Author Topic: Financial Independence at 27  (Read 37554 times)

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #50 on: May 18, 2013, 03:55:01 PM »
Here are my expenses for April. They were somewhat higher than usual because I bought a ticket for my vacation.

Rent: $927.02 (includes water/sewage/trash)
Bills: $50.05 (phone, electricity, and internet)
Other: $451.12
Total: $1,428.19

I can already tell that May is going to be brutal. I am moving, and I didn't do a very good job of it. I almost ran out of time to find a new place, panicked, and ended up signing two leases. Luckily they are both month-to-month so I should be able to cancel the one I don't like without completely screwing myself. Still, that misstep is going to end up costing me over $500. The good news is that my new lease (the one I want) is going to be $500/month, all utilities and internet included! So in the long run I should do well.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #51 on: June 03, 2013, 01:18:31 AM »
Ahh the joys of moving... $405 wasted on the forfeited holding fee for the place I didn't move to. I also put down a $450 deposit on my new place and bought a freezer for $150. Here's to hoping I can last the rest of 2013 without another bad month like this.

May 2013 expenses

Rent: $835.80 (includes water/sewage/trash)
Bills: $29.03 (electricity and internet)
Other: $1,253.30
Total: $2,118.13

My expenses for June should be low, as I am getting my first month's rent/utilities/internet free in exchange for some old furniture I sold to my new landlord. After that, my goal is to get all my expenses down to $700/month. I'm not quite sure I can go that low, but it's worth a try...

This is my monthly budget moving forward. It remains to be seen whether I can get food down to $100, but I'll try.

$500 rent/utilities/internet
$100 food
$100 misc/entertainment

That's $700/month total, or $8,400/year.
« Last Edit: June 03, 2013, 01:35:41 AM by Herbert Derp »

SunshineGirl

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 768
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #52 on: June 03, 2013, 09:38:39 AM »
Sweet!

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #53 on: June 15, 2013, 02:44:42 PM »
An interesting thing of note, this month I'm getting more reimbursements...

$109.47 cash back from Chase Freedom (spend $500 in first three months)
$15.00 cell phone reimbursement from my employer
$6.67 from my internet provider for cancelling before the end of the billing cycle

It's pretty funny since I only expect to spend around $200 this month, these random chunks of change will end up covering a significant portion of my expenses.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #54 on: July 03, 2013, 01:23:12 AM »
June 2013 expenses

Rent: $0.00 (includes water/sewage/trash/internet)
Bills: $24.08 (electricity)
Other: $85.05
Total: $109.13

A new personal best. This almost makes up for last month! I find it amusing that my credit card bonus was enough to cover my entire expenses for the month. In fact, my spending was so low that it was under 1% of my gross income for the month.

In other news, I created a new bank account that should generate an extra $5/month of cash flow as well as provide me a $1,000 emergency fund. If you qualify, you should get one too. It's always worth checking with the local banks and credit unions, you never know what cool offers they could have that set them apart from the big banks.

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #55 on: July 03, 2013, 06:10:01 AM »
Is food under "other" for June?

That's some ridiculously badass spending.

Even your "bad" month of May was still only 2k, or 24k/year.  If you take out the forfeited deposit and new deposit it was more like 1263 (or 15k annually).

Doing that for the next few years and stocking away most of your paychecks should do wonders, even if your budget does increase later (if you find a partner and choose to have kids, for example).
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #56 on: July 03, 2013, 03:29:15 PM »
Yes, food falls under "other." It's hard to break out into it's own category because I frequently have food and non-food items on the same receipt. I estimate that I spent $50 or so on food in June, mostly because I avoided buying snacks and stuck with my staples.

oldtoyota

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3179
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #57 on: July 05, 2013, 05:18:05 PM »
I've always been a frugal person, but yesterday I discovered mustachianism and I was inspired! After running some simple calculations, I think I can start saving 100% of my paycheck by the time I turn 27. I am currently 22 and started my career five months ago.


How will you save 100% of your paycheck?

olivia

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 770
  • From Consumerism to Minimalism
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #58 on: July 05, 2013, 06:03:39 PM »
I've always been a frugal person, but yesterday I discovered mustachianism and I was inspired! After running some simple calculations, I think I can start saving 100% of my paycheck by the time I turn 27. I am currently 22 and started my career five months ago.


