Hey there Mustachians!
Just but a week or so ago I found the MMM blog and community and have been absolutely hooked on his stuff ever since. Little did I know that I was already practicing some of his techniques and ideas on my own which only made it easier to glide right into this new lifestyle mindset. Though I've had a bit of a rough start to life, it's recently gotten much better and is heading in the right direction now. I'm still young and just seven months ago landed my dream job as a poker dealer in a local cardroom 15-20 minutes drive away from where I currently live. It fits the bill perfectly for a MMM career to the nose. Low stress, decent wage, little fear of losing the job, and lots of autonomy. That's of course not to mention that I grew up on cards and love being around it. I'm currently trying to figure out how to retire as early as possible with constant money streams to keep me going until the day I die.
My current retirement goals include a lot of traveling (I try to do a lot now as well), and I know that can get quite pricey, but I really would like to go places, visit countries, learn about different cultures, and experience all there is to see and do - lots of vacation. I don't desire super-fancy cars or a lot of material things, but I would like a nice 3br/2br home to call my own, a DECENT car to get me from place to place when needed (the one I have now is a bit run down and I will have to replace it within the next few years... it's also a gas guzzling Ford Explorer), I would like to splurge on the MMM lifestyle and have a nice motorcycle as I absolutely LOVE to ride (I have a decent one now, paid-off), and I have a couple other miscellaneous desires and hobbies that require some money like paintball and such.
My income right now is approximately $50,000-$60,000/year. I give a range because I do work hourly and rely on tips from players. That being said, there is virtually zero chance of me getting any sort of raise no matter how long I work at my job. I average about $3,500-$3,600/month in take home pay right now.
My expenses divided per month are as follows:
Rent: Approximately $480-$500 including overages (electric, cable, internet, water are included)
Phone: $49
Car insurance: $84
Motorcycle Insurance: $0 (In Florida it is legal to not have insurance on a motorcycle provided helmets are worn)
Car/Motorcycle Registration: $12.50
Xbox Live Membership: $4.17
Lifetime gym membership: $4.17
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~$654/mo. + any food, entertainment, gas, misc.
I have zero credit card debt as I like to buy everything in cash. My assets include (nothing on credit/loan): my car (Approx. Value: $1,000), my motorcycle (Approx. Value: $3,000, a 3D HGTV (Approx. Value: $1,000), and a couple other things little things like a PS3, Xbox 360, iPad 3, an old laptop, and a fair amount of paintball gear (gear adding up to about $1200 or so in value) among the basic necessities like clothes and such.
I do have a ROTH IRA retirement account which I just put the full amount of $5,000 this year in. It's current value went down, sadly to about $4800, but it's in relatively strong long-term stocks. I plan to contribute the full amount every year to this account. I am not currently eligible for my employers 401k as I do not have 1 year under my belt yet, but I plan to max that out every year (or rather, what they allow me to put in percentage-wise of my income) as soon as that option becomes available to me. I try to save a thousand or two every month in regular savings to contribute to these retirement accounts and possible investment options. Right now though I only have $1,000 in savings as I pulled a big chunk just this month to max out my ROTH. I also have a vacation account that I contribute $500/mo. to. This money I set aside strictly for vacation and only for vacation. I cannot use this money for bills or anything other than enjoyment for my trips.
My ultimate goal would be to replace my current income ($50,000-$60,000/year) with other income sources that take little to no effort at all on my part. I'm quite sure that I can take all the trips I want (within reason) to wherever and live nicely for the rest of my life on that income (or the equivalent of that income as inflation rises).
I'd kill for MMM's personal advice on my plan, but I'm more than happy to accept advice from those thoroughly trained in his ways as well. Thanks in advance!