New to forums - been soaking info for a while - Here's where I'm at.

[Cryocash]

Alright, here goes.

Early 30s single male, living in Alberta, Canada.

I've got a pretty cool profession, oilfield cryogenics. Don't fool yourself.. i basically sit on my butt in a 26 wheeler every day waiting for a customer to get their ass in gear. But it pays well and is something I could do until I'm old and grey.

Energy stock is all more or less in the crapper. I've been lucky. Even with the low amount of work available I've been makong ends meat.

9 years ago i moved to Alberta. It was either that or starve to death with no work in Nova Scotia. When I moved my conpany had a free financial consultation. I had no money, but took the advice. One thing i remember was "if ypu save $200 every month until ypu are 65 ypu will have approximately  $980,000"

Fast forward to July. i had a breakup and of course work seemed tough. I don't even remember exactly how i came across the idea.

Basically i thought... what if instead of $200 per month i saved $2000, or $5000. I fell onto MMM articles and then to the mad fientists page. Binge listened to 2 work days worth of podcasts. (one nice thing about driving for a living)

BOOM. Got the excel spreadsheet, modified it to my own case, and did all of the math 100 million times. Two things i learned... i wasted 1.4 million in 9 years.. and that i wouldn't have to be working now if i dodnt waste it.

I thought yeah, to hell with working forever if I dont want to.

Income 2016 ~$80,000 (normally 80-120 depending on oil and gas activity)

Expenses:
Rent 600
Car and ins 680 (0.9%)
Seadoo 132 (0.0%)
Groceries 200-300
Phone 105

Credit cards 2000 (20%)
Credit line 15000 (9.99%)

I've only thought of this since July. I traded a 4x4 truck and switched to a car. Saved a ton of interest and payments went down. I ended up using a bunch of my savings to pay down a ton of mostly 19.99% credit-card debt. I'll pay the credit cards off completely before my bday next month. It was a goal to pay it all.. but the 15g credit line is still there.

I have a group rrsp through work. They match 1% per year, up to 7%. I'll be at 4 in a few months.

I was thinking of front loading as much as possible of the rrsp while leaving enough room for the matched portion. Am I correct in thinking that the group rrsp will be taken from the gross amount of my pay? That's my idea behind it. Save money up front... save gains and save when i take it out later on in life.

I also plan to max the tfsa this year. I have a ton of room available. I'll do as much as possible. I expect somewhere near 30k.

By the end of year my savings rate was 54%. If i averaged that with the rest of the years wasteful spending i still came out at 10%. January looks like it'll be 67%.

I think im on track!

My biggest difficulty is always restaurants and fastfood... part of the working on the road thing. During my journey through forums and podcasts i caught an old timer acting like a frugal person.

Turns out he is FI.. but he saves money by cooking with a ricecooker.. i love to cook. The ricecooker makes it super simple and fast. Since that.. my food per month.. even with going out with the boys here and there dropped from 2500 per month to the 200-300 mark.

Am i missing things? I'm really trying to go hard while still living. It is amazing how wants all of a sudden disappeared once my mind was clear.

I do like my career, but I'm always gone. Hard to meet anyone or even a new girl if I'm always in the bush working.

The next few goals are... clear up the last debt... but taking a little to put in etfs so i can settle my mind that im saving. I need to see progress with the balances. I do realize i should do the debt first.
After that, i want to max the TFSA AND RRSP contributions.

The next area I'm looking for is 350,000-450,000. In that range i can live on the lake in Nova Scotia, spend some time with family.. do a part time thing.   I also really enjoy slavic countries and south american destinations with great enchange rates.

Did you know the average Ukrainian makes about $100 usd per month. So i can live easy letting the money compound while doing a few things on the side.

I'm looking at possibly buying a house, but only if I can rent rooms to cover mortgage and create income.

I've had a long day at work and I'm sure I've left out something. Any questions or input is welcomed!

[retired?]

Some honest input - consolidate your post to just include the highlights.  Whenever I see a post this long, it's hard for me to dive in.  I can't tell if you asked any specific questions.

[Moustachienne]

It's a long post and you probably want to highlight your question(s) like Retired suggested but I really enjoyed reading it.  I love to hear about people in the oilfields who are being smart with their money. So many treat it like a lottery windfall and drink, smoke, or gamble it away.  It can set you up for life if you're smart, so good on you!

[Cryocash]

Oh wow.. didnt even think was long.. looking today... holy crap.
I was up for 36 hours when i wrote it.

Tldr. I started fi 3 months ago and am excited to meet the community here.

[acroy]

Great job, sounds like you are on the right track!
I really enjoyed the line below:

my food per month.. even with going out with the boys here and there dropped from 2500 per month to the 200-300 mark.

that is BADASS

[Prairie Stash]

You should immediately get the RRSP match of 7%, even before debt. The debt payment saves you 20%/year, pretty big. The RRSP earns 100% (1$ in gets $2 out courtesy of the match). Matches don't rollover, you have to get them while you can.