How will you save 100% of your paycheck?

It sounds like he'll be able to live off of his investments so he won't need to spend any of his paychecks by the time he's 27 if he continues on his current path.

Your frugal skills are amazing!  Wish MMM existed when I was your age!

oldtoyota

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3179
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #59 on: July 05, 2013, 07:31:51 PM »
I've always been a frugal person, but yesterday I discovered mustachianism and I was inspired! After running some simple calculations, I think I can start saving 100% of my paycheck by the time I turn 27. I am currently 22 and started my career five months ago.


How will you save 100% of your paycheck?

It sounds like he'll be able to live off of his investments so he won't need to spend any of his paychecks by the time he's 27 if he continues on his current path.

Your frugal skills are amazing!  Wish MMM existed when I was your age!

Ah, thank you!

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #60 on: July 08, 2013, 11:08:21 AM »
How will you save 100% of your paycheck?

It sounds like he'll be able to live off of his investments so he won't need to spend any of his paychecks by the time he's 27 if he continues on his current path.

Your frugal skills are amazing!  Wish MMM existed when I was your age!

Indeed.  The wife and I are currently doing this - live only off our rental income, save 100% of our paychecks.  It's a good way to build up money rapidly (riding the front of the money wave, to reference a recent MMM post that talked about this idea of how much it snowballs and how fast you can save by working an extra year or two).
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

nktokyo

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 370
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #61 on: July 08, 2013, 11:16:18 AM »
Nice, if you can live off your investments then you get to stop working whenever you want.

The great thing is that you don't NEED to stop working at 27, you can add buffer to your stash giving you freedom to travel, get married and have kids without impacting your financial freedom. You could even consult part time or whatever. I was FI at 30 and to be honest after 3 months I was back doing stuff because it was boring (also my wife has a busy business and we have a two year old so we can't just up and move to iceland) but you do everything by choice now and it doesn't really feel like work.

Just be ready for resentment and complete lack of understanding from friends and family. You'll want some friends with similar goal sets and work ethic. I would up joining an online community of entrepreneurs to build that up - I also lurk here :-)

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #62 on: August 03, 2013, 04:40:54 PM »
Another month gone by, and I'm inching slowly towards my goal. Moving to a cheaper place is working out well for me; I was able to save around 91% of my net income for July. Also, my net worth just passed $100K, although ~$35K of that is locked up in retirement accounts.

To consider myself FI, I need the income from my non-retirement accounts to exceed my spending, which based on my current spending means I need something like $210K. At ~$70K, I'm one-third of the way there. At this rate, it is within the realm of possibility for me to hit FI in about two years when I am 24 years old (I'm currently 22). So it looks like I may exceed my original goal.
« Last Edit: August 03, 2013, 05:02:30 PM by Herbert Derp »

KingMe

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 86
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #63 on: August 03, 2013, 06:30:26 PM »
That's great news. I never had your level of dedication at your age, but did save a significant part of my income in my 20s. As I enter my 40s, my family's financial future is looking good in no small part because I saved young. Keep up the good work!

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #64 on: October 04, 2013, 11:35:47 PM »
For the record, here are my results for August and September. September has been a busy month at work, not much else to report.

August
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $168.44
Total: $668.44

September
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $144.44
Total: $644.44

4alpacas

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1825
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #65 on: October 09, 2013, 12:46:06 PM »
For the record, here are my results for August and September. September has been a busy month at work, not much else to report.

August
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $168.44
Total: $668.44

September
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $144.44
Total: $644.44

Wow!  I spend more in a week on other than you spend all month!  Keep up the good work!

CommonCents

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2363
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #66 on: October 21, 2013, 12:05:27 PM »
Another month gone by, and I'm inching slowly towards my goal. Moving to a cheaper place is working out well for me; I was able to save around 91% of my net income for July. Also, my net worth just passed $100K, although ~$35K of that is locked up in retirement accounts.

To consider myself FI, I need the income from my non-retirement accounts to exceed my spending, which based on my current spending means I need something like $210K. At ~$70K, I'm one-third of the way there. At this rate, it is within the realm of possibility for me to hit FI in about two years when I am 24 years old (I'm currently 22). So it looks like I may exceed my original goal.

