I heard about this on the news, and then found it online;
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/markets/2017/06/08/small-savings-add-up/102558824/The online article is horribly titled: How much for a sandwich? Try $90,000 in lost savings.
It says; the average American forks over $11.14 twice a week for lunch, according to a Visa survey, but if they skipped that meal and redirected the $1,043 spent each year into an investment account earning 6%, they would have an estimated savings of $88,500 thirty years later.
OK; save money and invest it - good advice. Start early and keep doing it to take advantage of compound interest - also good.
But "skip lunch twice a week"?? REALLY?!?!
No clue on how to get 6%.
And they got the math wrong - it'd take 31 years to get that amount (I did it in a spreadsheet w/ formulas).
And the article doesn't even mention taxes.
There some good bits;
the amount of money Americans have spent eating outside the home has been on the rise. U.S. households spent $3,008, or about $8.35 a day, on average, eating out in 2015. That was up nearly 15 percent from 2013, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Eating out accounted for 43% of the average $7,023 households spent on food in 2015.
seemingly inexpensive, everyday indulgences can add up to a big hit to your net worth without you even knowing it.
Give up less by spending smarter. Instead of buying a large Mocha Caffé Latte each day at Starbucks, consider buying the same coffee in bulk
Review a few months worth of credit card, checking or savings statements. Go through them purchase by purchase and find out where your money is going, says Mark Lamkin, CEO and chief market strategist at Lamkin Wealth Management.
