Life Situation: Single male, 34 years old, attorney, no dependents, living in Texas, trying to pay off debt.
Gross Salary/Wages: $120k plus discretionary bonus (was $22.5k) last year
Pre-tax deductions: Maxing out 401k, so $1500/month; FSA $208.19/month, Dental insurance $21/month
Adjusted Gross Income: $99,249.72
Last year my monthly take-home was $5592/month. Should be slightly higher this year from raise. Haven't got first check yet.
Taxes: Social Security, Medicare, and Federal Income added up to around $35k last year
Current expenses:
Rent: $1056
Student Loan: $1500
Electric Bill: $50
Internet: $30
Gym: $40
Car Insurance: $40
Food and Dining: $1200 (tends to vary, I would estimate between $600 and $1500)
City Bike Rental: $11
Other: $100 (clothes, haircuts, dry-cleaning, etc.)
Total: $4027
Assets:
2001 Toyota Corolla $2,000
Checking Account: $10,000
Savings Account: $26,000 (emergency fund)
401(k): $51,000
IRA: $11,000
After Tax Brokerage Account: $20,000
Total: $120,000
Liabilities:
Student Loan $78,000 @ 2.4% variable rate (was once 150K at 7.1%, refinanced it to 5.1%, then 3.5%, now 2.4%)
Net Assets: $42,000
Specific Question(s): Any ideas as to how I could save faster or earn a better return on my money. I have been out of law school 5 years now and I feel like I am not really making great progress towards FIRE. I feel like I have done pretty well paying down my student loan, generally I have paid the required payment +$500 per month, and then put my entire bonus into it each year. I have refinanced it 3 times now and got a lower rate each time as my income to debt ratio improves. I feel like I can probably cut spending on food, some months I do better than others. Also I feel like I should do something with the emergency fund, it doesn’t earn any interest and it sort of just sits there. The market going sideways for the past while has also sort of made my progress seem slow.
Thanks for any ideas!