What was / is your Net Worth at 25?

[~Ari~]

Husband and I are pretty new to the mustachian way of life and are working hard to save and pay off our small debts. We were curious to where we stand compared to others here our same age. Or others who are FIRE now and where they were at in there mid 20's. I am 24 and DH is 25. We have a Net Worth of $130K. DH works as a Mechanical Engineer making $56,000 a year and a crop farmer making anywhere between $1K - $20K depending on the year. I work part time making ~$20K a year. 

Thanks!

[lthenderson]

I graduated college at 24 and had about $100 to my name (but no debt) after making two months deposit on my apartment. By 25, I probably had $5k in a checking account and the beginnings of a 401k. I still think about those times now and then and realize I've been very fortunate since.

[NESailor]

I graduated college at 24 and had about $100 to my name (but no debt) after making two months deposit on my apartment. By 25, I probably had $5k in a checking account and the beginnings of a 401k. I still think about those times now and then and realize I've been very fortunate since.

About the same.  Maybe $10K but I'm not sure.  I didn't make the best of choices until about 30-31 but I'm on track to approach FI around 40.  Our total gross household income at 25 was about 75-85K.

[mb196]

In my circles there are very few people who have had their shit together at 25, excepting those who inherited or their parents were wealthy.

May I ask the point of this question?

When I started learning about personal finance, I went through a phase of identifying my problem areas and creating plans to correct them.  That takes years.    I also tend to look in the rearview mirror only to reflect on a mistake or a plan/strategy that did not work.   My energy is best spent looking ahead.   Always Forward.......

[Lagom]

Wow, you guys are doing fantastic! I was in a codependent relationship at 25 that resulted in mutual enabling in the spending department, culminating at something like -$150k net worth when we were maybe 27 or so. At 25 that might have been about -$100-110k. So compared to me you're gangbusters.

Fortunately, I am now in an amazing relationship with a fellow mustachian, and at 33 we have a positive (barely) net worth, with a steep upward trajectory looking forward. Maybe you and I can FIRE the same year :)

[skeptic]

I'm curious what answers you'll get too.

Net worth was ~$5,000 when I turned 25 and was single. Now at age 36, married with two kids, and our household net worth is ~$650,000, about half of that in the house and about half in investments/cash. So I guess you could say my personal net worth is ~$325,000, but I don't really think in those terms.

But... I pretty much didn't save any money until I was 24.5 (didn't earn much either); starting then I began putting as much away as I could each year... the year I was 25 I saved $12,000, on a $37,000 gross salary.

Good/lucky home purchase has contributed about $125,000 to that total household net worth... the rest was through saving, and very modest investment growth.

Sounds like you are doing a great job with earnings and your net worth! Plenty at 25 are still negative due to student loans and/or credit cards.

[[a]bort]

25, ~70k, maxed TFSA and will max out RRSP shortly.

[Bracken_Joy]

At 25, I was back in school for my second degree- this one with job prospects, but I had to take SLs to go back (my first I had a scholarship). So I had money saved and invested from my previous go at life, about $25k, but also took on a lot of debt for school- like $55k before all was said and done. Got married at 26, and our combined NW was right around $0. Now, edging close to 28, we have a NW of $65k (without home equity counting) or $96k with equity factored in.

It's incredible how quickly things snowball in just a couple years if you get everything set up well- and you guys are in a fantastic spot!

Remember though, ultimately it's about where you are relative to your past, and relative to your goals for your future. Use where other people are as inspiration or a point of interest, but don't give it much weight. We're all running very different races here.

[Zikoris]

I only have my individual net worth on hand, not our combined household net worth. We were pretty even back then, so feel free to double the numbers if it's helpful.

I started my FIRE pursuit a month before I turned 25, and my net worth was around zero at that point. At least I wasn't deeply in debt, I guess. When I turned 26, my net worth was $12,619. When I turned 27, $30,843. 28, $54,022. 29, $71,742. I just turned 30, and I'm at $120,941. I've never made a huge amount of money - it's ranged from about 25K-40K over the years, and I don't anticipate ever earning much more than that given my career and lifestyle choices.

Watching the rate of acceleration increase is really cool.

