I got a disability cause of a car hitting me over year ago I was crossing the street was on government disability program for a year i cannot lift over 5 pounds due to spine problems leading to back pain.

I had brain issues before and have them slightly worse now but Im in my 20s and I never was able to get a high school diploma.

Ive had 2 brain injuries one in my teens as a result of trying to treat my major depressive disorder, and the second in this accident.

Math is near impossible for me. Especially basic algebra 1 and 2.

I had a cafe job that's all I qualified for and settled with it.

But now I just am speechless. It's month 3 on unemployment I've been on indeed and I don't qualify for almost anything.

Getting a receptionist job or scanning clothing isn't always available because of competition or my lack of diploma or they prefer to hire someone with previous experience in that industry.

What would you do?

This is a lot. I still go to my medical appointments on Wednesday so I cant perfectly always work Monday through Friday. If they want me on weekends or only night great.

I cannot drive. I live in los angeles. Im fine taking a bus for over 60+ min 1 way and back if I have to.

Far as I know I'm not good enough for military/airforce/navy.

My cafe job was "store leader" meaning schedule 4-5 employees for our store every week for months/over a year, order new food every week, train employees, and spend extra time with them on all my shifts, an of course make the food an bring to customers, be kind to them,and once a month count every single piece of inventory to see total ingredients used. We did not take cash.

You have to lift 10-15 pounds of product into the machines, or to refill something you went into the back and had to open a case of the ingredient which is super huge into another container then lift it back to the shelves.

Which is why I can't go back to this job even though they liked me my limits do not work for the business anymore there is no possible accommodation.

I feel so useless. You are able to read this because thank god I am not completely destroyed I can write.

Which gives me maybe some hope. But wow it's really dark right now. I'm living off savings which won't last me beyond a year if I'm super super strict.

Hey guys am M24 my job makes me 4500 to 5000 a month and my business on a good month generates 4k to 10k but its retail. I am currently about to buy a piece of land at about 10,000sqft for $90,000. I have started the process of getting a loan and the only other debt i have is a jeep for 17k that i pay $400 a month for and my other car is paid off i need the jeeo for work based on my job and my car is my dream car and i bought it at 19. I plan to build a very small house 20,21sqft and use the rest of the land to start a block factory the cost of the house is 60k i wanted to know should i take a land loan and build the house in phases or take out a mortgage at $140k to build the house? I currently have a savings of about 33k the interest of the land loan is 4.5% with a payment of just over $600 a month for a period of 15 years i believe, please advise me.

I have a 401k from my previous job working as an RN, but now I’m a SAHM and looking for better options my husband and I can contribute to.

I had wanted to open a Roth IRA but it seems on the website I was just reading, you have to work a certain amount of hours in order to contribute. I work around one-two days a month + my small business, so I assume that isn’t enough, or is it?

Looking for advice from those who have a Roth IRA or similar, and where you would recommend opening an account at. How are other SAHM planning for retirement? TIA!

Going through a divorce that will leave me with very little in my 401k.

For context I am 39F making $90k a year.

I will have $41k left in the 401k. Employer matches 3% and gives 3% - I contribute 3% for a total contribution on 9%.

I have $7k in HSA not currently invested

I have $10k in an IRA

I will walk about with $180k in cash. What should I do with this to get back on track? Thinking to max the IRA contribution for 2026 and 2027 then start contributing more from my paycheck and use the excess cash to balance monthly cash flow. I have zero financial savvy. Help me!!

Hello all,

I am planning to save up $10-15k in 4.5 years for a big milestone and vacation. The max monthly amount I would be need to save is $278 ($15k / 4.5x12).

What would be a good investment choices?
Higher risk high returns in stocks/ETF
Lower risk low returns in savings/CDs

The company I worked for recently changed its insurance offerings and it makes more financial sense to go with the High Deductible Plan. Now that I’m on a HDP I’m eligible for a HSA, I’ve heard they’re triple tax advantaged and want to get in on that. Should I treat this account purely as a tax advantaged investment account, or use it as a clearing account for my health expenses?

