started my graduate program, so I'm paying out of pocket and just living with my parents until I'm done. So the majority of my money is going to education or savings/investments. I made a lot of good choices such as joining the military to pay for college, living within my means, and saving early in life. However, luck has also been a factor. I have very supporting parents that have allowed this (not having to pay rent or utilities is a huge boon) and being able to land good jobs. Furthermore, I'm single so spouse and children aren't a factor.

 

[Yourfawthaaa]

No. My savings are good though.

This pandemic really didnt help either. My organization is going through a transition and im not sure if ill have a job past december so...gotta make moves.

 

[Ramathevoice]

Ish? My wife has a stable job, I have a mostly stable client base as an independent contractor. We don't have huge savings or anything, but we're independent from our parents and make enough to pay for rent, utilities, quality food and the occasional holiday or luxury (TV, computer, etc.). If anything happened though, I'm very lucky that my parents are pretty well-off and would help us out of a jam in a heartbeat.

Definitely never going to be a homeowner or accumulate any serious savings outside of inheriting though.

 

[DarthWalden]

I own a home and have a good chunk of equity plus a decent chunk put away in retirement savings.

I have very little in the way of savings nor do I have any other investments.

I have some debt in the form of about 1.5 year left of car payments and a small chunk of money on a LOC.

I do have 3 kids though which makes it extremely difficult to save.

I do not feel very secure financially...

 

[THErest]

No.

Florida teacher (with an immuno-compromised wife) about to be thrown to the wolves.

 

[Aldi]

Late 30s

I have around 8 years left on my mortgage with some savings, some money invested in shares and a good pension. I was very close to losing my job not long ago (my company let a 3rd of the staff go) and i think i worked out that i would be able to get by for around 6 months. Both my Wife and I are in work but i am paid far more than her, so it would hit us a lot harder if i lost my job.

Saying all this, i still don't feel financially secure. My wife is paying off some heavy student debts and we are saving to move homes, so anything could happen.

 

[Vern]

Yea I'm secure.

No I don't own a home or have any desire to own a home. I don't have any debt. I semi retired at 31, went back to work at 32. Semi retired again at 34, opened my own restaurant now. It's going so so, covid didn't help. But if I lose it all it'll suck but I'll still be financially secure. As long as the markets don't tank.

No kids though. If I ever get a girl pregnant on accident that will throw a monkey wrench in the system. Might need to go back to work. Don't have children.

 

[Torpedo Vegas]

 

[ngower]

No. I'm 32 and only just got back up to $0 net worth for the first time since I was 18. I have retirement accounts, but nowhere near the levels that are recommended for someone my age, and I still have a ton of student loan debt. I'm also depressed as fuck at my job, and I'm seriously considering turning in my two week's notice on Monday, which will probably put my finances back on edge for a little while, and put my net worth back down into negative territory.

And then there's the ever-looming spectre of the American health care black hole that always freaks me out. If you have the misfortune of not being a perfect specimen of a human and have to visit the hospital, then you get fucked by a whole new set of debt.

Click to shrink...

I just recently left a job that was killing me. Don't quit without a job lined up.

 

[PelvisParsley]

What is financial stability?

One of the weird things that happens, at least in my experience, is that once you start doing well enough financially, you start comparing to a different, socioeconomic class. I don't start making a better income and look down on people are struggling financially. But you do inevitably focus on the people who are similar, or better off to you, and wonder why you don't have as much saved as them. Or go on as many vacations. So on and so forth.

So objectively I would argue that I am financially secure. But I certainly don't feel it. I could always be doing more.

 

[Deleted member 1086]

32, I just bought a house a couple weeks ago and have a credit score in the mid 700s. I could have more savings(could always have more), but I feel I'm doing pretty good.

 

[Exagenous]

Mid 30s I'm ok. My girlfriend is deep in student debt which worries me. But we have worked together to help her make progress on it. I'm not buying a house yet but soon maybe next year. We shall see what happens.

 

[Prax]

We're secure here. Age 35 now. Married, own a humble and convenient condo, both have full-time union jobs working grocery (recession and pandemic resistant!). The pay's not high (~50k each if expected overtime is included), but the healthcare, retirement, and survivor benefits are decent.

I also did some finagling to try to get half ownership of my parents' house like an early inheritance so I could finance the loan required to fix it up. They'll be switching to living in my condo for at least a little while, but I guess I technically own 1.5 properties now since they don't qualify to taking over my condocs mortgage.

It took maybe until age 32 for me to go full-time due to mental health issues and just general dicking around, but I pulled it together finally when I laid down a financial plan. We generally live well below our means.

We have roughly 4 months in emergency savings, and maybe are a little under a million in networth due to longterm savings and real estate appreciation/acquisition.

Things will get more precarious as I am expecting a child soon, but I think we'll still have enough wiggle room to save some money each month despite it.

I also live in Canada, so I won't be bankrupted by most medical emergencies, and if I had to go on welfare, I'd figure it out.

 

[Basquiat]

I'm 28 right now. I have enough that if I lost my job I could live comfortably for at least a year and not get into debt. Still renting though and hope in the next couple of years I can move over to a mortgage. Depends on how well my stocks do (outlook not great 🤷🏽‍♂️).

 

[Chivalry]

30. Hell no.

 

[Astronut325]

38, not quite. I have a home, a retirement account, and some savings. Despite all of that, no.

 

[ace3skoot]

UK here. We rent a small flat, owning a home is just a pipe dream at this point. We live week to week and just about get buy, covid has made job security very low and uncertain. I love my family I just wish we had a little bit saved up for a rainy day but you just make the best of what you got.

 

[JCLShay]

I went fucking CRAZY in my 20's. I'm 35 now and just starting to get out of debt, but I feel pretty okay.

 

[Kunka Kid]

Hell naw

 

[shintoki]

Okayish, but not were I wan to be