[~Ari~]

At 25, I was back in school for my second degree- this one with job prospects, but I had to take SLs to go back (my first I had a scholarship). So I had money saved and invested from my previous go at life, about $25k, but also took on a lot of debt for school- like $55k before all was said and done. Got married at 26, and our combined NW was right around $0. Now, edging close to 28, we have a NW of $65k (without home equity counting) or $96k with equity factored in.

It's incredible how quickly things snowball in just a couple years if you get everything set up well- and you guys are in a fantastic spot!

Remember though, ultimately it's about where you are relative to your past, and relative to your goals for your future. Use where other people are as inspiration or a point of interest, but don't give it much weight. We're all running very different races here.

Thank you for your input. That is exactly why I asked. I know everyone is completely different, but I wanted to use where others were/are at as inspiration to keep doing what were doing! We were at ~$80K this time last year, so we have made a big jump just this year....that has given us great confidence. We are working hard to keep our spending low. Some months are harder than others, but we know it will be worth living the way we do in the long run. Thanks!

[Saskatchewstachian]

Currently 25 so will use numbers as of this month which gives DW and I a NW of 208k.

We have been incredibly fortunate, DW graduated at 22 and me at 23 and we have made ~150k/yr combined for the last two years. This year it will be ~200k. That being said, we should have a higher NW than what we do however we did the typical 25y.o. with lots of money things like backpacking Europe after school, upgrading cars, etc.

Discovered MMM about 6 months ago and since have gone from savings rate of 20% to over 50%. We both left school with no student debt as University is much cheaper in Canada and we both worked hard over the summers. Goal for this coming year is to save just over 100k and to have 1M by the time we are 35. That may sound easy given where we are now but income will drop substantially in 1.5 years as my job at site away from home ends.

[2Birds1Stone]

$30k with a $50k income

[aceyou]

Not really sure, but it was likely somewhere between 40-80k I'd think.  It was definitely positive.  My wife and I never did college debt.  Her parents paid for hers and I worked like a crazy person.  We always drove very old used cars.  I started tracking net worth at 31. 

[human]

I was negative at 25 with a 30k student loan but at least I had 12 months of no interest. I think I applied to extend that because I wasn't making much money. A year later I went and did a Master's so got interest freeze again. I didn't add to the loan while doing the Master's. I don't think I got that loan paid off until I was 32 or 33.  I'm now 38 with a net worth of about 70k so you are gangbusters at that age.

[KelStache]

Nice job!

I'm 24 and husband is 25 - together we have a net worth of $38K.  I've been working almost 1.5 years, and hubby just started a few months ago :) 

[Counting_Down]

at 25/26 (me/S.O.) combined 'stache was 320K, NW was 490K.  High earners in HCOL area.  No student loan debt.  Discrepancy between 'stache and NW is home equity. 

[~Ari~]

at 25/26 (me/S.O.) combined 'stache was 320K, NW was 490K.  High earners in HCOL area.  No student loan debt.  Discrepancy between 'stache and NW is home equity.

Wow! That's awesome! Great work!

[TheAnonOne]

About 300k

We seem to be improving at a rate of 100 to 120 a year given a flat or slightly up market.

[boognish]

Seems like half the threads on the first page of this board are some variation of this question. Probably indicative of my own insecurities, but these threads seem like a dick measuring contest (lady dicks are in there too). I recognize that half of the responses have a negative NW, but I always fixate on the über successful folks (def a personal problem)

[rocketpj]

Roughly zero, though I wasn't really thinking in those terms at the time.  I had just whipped my sorry debt ridden butt into shape and paid off an ill-advised credit card and some other silly debts that had haunted me for a year or two.  I suppose it might have been slightly positive as I had just opened an RSP for the first time.

On the one hand I had no debt anymore and was living on a boat, very frugal and mustachian - except, I wasn't saving anything significant either.  My job at the time meant I was spending >200 days a year at sea, which had the unfortunate effect of giving me all the rationalization I needed to spend like a lunatic when I got ashore.

[Northwestie]

Working on fishing boat in AK - so likely around $2k,  with about $3k of climbing gear - not so liquid an asset.

[soccerluvof4]

25 I was beyond broke, divorced with a little one and living on a friends couch in the basement. By 27 I was up and rolling again. Self employed and back in the 6 figures.