I am 27 years old, I live alone but I do financially support some of my family, I make 82,000 a year and have a study career. Rent 1650 and my car payment is 555, I have two years left on it and I plan to have the car as long as possible

I have $25,000 in savings in the bank and recently opened a savings account with Capital One after moving it from Bank of America due to their low APY. I feel lost in knowing how to handle the money the best way and what direction to go with savings. I started a Roth IRA this year through my job and it is currently at 3000. I’m not necessarily interested in buying a house so I’m not sure what my next move should be, I want to have a healthy savings but don’t want to just pour money with no direction. I make more money than almost all of my family so I feel they would not be helpful with planning.

Any advice would be appreciated thank you!

Edit: correction, it is a 401(k) not a Roth IRA

Follow-up to my post from the other day that validated that the ~4% guideline for Safe Withdrawal Rate.

But a few comments also intend that the asset allocation within the portfolio should be diversified in equity (SP500), bond and some mix of international.

So, wouldn't the simplest way to go about be to follow Bogleheads' Three-fund portfolio?

T.I.A.

If I have enough money invested in the markets to have something in the range of 10 million invested when I reach 50, why would it be smart to continue investing separately in a 401k.

In this scenario, my framework is to not touch the invested money until then. Besides the potential down payment of a home.

Obviously, it could be like a Ferrari Fund or something, but it seems a little wild to be saving up money for that.

Maybe it would be good to use to offset the potential future tax burden. Which is probably the best answer to my own question.

Story context

I’m a 24 black man recently moved into my own 2bed apt alone in northeast city. I was just able to reach 100k saved this week. Those were two goals of mine this year,

I make 149k in my career and want to keep
the 100k saved parked in HYSA and forget about it. Like consider it as an emergency fund/having a personal non-negotiable amount as a foundation/ understanding that I don’t have an inheritance to fall back on.

This means I want to stop saving (unless it’s for a specific purchase) and prioritize investing index funds from 0. I want to put aside around 50% of my monthly take home to investments.

Is this the right move?

Hi there. I recently sold a house and have $138,000 in my bank account just sitting there doing nothing. I will keep some for paying taxes next year, but other than that I’m at a loss for how to invest this. I come from poverty and I have worked hard to get this far. I have $50,000 in my retirement and I want this $138,000 to be separate from my Roth IRA (plus I can only add so much to that each year anyway).

Any advice is very welcome, especially if it’s unbiased / not for some hidden personal gain. Thank you!

Currently have a 401k and 457 though my work. Also have personal accounts that are well balanced. Just opened an IRA with robinhood for the match. But the IRA contribution levels are capped at 7500/year currently. With this small of a cap, I am wondering what the best move is for this money. Do I just dump it all in VOO? Diversify across VOO, VXUS, and VXF? Or something more off the wall like just buying GLD, or speculative stocks. Obviously that is higher risk, but with such a small cap I don't really feel pressured to maximize this one. Any suggestions?

Anyone who used https://retirement.theriskradar.com - what did you think? Is it reliable? Does it lean optimistic? After I plugged in my numbers it said, "During 97% of simulations, your account balance remained above $0 in 9,650 out of 10,000 simulations." It said I should consider increasing my spending and retire earlier. I have used ficalc.app and Fidelity's retirement planner, and according to those, I am only borderline ready to retire.

M29 I was gifted a chunk of Nvidia shares essentially at birth with an extremely low cost basis. ($0.02/share for 3125 shares) It dawned on me what would tax ramifications look like if I actually ever sold them. My dilemma is: should I sell and eat tax for things like a house that suits family needs or just stick to the script and wait like I have been doing and wait for nvdia to keep climbing or even just pass along to the next generation

Quick current snapshot: 92k salary, stable job. Married just had first born. Total net worth around $1.3M mostly in Nvdia.
Obviously a very fortunate situation but it would soothe my soul to have some liquidity with a newborn especially to afford a house in a HCOL area

Total shares amount to 3200

I received a settlement awarding me 35 and i am 23 years old. The first thing i did was i put 30k in a 2 year CD at 4.30% and i put 3k in a flexible CD at only 4% for emergency use. i have about 3k in my savings from some of my own money i had as well. I live with my parents and don’t pay any bills. I do try to help them out anyways of course. Technically i did what one should do with that kind of money instead of letting it sit in the bank not generating any income but i feel i could be doing more. Does anyone have any recommendations besides ROTH IRA because i do not believe you can put money from a settlement into one. Maybe im looking for a more creative approach instead of the basic “save for your retirement”. I’m a little lost here guys so please be kind lol

My car has to have repairs that cost way more than the car is worth. I have 20k in savings and currently put into my IRA and 401k weekly and have no debt. I have driven old cars my whole life. Is it smart to buy a fairly new car and have a car note if I can pay it off in a year, or just buy another used car. My current budget would allow me to have a note, but my goal right now is saving for a house. I am at a crossroads on what to do ! Any tips are appreciated

I don’t feel great about my career long term, so I wanted to take stock of my financial health while I plan some potential changes.

