Starting a new time in my life, what should I do?

[josephpg]

I finally made it here and now I'm not sure what to do.

I just started a job in Boston this year, in Jan 20 something, 85k salary. 10k starting bonus.
So, some starting figures.

assets:
3,700$ in checking/savings
2,700$ in Sep-Ira
13,856$ still in my college 529 plan. I just got a bachelors in Comp Sci
4,300$ monthly pay

costs:
6,900$ in student loans. (Just graduated in Dec, don't need to pay yet)
food - 200$ a month estimate
misc- 100$ a month possibly

I'm living in an apartment with my girlfriend that is 1800$ a month, we only need to pay for one more month. Hope to get the deposit back.
Searching for something in the 1500$ range. We don't know her income yet, but she is working now. She has a bachelors in communication disorders.
I already slipped up and got health insurance without asking for advice here >>. I got a high premium low deductible plan I think. I take some expensive meds. I also got life insurance and accident protection. I think that all costs 3000$ a year ish.

I'm aiming for retiring at 45, not sure if that's realistic.

[prognastat]

I finally made it here and now I'm not sure what to do.

I just started a job in Boston this year, in Jan 20 something, 85k salary. 10k starting bonus.
So, some starting figures.

assets:
3,700$ in checking/savings
2,700$ in Sep-Ira
13,856$ still in my college 529 plan. I just got a bachelors in Comp Sci
4,300$ monthly pay

costs:
6,900$ in student loans. (Just graduated in Dec, don't need to pay yet)
food - 200$ a month estimate
misc- 100$ a month possibly

I'm living in an apartment with my girlfriend that is 1800$ a month, we only need to pay for one more month. Hope to get the deposit back.
Searching for something in the 1500$ range. We don't know her income yet, but she is working now. She has a bachelors in communication disorders.
I already slipped up and got health insurance without asking for advice here >>. I got a high premium low deductible plan I think. I take some expensive meds. I also got life insurance and accident protection. I think that all costs 3000$ a year ish.

I'm aiming for retiring at 45, not sure if that's realistic.

If you ready up on the blog and frequent this website and take the advise offered. You can retire well before 45 even. I'm working towards retiring before 35.

Some general advice:
- Track expenses using stuff like mint or YNAB etc.
- Minimize any expenses you are comfortable minimizing and possibly even some that are a little uncomfortable.
- Increase you income without increasing your quality of life.
- Invest what you save.

[Rufus.T.Firefly]

First off, congrats on the job!

You'll do awesome as long as you are deliberate about how you spend. I would make your first financial step to set yourself up with a Mint account so you can track your spending.

Always know where your money is going. Plenty of people make good money, but have a "head in sand" mentality about their expenses.

[josephpg]

Thank you! I do use mint, so thankfully I have that covered. I'm a fan of the blog, I just recently realized that my assumptions about how much money I could save a year were wrong so decided to ask the community about it.

I'm 24 by the way, took 2 extra years to get that degree.

[Dave1442397]

How come you haven't paid the student loan off with money from the 529 account? I know you said you don't have to start payments yet, but is it still accumulating interest? If so, pay it off!

Also, why do you need life insurance right now? You're not married and don't have a mortgage, so it's not like your gf would need the money. Again, it's just a question to see if it makes sense - there may be extenuating circumstances I don't know about.

Apart from that, you've got it made - live long and prosper, as a certain Vulcan would say.

[2Birds1Stone]

ditch life insurance asap, pay off loan asap.

[westtoeast]

A bit of housing advice... $1500 for a 1 bedroom can be hard to find. I suggest looking in the following areas:
-Brighton (Green Line)
-Winter Hill, Somerville (Quick bus ride to Orange or Red Line)
-Union Square, Somerville
-Roslindale (Orange Line)
-Jamaica Plain (Orange Line... but you will probably only find this cheap if you are far from the T)

Good luck!

[Dee18]

I agree that step #1 is to pay off that student loan now.  That is what 529 money is for.
#2 drop life insurance, unless you have a dependant.  If you do keep life insurance, be sure it is only term insurance.
#3 Avoid taking on any debt. Don't buy a car you can't pay cash for. Don't buy a house unless you have carefully calculated the rent vs. buy financial considerations. (NYTimes has a calculator.)
#4 begin saving half you income. Yes, that's 50%.  Or more.

Where do I get these ideas?  From MMM and the wonderful book by JL Collins:  The Simple Path to Wealth. I wish I had read it when starting my career. 

You are in a fabulous position to become financially independent at a young age.  Then you can do whatever you want.