[syednaeemul]

At 25 definitely a negative figure, as I had a large student loan, was spending like there was no tomorrow (thankfully not with credit cards), and also had a car loan. Let's see: $40k student loan, $14k car loan, and not much in savings - about $44k in the red all up.

[McStache]

Currently about half way through 25.  Single.  NW is ~170k now.  Was about 135k at the beginning of 25 and am shooting to hit 200k before I turn 26. Gross income is 90k(ish).

[chweezzy]

im 25 now and have 20 grand ... paid off vehicle and motorcycle. no debt.  growing the stache hard next year ...  spent WAY too much last year.

[sleepyguy]

Hmmm, $2k if that?  Made hardly anything and spent it all.

Damn, those are some impressive NW numbers above me.  We're both 38 now and in a good spot.  I probably didn't really get my finances in order until early 30s.

[Mr_Forest]

As of right now my net worth (including my wife) is -$108K. Unfortunately I was not raised a saver. I recently found MMM and am remedying said situation. Nice to meet everyone as well.

[former player]

At the start of being 25, negative about £400 as I had been living on student money for 6 years while qualifying as a lawyer (the £400 was basically the expenses of finding and moving to my first qualified job).  At the end of being 25, £3k in cash which became the deposit for my share of a house in London and the start of financial security.

[MissPiggy]

Wow so many of you were in a solid financial position at 25!

At 25, had just moved cities, unemployed, significantly increased cost of living expenses due to move to a big city. Had $12k cash, $15k in superannuation and $5k car (which was donated to the parents, so effectively $0). No credit cards but $30k student debt which is being slowly deducted from each monthly pay check.

Currently mid-way through 26 and haven't been too good with money. Spent a lot going out and partying.... just discovered MMM last month and pulling my expenses in and working towards FI. Also earning the most I ever have salary-wise (even though it's still not a lot p.a.).

[Metric Mouse]

At 25 I was homeless, jobless and living out of a backpack (and a set of saddle bags, for part of the year) while keeping my expenses as low as possible. Net worth wasn't even on my radar.

[dividendsplease]

At 25 I was probably -80k due to student loans and being young and dumb with spending money on food, booze, and vegas trips.

[dividendsplease]

-80k in student loans making 35k barely able to get ahead in a medium cost of living area.

[l2jperry]

I am 25 now, but i'll be 26 in late January. I have a girlfriend, but we do not live together, and do not combine money. My net worth is slightly over 400k, that is all money invested in stocks/bonds/cash, I don't own a home at this time mainly because I plan on slow traveling like arebelspy and gocurrycracker. I own my own business so every year my income varies. Fortunately it has gone up every year, but I know that next year will not be as good as the previous couple.

[boarder42]

hmm 25 ... lets see.  around 30k equity in my well bought forclosure and probably 20-30k in investments.  so lets call it 50k most likely

[BrokeNoMo]

At 25 my net worth was about ($300k) due to our oldest daughter getting sick at 3 days old and being in Newborn Intensive Care Unit for 50+ days. I worked 2 full time jobs and made frugality a way of life for 10 years to overcome this negative wave I found myself on. Library books, powdered milk mixed 50/50 with 2%, a 15 year old $400 car that lasted another 10 years. I've become very good at paying off debt, but sadly never very good at taking advantage of solid investments until recently.

So if you are 25 and reading this forum; you are catching a wave that only a select few ever do.  My kids are now around 25 and I'm ecstatic that they are both now regular readers of MMM and a few other FI blogs. (I sent them links to articles and now I see them commenting on posts! Love it.) May they and you have a long, prosperous, giving life of plenty!

[Spork]

I am old.  And my obsessive financial record keeping doesn't go back that far.  But I was dumping every dollar I had into flying and married to someone that was secretly amassing debt behind my back.  I will wildly estimate $0 or something in the negative 20k range.

[Gimesalot]

I had around $50k saved up by the time I was 25.  However, I also had a good bit of student loans left, so I would estimate that my net worth was around $35k. 

