Young and Hopeful- Aspiring FIRE

[ryanht13]

Age- 23
Salary- $55,000 (fairly low cost of living city, but not walk/bike friendly)
Bonus- 5%-20% of annual salary, plus $1,000+ in profit sharing

Cash- $8,000
Taxable Investments- $35,000 (all equity)
Roth IRA- $12,000 (all equity)
401(k)- 12,000 (all equity)
Home Equity- $11,000

Mortgage- $175,000 (30 yr @ 3.8%)
Other Debt- none

I max out my Roth every year. Should be able to max out 401k every year moving forward. Usually able to save/invest another $100-$150/mo in taxable. I am beginning to realize the power of earning more and what it can do for someone who doesn't have to raise their standard of living with their paycheck. So, I'm looking to earn more money. I'm wondering about my income and if it is above average for my age? Should I be searching for opportunities to earn more money? What can I do to ensure an upward trajectory?

[MDM]

Age- 23
Salary- $55,000 (fairly low cost of living city, but not walk/bike friendly)
Bonus- 5%-20% of annual salary, plus $1,000+ in profit sharing

Cash- $8,000
Taxable Investments- $35,000 (all equity)
Roth IRA- $12,000 (all equity)
401(k)- 12,000 (all equity)
Home Equity- $11,000

Mortgage- $175,000 (30 yr @ 3.8%)
Other Debt- none

I max out my Roth every year. Should be able to max out 401k every year moving forward. Usually able to save/invest another $100-$150/mo in taxable.

Congratulations on having a net worth >$50K at your age - excellent start!  Yes, you should (unless the options are terrible) be putting $18K/yr into the 401k and $5.5K into an IRA. 

I'm wondering about my income and if it is above average for my age?

You can google "average income by age" or similar, but the answer for you depends heavily on what skills you bring to the market...?

Should I be searching for opportunities to earn more money?

Sure - just not at the expense of neglecting your current responsibilities.

What can I do to ensure an upward trajectory?

Do more than expected, regardless of whether you are self-employed or work for MegaCorp.  People appreciate positive surprises and, in general, you will be rewarded for doing so.  One could (and many have done so) write a book on this topic....

[Bob W]

How awesome is that!   

No idea if you under or overpaid.   There are sites for that.

In the short term focus on cutting spending while maxing all savings.

Take a long, hard look at your spending using paper or one of the personal finance,  mint type trackers.   

Areas you can probably cut will include:

Cable
Restaurants
Booze
Food
Phone (are you on the $10 a month Republic program yet  republicwireless.com)
Trips (do you use reward points for free travel and free dinners out?   richmondsavers.com)
Auto insurance and auto costs in general -  (price shop with independent agent)

You can also consider generating some 4K in free annual income (check out doctorofcredit.com)
Also consider dual momentum investing.  (milesdividendmd.com)  You theoretically could boost your average return to 17% using the same funds you currently use. 

Do a lot of what I mentioned an I can easily see you investing 30K per year. 

Even if you never get a raise you could have 750K  by age 33.  (probably be FI by age 30)

Also consider a part time job to earn an extra after tax $800 per month.   You are young so make hay while the sun is shining.