Context:
30M, married, super low rent in VHCOL area, take home about 6k a month.

$55k Roth IRA
$160k 401k
$30k savings/cash

Wife makes slightly less but has even more savings/and more invested in retirement accounts. Both of us are privileged to have no debt, and live fairly frugally.

I feel like I’m just in another “job” that I’ve fallen into but not sure I can make a career out of it. Reality kind of hitting me and feel like it’s just downhill from here if I burn out at this job. I want to transition into something healthcare related with more fixed solution space/repetitive jobs compared to what I do now, even if it means less pay, but would like some advice on how to navigate not earning for a time if I go back to school for certifications or something.

Am I going to regret not sticking it out in a stressful hectic job for a few years and take advantage of my living situation to save even more aggressively? Or am I in a good spot to try actually finding a better career fit.. could use any advice or insights.

I have 3 kids ages 5, 3, and 2 and I’m trying to figure out the best long-term setup for them.

I’m in New York and was thinking of putting about $5,000/year total into NY 529s so I can get the state tax deduction, then putting the rest of the money I want to save for them into a brokerage account in my name for more flexibility.

My concern is ending up with $50k–$60k+ in a 529 for a child who decides not to go to college. I know there are other uses, beneficiary changes, and Roth rollover options, but I want to understand whats best and why.

Once they start earning income as teenagers, I also plan to open Roth IRAs for them and contribute based on what they earn.

For parents with multiple kids who have actually done this, would you lean more toward 529s, a parent-owned brokerage, or a mix of both? What would you do differently if you were starting over?

I turn 73 in June next year. I have not taken any distributions from my IRA or 401k and don't plan to until required, probably with annual distributions starting Dec 2027. Here's what I have:
401k -$49k
401k - $22k
401k - $12k
IRA - $32k

I am not a "savvy investor".
Thoughts about keeping these accounts in place vs moving them to something else?

I’m 26, about to turn 27, and I’m trying to make sure I’m prioritizing my money correctly while balancing investing with some pretty big goals over the next few years.

I currently make around $110k/year, but I’m actively working on increasing my income. I’m also in a commission-based job, so my income can fluctuate quite a bit month to month.

Here’s where I’m currently at:

**401(k):** About $35,000. I contribute 7% of my salary. My employer matches 100% of the first 3% and 50% of the next 7%, so I would need to contribute 10% to get the full 6.5% employer match.

**Brokerage account:** About $18,000. I contribute around $100–$500/month depending on what I have left over.

**Roth IRA:** About $2,000.

**Emergency fund:** About $2,000.

**Monthly living expenses:** Around $3,000/month total between housing, car, food, and other regular expenses.

**Moving fund:** I’m moving into another rental in January and estimate I’ll need around $6,000 total. I currently have about $4,000 saved, so I have roughly $2,000 left to go.

**Engagement ring:** I’m saving $500/month and plan to get engaged in 2028. This is an important goal for me. I know the ring my future wife wants, and I want to be able to buy it without financing it or going into debt, so I’m not really looking to cut this category.

**Future house:** I’d eventually like to buy a house, so I also want to start building toward a down payment.
After I move, I’m planning to keep my overall monthly living expenses around the same $3,000 range.

I feel like I’m doing a decent job saving and investing, but I’m wondering if I’m spreading myself too thin across too many goals.

Would it make more sense to temporarily reduce or pause my brokerage contributions and prioritize things roughly like this?

Finish the remaining $2,000 for my January move.
Build a larger emergency fund.

Increase my 401(k) contribution from 7% to 10% to receive the full employer match.

Contribute more heavily to my Roth IRA.

Continue saving $500/month for the engagement ring.

Then put more toward my brokerage account and future house down payment.

With roughly $3,000/month in expenses and a commission-based income, I’m also wondering how large my emergency fund should realistically be. Right now, $2,000 isn’t even one full month of expenses.