[MissPiggy]

Seems like half the threads on the first page of this board are some variation of this question. Probably indicative of my own insecurities, but these threads seem like a dick measuring contest (lady dicks are in there too). I recognize that half of the responses have a negative NW, but I always fixate on the über successful folks (def a personal problem)

I guess it can be a bit of a big swinging dick thread but again many factors come into play here and hen talking about NW. Did the individual study at uni or college? Go straight into work after high school? Were they still studying at 25? Did they receive help from parents or partners? Or were they all good savers and investors from the start? It may seem that some were well ahead at 25 but it depends on the individual circumstances. The early 20s are formative years so hard to create a benchmark using just NW. The most important but is how far the person has gone with their NW position at 25.

[TheStrenuousLife]

26 here.  I would say it was around $35,000.00 last year.

[horsepoor]

Had just finished grad school with $45K in student loans and was only putting like 3% into TSP, so definitely negative net worth.  I was lucky enough to buy a house the following year that doubled in value in the two years I owned it, which essentially got me to about a zero net worth, not that I did a good job of managing that money.

[Stash Engineer]

You guys are killin' it!  At 25 I had a NW of about -$170k if you count the fact that I couldn't have sold the house I had just bought with $0 down (beginning of market crash).  I also had a $25k car loan plus some CC debt.  I'm also a ME and was making about $60k/yr at the time.  I discovered MMM when I was 31.

[NoVa]

Zero. Had no debt but had no significant assets. That was a long time ago.

jfolsen

[StarBright]

I love threads like this because they can show you how quickly you can actually amass wealth and stability.

At 24 I was just finishing grad school (-25k) and going through an UGLY divorce (another -5k) = -30k
At 25 I was working two jobs and living with my folks (for free-  God Bless Them) and paid off a bunch of debt. Networth probably -9k or so
Got remarried at 27, add in DH's student loans, put us back to -15k or so
Finished paying off student loans when DH and I were 29
Baby 1 at 30
Baby 2 at 32
At 35 we have a networth of just under 300k if you include equity in our house.

You guys are doing insanely well at ages 24 and 25- congrats!

 

[boarder42]

I guess i should throw some inspiration out here we were 50k at 25 and as of my 30th bday this month we hit 400k invested and 550k total networth so it went up 11 fold in 5 years.

[Guesl982374]

I was single, had ~$60K in NW and was making ~$65K/yr. Combined with my now wife, we were probably around $140K in NW with a combined income of $120K. I didn't find MMM until I was ~29.

[MilesTeg]

Roughly $50k net just transitioning from a 45k job to a 55k job.

Had just bought a car 2 years earlier, and had I had to to do over....... I still would have bought the car. Actually scratch that, I would have bought a nicer car.

[BeardedLady]

I was in school until age 26, so my net worth at 25 was almost my lowest point, a little over $100k in the negative due to student loans. However, I started a mutual fund account after reading The Wealthy Barber during undergrad, and it really helped me learn how different funds and investments work. We used this money in addition to the small amount we were able to save from the first two years of my husband's teaching job for a down payment on a house after graduation. I am happy to report that my husband's and my combined net worth is now $150k in the black, and I just turned 30. Another 6 years till FI!

[bertrandhustle]

Fiance (24) has roughly $60,000 in cash and retirement accounts. I (25) have $105,000 in cash and retirement accounts. So ~$165,000 in real assets. Fiance also has equity that will be worth somewhere between $0 and $1,000,000 in the next 5 years (seems most likely in the $300,000 range, but we live as though it will be $0). She currently makes ~$95,000 base. I made ~$20,000k this year including non-financial aid scholarships and an internship. Next year, I will make ~$45,000 via summer internships and fiance will likely be in the $110,000 range.

Days after starting my first job out of college (which was a pretty awesome one), I realized 40 years of working for someone else was not sustainable. So I started saving everything above $14k since like day 4 of having an income. Fiance is frugal and invests >50% of income, but is not as extreme as I am. Next financial goal is to own an apartment building between the two of us.

[Nudelkopf]

I'm currently 25, so this was easy to check.  Networth = $125,000.

I graduated uni at 22 (Maths degree followed by teaching degree). Started off on about $60k per year, now on about $72k.

Shares = +$91k
Cash = +$17k
Retirement = +$38k
Student debt = -$21k
TOTAL = +$125,000

[B L I S S]

Cash about $40k
Retirement another $20k

So $60k net worth at 25. Slow and steady..