That is fantastic, and truly an inspiration for me.  My only caution is that your expenses may change dramatically at different ages, particularly if you have a family or health issues later on.  So I would urge you to build your stach bigger than you precisely need today.  (Of course, you can always go back to work, but it may be harder if you are 40 with no work history for the prior 15 years.)

BlackRat

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 25
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #67 on: October 21, 2013, 11:35:19 PM »
Just thought I'd say its pretty inspiring to me too.
My expenses are higher than yours even though my rent is much lower... time to ratchet it down a bit - thanks!

jcandoitbig

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 14
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #68 on: October 31, 2013, 05:54:39 PM »
For the record, here are my results for August and September. September has been a busy month at work, not much else to report.

August
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $168.44
Total: $668.44

September
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $144.44
Total: $644.44

how in the world do you only spend ~150 a MONTH on food? that's unbelievable....

i probably spend that amount per month on alcohol alone!

BC_Goldman

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 250
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #69 on: November 01, 2013, 02:42:37 PM »
I've spent less than $100/mo on food for the last two months and that included blowing 24 dollars to restock on $2 boxes of ice cream. I eat a good bit of rice, pasta and potatoes. No spending on alcohol makes it pretty easy.

EDIT: Also forgot that those totals include probably $13 worth of candy for Halloween and something like $16 for a 10# bag of cat food for the cat (still counting as my food budget since she has to eat).
« Last Edit: November 01, 2013, 03:08:44 PM by BC_Goldman »

RootofGood

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1361
  • Age: 43
  • Location: North Carolina
  • Retired at age 33. 5 years in, still loving it!
    • Root of Good
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #70 on: November 01, 2013, 04:57:02 PM »
OP, your plan and ambition are badass.  Best of luck.  The math works out exactly like you are thinking.  I'd definitely consider input from others in the thread regarding making sure you have "enough" even if it means saving more than the bare minimum to reach your current spending #'s.  Sounds like you'll keep working a little longer than 27, so you're on the right path to rock hard financial security.

I made it to FI at 33, and have similar spending as MMM (mine's $32k/yr for our family of 5).  Just quit working too (at 33).  "Enough" for me was a sub 3% withdrawal rate, and the knowledge that I can always get back in the rat race and dance, dazzle, and hustle if necessary.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #71 on: November 10, 2013, 09:11:23 PM »
October went by fast! Spending was quite low, probably from working late hours and mooching off of the office food.

October
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $67.60
Total: $567.60

ritchie70

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 268
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #72 on: November 11, 2013, 09:58:02 AM »
October went by fast! Spending was quite low, probably from working late hours and mooching off of the office food.

October
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $67.60
Total: $567.60

Congrats!

It was mentioned back in January, but if you're making $1,500 a month as a software developer in the US, you're dramatically underpaid. Especially if you're working long hours.

I was paid $22K in my first developer position out of college, with no relevant work experience, in 1990. Once they realized how productive I was, it quickly went up to $28K. Unless there's something "wrong with you," your employer is taking advantage of you.

This was in Champaign, IL, so not "big city" pay.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #73 on: November 23, 2013, 06:35:28 PM »
Wow, it's been a year since I started this thread! Over the past year, my monthly budget decreased from $2,000 to $700 and my net worth increased from ~45K to ~129K! Here's hoping that I will continue to see positive results over the next year.

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #74 on: November 23, 2013, 07:00:45 PM »
Congrats!  That's awesome progress.

You're only a year away from a 4% SWR at your current rate of spending, and being FI at current levels.

Of course, as we noted earlier you'll probably want to build a buffer for future life's tentially higher budget (if a spouse, kids come into the picture), but what you've done so far is huge and kickass!
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #75 on: December 01, 2013, 05:00:42 PM »
November was an expensive month for me, had to stock up on pet supplies and got invited to a happy hour where I somehow managed to spend over $40 on booze...

November
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Other: $167.99
Total: $667.99

NinetyFour

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 6875
  • Age: 62
  • Location: Southwestern US
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #76 on: December 01, 2013, 06:02:35 PM »
You spending is still SOOOOOO low!!  You're doing really well!!