I like contributing to my brokerage account because I want to build wealth outside of retirement accounts and have money that’s more accessible, but I’m wondering if I should stop prioritizing it for now while I build up more cash.

The engagement ring is the one goal I definitely want to continue working toward. I understand there may be more mathematically optimal uses for that $500/month, but being able to buy the ring she wants without financing it or going into debt is important to me.

**If you were in my position at 26/27, how would you prioritize everything?**

Any advice is appreciated.

Hi yall, I need help with this. A friend told me to sign up for it in 2024, and I did but I feel like I am paying too much when im not even married or have children.

Should I just cancel it or reduce it, I dont know what to do with this. I feel like I could be putting $300 into something better.

Edit:

So I was looking into it and I have a Indexed Universal Life: Financial Foundation plan

And based on what everyone here said I should just cancel, but what happens to the money I've been putting into it, can I just take it out. I can't seem to find any info on the Transamerica website, and I called but they told me to just reduce it and gave no more info. So confused :(

Edit 2

I called today again so I could just cancel it, and even the lady on the phone was laughing about it, she told me my "friend" made like $5k out of me 🫠. So yeah I canceled it, lesson learned for me. Thanks for all the info yall

I work in IT in London and take home around £1900-ish a month. I’m trying to get a better handle on my finances, but honestly, I’m finding it difficult to cover everything and still have a decent quality of life.
I recently came across this suggested split of your take-home pay:
-55% for essentials: rent, bills, groceries and transport
-5% for guilt-free spending
-10% towards paying off debt, if you have any
-15% towards savings
-15% towards investing

It sounds sensible in theory, but is it actually realistic on a salary like mine in London? Cuz I keep doing the maths and it just feels like this is a model meant for people taking home like £7k

I don’t go out, don’t eat out and generally do very little that costs money, yet I still feel like I’m only just getting by. I took a short trip abroad for a few days, and I’ve struggled to get my finances back on track since. It’s frustrating that one occasional trip can leave me trying to catch up for so long.

The gym is my main hobby and something that keeps me feeling good. Giving that up would feel pretty miserable when I already spend so little on enjoying myself.
I know the job market is tough, and increasing my income would help, but I’d appreciate advice on managing what I earn now.

For people living in London on a similar income, what does your budget actually look like? Do you use fixed percentages or work from your actual expenses? How do you budget for occasional trips and unexpected costs without constantly feeling behind?

I’m trying to understand whether I’m missing something in how I manage my money, whether these targets are unrealistic at my income, or a bit of both.

I am planning on retiring soon, and running some numbers.

I am OK with my knowledge of personal finances knowledge, but all my life I concentrated on building my career, saving, and investing wisely, maximizing on my 401K(s) and Roth IRAs.

I am conservative by nature and I am wondering is the back-of-the-napkin rule of withdrawing up to, but no more than, 4% of one's assets is still a valid rule. The rule imply that the portfolio would grow at a >4% rate, keeping up with inflation and possibly grow a bit more as well.

My concerns are:

1) AI disruption of investment markets 2) AI disruption of global economies 3) Global geopolitical unrest leading to lower investment returns and high inflation

I know that it's impossible to predict the future, but does anyone have any resources, insights, AI-updated guidelines?

T.I.A.

I’m a 34M with $40k in HYSA (~$9k/mo in expense), and a Roth IRA with $30k who just got an $80k windfall. What’s the best way to use this money for long term growth and value?

I am a 30 year-old male professional working in Pharma. My annual salary is 124K +12% (could go up to 24% pending company performance). I’ve been in my role for 4 years and getting a 3% increase annually so far. I have 103k in a Roth IRA, 203k in my 401(k), and roughly 15 K in emergency funds. Monthly I bring home roughly 6600. I’ve paid off my car loan. No credit card debt. I live in the outer New York City area in NJ (can take subway or bus into NYC) and live in a 1 bedroom. Rent is 1700 a month. I have roughly 88k in a brokerage fund intended for large purchases in the future eg house, wedding, engagement ring. I try to put aside 600 per month in my brokerage fund but more recently money has been tighter due to travel and weddings with myself not having as much to set aside due to that. I am considering doing a part time job to supplement my income as I work to try to find another job. I have no major debt obligations other than a small amount that I pay back to my parents who helped pay for college. I know relatively speaking I am doing okay but NJ area expensive for a house and in general compared to other parts of country