You are doing the Lord’s work.

Inoreader. Tried Feedly and others, but the UI and customizations work best for me.

Don’t forget that in some states, gaining access to a safe deposit box after the death of the owner can be an administrative nightmare.

I didn’t expect an Office Space reference from this article - well played.

Alicia, I clicked on this expecting to have a negative reaction (I’m a Certified Financial Planner professional and boy was that headline clickbait to me), but was pleasantly surprised. Great job pointing out some things that everyone should do!

Don’t forget those of us financial planners who act as a fiduciary as well. And an 8-year car loan paying interest on a depreciating asset is no bueno.

Not only should you consider how the source gets paid, but what is the source’s motivation?

Lots and lots of variables in answering that one. The bond portion of a portfolio isn’t just there for yield; otherwise, you’d ignore it completely for a long-term portfolio where equities historically have outperformed bonds. Bonds help provide a counterweight when equities go south.

Most 401(k)/403(b) plans at least have access to target-date or target-retirement year funds; while they often aren’t the cheapest, they do provide sufficient diversification starting at the first dollar. Fees are VERY important, but you don’t want to avoid .5% in additional fees and miss out on a portfolio that saves…

sorry, I read it as “this is what to do” instead of “do this, then come back for more”.

For #3, investing in just an S&P 500 index fund isn’t enough diversification (that’s only large U.S. companies) and company stock is a very limited diversifier (your income eggs are in the basket of the employer too). Use the tools provided by your 401(k) provider, and barring that, copy the ones that the Betterments…

Google “SEP IRA”.

It’s definitely not about the extremes but finding a balance. Where that balance is differs for many people. The key is to not destroy your future options with careless spending in the present, nor destroy your present life with excessive savings either.

From what you said, your life has improved a great deal from the lean years. Lifestyle creep is more about non-discretionary spending, depreciating assets, etc.

:) That path is different for everyone. I’ve seen millionaire scrap metal business owners, “lifers” at IBM, a few lucky enough to inherit some (don’t bank on that one), and mostly people who found a passion that they worked hard enough to become invaluable. Then their income rose and their desire to stop working…

Within reason of course... ;) It’s not all about sacrificing everything today for tomorrow, but balancing the needs of your current self and your future self.

Absolutely! It’s not that you cannot undertake any new expenses in your life, but that you make the decisions consciously. “We can fit Junior’s swim lessons in our budget” is different that signing up w/o thinking and then having to put it on credit card every month.

stevevetter, you’re absolutely right that none of us know whether tomorrow will be promised. I lost my father suddenly when he was 50 years old, so I get it. I’m glad that you have had such a great recovery from your stroke!

One of the KEY habits I work to instill in my clients is avoiding “lifestyle creep”. Some of the commenters already touched on this, but if you start out with a job making $30k/year, you somehow find a way to live. At that time, if someone offered you a job making $80k/year, you’d think you’d be rich! No more money…

Forgive me, but your “rough guide” was written in a tone of completeness and certainty on the topics you did discuss.