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #77 on: December 01, 2013, 07:46:08 PM »
Yeah, this guy is EREE (the extra e is for extra, obviously).  ;)

An inspiration, to be sure.
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

ch12

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 592
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #78 on: December 01, 2013, 09:53:19 PM »
I'm about the same age, making less and spending more. This thread is extremely inspirational. Your "other" category is way lower than my "all other" category. Like arebelspy says, your level of badassity probably hits ERE levels.

I'm fully capable of comfortably existing on $12,000 a year [it would be a fair ER budget], but I find myself unwilling to go further down. Props for figuring out a way to exist on an incredibly low cash flow.

gripped

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 8
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #79 on: December 25, 2013, 05:57:52 PM »
I think OP believes that the 4% is before inflation.

My understanding is that we estimate a return of ~7%, which after about 3% for inflation equates to a SWR of ~4%.

I'm not arguing against conservative estimates, but we should be clear on the sources. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, I'm just starting out too.

nikki

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 642
  • Age: 37
  • Location: South Korea
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #80 on: December 25, 2013, 06:25:41 PM »
I'm curious for a more detailed breakdown of your expenses, Herbert Derp!

TorontoDeveloper

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 22
  • Age: 33
  • Location: Toronto
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #81 on: December 26, 2013, 08:47:14 AM »
I've been following this post with great interest for nearly a year now. Since I finally made an account on these forums, I figured I should go ahead and say "You rock!" Keep up the great work, I love following your progress!

FIreDrill

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1096
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #82 on: December 26, 2013, 09:07:47 AM »
I'm curious for a more detailed breakdown of your expenses, Herbert Derp!

I would be curious to see a breakdown of expenses as well.  Not that I doubt your awesomeness or anything like that, haha.  I just read through your journal and it is really impressive.  Keep up the awesome work!


HappierAtHome

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8015
  • Location: Australia
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #83 on: December 29, 2013, 06:09:07 PM »
I'm curious for a more detailed breakdown of your expenses, Herbert Derp!

I would be curious to see a breakdown of expenses as well.  Not that I doubt your awesomeness or anything like that, haha.  I just read through your journal and it is really impressive.  Keep up the awesome work!


Me too - I bet I could learn a thing or two about how to cut my expenses further from seeing yours.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #84 on: January 01, 2014, 09:19:09 PM »
Well since you asked, here is a more detailed breakdown for December. Notable activities of the month include taking a week off work to stay with my family for Christmas. Saved me a bit on groceries too, since I was eating their food.

December
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Cell phone: $25.00
Groceries: $40.18 (mostly chicken breast, noodles, and vegetables)
Other: $27.04 (went to a bar with coworkers and lunch with friends)
Total: $592.22

ch12

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 592
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #85 on: January 01, 2014, 10:20:45 PM »
Well since you asked, here is a more detailed breakdown for December. Notable activities of the month include taking a week off work to stay with my family for Christmas. Saved me a bit on groceries too, since I was eating their food.

December
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Cell phone: $25.00
Groceries: $40.18 (mostly chicken breast, noodles, and vegetables)
Other: $27.04 (went to a bar with coworkers and lunch with friends)
Total: $592.22

*applause*

Your "other" category is enough to pay my half of the bill for lunch with my sister. Maybe. I guess that when you compare yourself to someone who has zero problems dropping $3,000 in a day at an expensive, trendy store, it's a pretty low bar for badassity.

nikki

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 642
  • Age: 37
  • Location: South Korea
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #86 on: January 01, 2014, 10:28:10 PM »
Well since you asked, here is a more detailed breakdown for December. Notable activities of the month include taking a week off work to stay with my family for Christmas. Saved me a bit on groceries too, since I was eating their food.

December
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Cell phone: $25.00
Groceries: $40.18 (mostly chicken breast, noodles, and vegetables)
Other: $27.04 (went to a bar with coworkers and lunch with friends)
Total: $592.22

I recently posted a full breakdown of my last grocery run (with costs) on my journal, so I think I have groceries on my mind. Your $40.18 is less than what I spent yesterday alone, and I might have to buy some more produce in the next couple weeks. I have one chicken breast in the freezer from last month. Meat can be expensive, so I don't buy it often.

And I know that you were with your family for a week, but this month I'll be with mine almost two weeks. I just eat a lot more pricey items than you I guess!

