greenplasticme
Confused about dryer sheets
First of all, I would like to say thanks for taking the time to look at this thread. I am a newbie to this site (found it late last night) and I have enjoyed reading all of the posts about early retirement.
So, yes, my name is Nick and I am both new to the workforce and to the idea of early retirement. I received a B.S. in Marketing in 2009, and found a job in Oregon as a Web Developer, where I've been working for the past 4 months.
I am kind of ashamed as I do not have an emergency fund at all or a retirement fund. I am also about 54k in student loan debt (I'll explain in depth below), which is driving me crazy.
The company I work for offers a 401k, but no matching. They pretty much gave us a list of MF's and told us to select which ones we wanted to invest a % of our income.
I bike to work everyday, but I own a reliable car that was given to me by my parents, and they still pay the insurance (thanks mom and dad).
Alright on to the good stuff:
So what I'll do is list out my income, expenses and debts and allow ya'll to kind of 'guide' me on a few options and questions that I have.
So here we go:
INCOME (green is good):
$3k/month or $36k/year.
My gross salary is at $50k, but Oregon has no sales tax, and therefore I am taxed more for income
EXPENSES (red bad, boooo):
Currently, I am paying way too much for rent, but I was in a pinch and need a place until I had time to look (I was living in a shady motel). Ideally I will be paying max $350 come January 1st for rent.
Rent: $761
Utilities: $24
Cellphone (iPhone): $88
Internet: $35
Food: $150
Gas: $50
Credit Card: $15 minimum
TOTAL: $1123/month
I also have a credit card. I have rung up a total of $1500 ($2500 limit) with 0% interest until February.
STUDENT LOANS:
I will list cost per month and then give you my overall total per SL.
Loan 1: $66
Loan 2: $49
Loan 3: $208
Loan 4: $160
TOTAL: $483/month
OVERALL:
Loan 1: $2,500 @ 10.4%
Loan 2: $6,000 @ 6.25%
Loan 3: $24,000 @ 3.9%
Loan 4: $22,000 @ 6.13%
TOTAL: $54.5k
------------------------------------------
Alright, so if you are still with me; I thank you.
QUESTIONS:
1) So, roughly $1,600 goes to Expenses/Bills, and the rest $1,400 can go towards either investing or paying back my SL early. My plan is to start paying back the higher interest rate SL's first, so Loan 1, and then move down the list until they are all gone . I am wondering if this is a good idea?
2) Being that my employer does not match and I am pretty much on my own for retirement, I am thinking (after reading around this forum) that I will start a Roth IRA? Any suggestions?
3) I really want to start an emergency fund too, but I am having a hard time budgeting how much I should save vs. paying loans back early. Any suggestions?
That should do it for now. I really appreciate your time and input!
THANKS!!!
So, yes, my name is Nick and I am both new to the workforce and to the idea of early retirement. I received a B.S. in Marketing in 2009, and found a job in Oregon as a Web Developer, where I've been working for the past 4 months.
I am kind of ashamed as I do not have an emergency fund at all or a retirement fund. I am also about 54k in student loan debt (I'll explain in depth below), which is driving me crazy.
The company I work for offers a 401k, but no matching. They pretty much gave us a list of MF's and told us to select which ones we wanted to invest a % of our income.
I bike to work everyday, but I own a reliable car that was given to me by my parents, and they still pay the insurance (thanks mom and dad).
Alright on to the good stuff:
So what I'll do is list out my income, expenses and debts and allow ya'll to kind of 'guide' me on a few options and questions that I have.
So here we go:
INCOME (green is good):
$3k/month or $36k/year.
My gross salary is at $50k, but Oregon has no sales tax, and therefore I am taxed more for income
EXPENSES (red bad, boooo):
Currently, I am paying way too much for rent, but I was in a pinch and need a place until I had time to look (I was living in a shady motel). Ideally I will be paying max $350 come January 1st for rent.
Rent: $761
Utilities: $24
Cellphone (iPhone): $88
Internet: $35
Food: $150
Gas: $50
Credit Card: $15 minimum
TOTAL: $1123/month
I also have a credit card. I have rung up a total of $1500 ($2500 limit) with 0% interest until February.
STUDENT LOANS:
I will list cost per month and then give you my overall total per SL.
Loan 1: $66
Loan 2: $49
Loan 3: $208
Loan 4: $160
TOTAL: $483/month
OVERALL:
Loan 1: $2,500 @ 10.4%
Loan 2: $6,000 @ 6.25%
Loan 3: $24,000 @ 3.9%
Loan 4: $22,000 @ 6.13%
TOTAL: $54.5k
------------------------------------------
Alright, so if you are still with me; I thank you.
QUESTIONS:
1) So, roughly $1,600 goes to Expenses/Bills, and the rest $1,400 can go towards either investing or paying back my SL early. My plan is to start paying back the higher interest rate SL's first, so Loan 1, and then move down the list until they are all gone . I am wondering if this is a good idea?
2) Being that my employer does not match and I am pretty much on my own for retirement, I am thinking (after reading around this forum) that I will start a Roth IRA? Any suggestions?
3) I really want to start an emergency fund too, but I am having a hard time budgeting how much I should save vs. paying loans back early. Any suggestions?
That should do it for now. I really appreciate your time and input!
THANKS!!!