HappierAtHome

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8015
  • Location: Australia
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #87 on: January 01, 2014, 10:33:49 PM »
I'd really really like to see details on your meal plans / eating habits because that is super impressive food expenditure. I wish mine was that low!

RootofGood

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1361
  • Age: 43
  • Location: North Carolina
  • Retired at age 33. 5 years in, still loving it!
    • Root of Good
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #88 on: January 02, 2014, 09:38:28 AM »
+1 on the grocery budget.  That's $10/week! 

I'm pretty frugal when it comes to groceries, but also like a variety and don't mind paying up for different things.

If I had to hit $10/wk, I priced out the following for each meal (skipping breakfast): 2 ounces chicken, 11 ounces vegetables, 4 ounces fruit,  2 ounces uncooked pasta or rice (~8-10 ounces cooked).  This would leave maybe $0.50 per week for random stuff like seasonings, tea or coffee.  Depending on the mix of what I buy, that's only 500-600 calories per meal (1000-1200 calories/day).  I suppose I could add more starches and fats to increase the caloric bulk (since fruits/vegs are not very calorically dense). 

Prices I used: $1.50 lb chicken breasts - 2 lb.
$0.30/lb mix of fresh vegs - 10 lb
$0.50/lb mix of fresh fruits - 4 lb
$0.70/lb rice or pasta - 2 lb

Those are about the lowest prices I could squeeze out from places like Aldi's and only buying what's on sale each week. 

FIreDrill

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1096
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #89 on: January 02, 2014, 12:27:51 PM »
Well since you asked, here is a more detailed breakdown for December. Notable activities of the month include taking a week off work to stay with my family for Christmas. Saved me a bit on groceries too, since I was eating their food.

December
Rent: $500.00 (includes electricity/water/sewage/trash/internet)
Cell phone: $25.00
Groceries: $40.18 (mostly chicken breast, noodles, and vegetables)
Other: $27.04 (went to a bar with coworkers and lunch with friends)
Total: $592.22

You are making me feel very bad about my grocery budge, haha.  Seriously though, that is amazing.  I'm going to have to sit down and see what cuts I can make and maybe get a food plan together.  You rock and thanks for the inspiration!

SS

tomq04

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 192
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #90 on: January 02, 2014, 03:31:41 PM »
Very cool!

How can one save 100% of a paycheck if you're paying taxes?

He must mean take home pay.

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #91 on: January 02, 2014, 05:45:07 PM »
Very cool!

How can one save 100% of a paycheck if you're paying taxes?

He must mean take home pay.

That or living on other income (side gig, investment income, rental income, whatever) and saving 100% of the regular "paycheck."
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #92 on: January 04, 2014, 07:37:05 PM »
That or living on other income (side gig, investment income, rental income, whatever) and saving 100% of the regular "paycheck."

Yes, that is what I meant. I don't know why people keep bringing up that post lol

jordanread

  • Guest
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #93 on: April 08, 2014, 01:55:28 PM »
All right, I'm hooked. Looking forward to the updates.

tomq04

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 192
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #94 on: April 10, 2014, 09:09:48 AM »
He must have turned off his internet in the interest of saving money?

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #95 on: April 10, 2014, 09:17:27 AM »
He must have turned off his internet in the interest of saving money?

According to his forum profile, he last logged on yesterday.

HD seems to have switched his monthly updates over to his "Spend less than 10k" challenge.

https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/spend-less-than-$10-000-in-2014/
« Last Edit: April 10, 2014, 09:12:30 PM by arebelspy »
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

Herbert Derp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1095
  • Age: 33
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #96 on: April 10, 2014, 07:51:35 PM »
Yes, I'm posting in the other thread. I don't really have anything to add to this one without duplicating my posts.

Cottonswab

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 175
  • Age: 37
  • Location: Boulder, CO
  • Occasional Advice Dispensary
    • My Journal
Re: Financial Independence at 27
« Reply #97 on: April 11, 2014, 03:06:31 PM »
By the OP's definition, I have completed the challenge.  In 2013, I turned 27 and my income from investments (including capital gains) exceeded my expenses! 

I may not be able to repeat this year, since my expenses are increasing and my return on investment is decreasing.  However, by age 30, I expect to consistently have higher annual investment income than expenses.