Once you hit the max match then hit the debt. Follow that by maxing TFSA. If you get loads of OT that pushes your income over $91.8k (after subtracting the RRSP that's taken off the top), then you'll be in the 36% bracket and it gives more back than in the 30.5% (under $91.8k) bracket.

In one years time this will all go onto auto pilot. Your choices will quickly become max out the annual TFSA (2017 its $5500) which is 6.875% of your income, 18% of your salary goes to RRSP (company does 7%, really its only 11% pre-tax savings rate from you) and an investment account. Less than 20% of your pretax income, about 14.5% after tax.

You can do this easily, relax and set the plan in motion.

[Cryocash]

Oh man, I'm so excited to be here with like minded people.

To clarify. My company matches 1% per year up to 7%. I'm definitely matching it all.
I'll do the debt first.

Do group rrsp deductions take place before tax? It would als reduce my income tax as it lowers the gross?

[soccerluvof4]

The biggest and best money you can save will be stop eating the fast food! As a person that came from the trucking industry I had so many drivers over the years that went early or struggled from so many diseases because of this. Your health should always be a priority and I would figure that part our! Congrats on all the other things your doing well. Make sure you do everything you can to be around long enough to enjoy it!!!

[Cryocash]

I'm overweight but not fat . I've always had a large frame. I'm also a great cook, but on the road it is difficult. The ricecooker cooker acts like a fast slow cooker. Not only am I saving a ton of money, but I can see visibly that I'm starting to slim.

I hardly ever did fast food. Restaurants are as bad or worse with no regulation.

[swick]

Welcome to the forums, Cryocash. Nice to see another Canadian on board :)

Here are some blogs about cooking/saving $$ while trucking you might not have seen:

http://www.truck-drivers-money-saving-tips.com/food-and-recipes.html

[cchrissyy]

your income is strong and your expenses are nice and low.
fabulous!

it hurts to see this part!

Credit cards 2000 (20%)
Credit line 15000 (9.99%)

clear it away and you will be smooth sailing to FI from here

[Cryocash]

Thanks! I just randomly said to myself I'm going to retire asap. You think  the $17800 total is bad? It was over $45000 of high interest 3 months ago. My progress is measurable in the right direction now!

[attackgnome]

Hey Cyrocash, I also work in the O&G industry and used to have a field position in NoDak followed by some on the North Slope.

 Definitely watch the diet and exercise. Over the past 2 years I started packing my own food and then when I transferred to an office role started biking to work. As a result I lost over 25  kgs, which gives you an idea of how much the irregular sleep schedule, crappy diet, and infrequent exercise can do a number on you. I'm glad I started addressing those problems sooner rather than later.

Also avoid chew and cigarettes like the devil, that crap is almost impossible to quit if you are regularly pulling 24+ hour shifts.

[Prairie Stash]

Oh man, I'm so excited to be here with like minded people.

To clarify. My company matches 1% per year up to 7%. I'm definitely matching it all.
I'll do the debt first.

Do group rrsp deductions take place before tax? It would als reduce my income tax as it lowers the gross?

The company RRSP contributions don't change your taxes at all. They count as extra income that's put straight into RRSP, its a wash. They reduce your RRSP room, that's something to remember later when you get close to maxing the RRSP out. Overall they're still fantastic and always encouraged, its always free money. Your money counts as contributions though, since you're volunteering to reduce your income. I get a 3% top up for my longevity, its reduced the amount I can contribute and lowered my refund, but in the big picture I have a higher NW because of it. NW is all that matters, everything is aimed at increasing NW and should guide all decisions.

To be clear you've been there 4 years so you get 4% match, next year it will be 5%. That's a cool way of encouraging you to stay.

[Guesl982374]

Keep up the good work!

People will sometimes follow this pattern:

1) Find out about MMM, cut most of the fat out of their spending, they are over the moon about their future possibilities and how they are progressing
2) Hit a rut once their expenses have stabilized. They've cut all of the excess out of their spending, are saving & investing a lot each month, and generally know when they can FIRE / take the next step. People get frustrated that they have to wait 2-15 years to get to their future FIRE state even though it may be decades ahead of the general population. It seems to the individual that all there is left to do is maintain and wait. <-- A lot of people get stuck here. Be careful of hitting this wall
3) Refocus on other aspects of your life where you can optimize/improve (health, family, hobbies, etc). Learn to live in the moment and enjoy life
4) FIRE / SWAMI / Change careers / whatever you want

[Cryocash]

I mean, is the group rrsp bit is taken off my cheque before, or after taxes??

Oh man, I'm so excited to be here with like minded people.

To clarify. My company matches 1% per year up to 7%. I'm definitely matching it all.
I'll do the debt first.

Do group rrsp deductions take place before tax? It would als reduce my income tax as it lowers the gross?

The company RRSP contributions don't change your taxes at all. They count as extra income that's put straight into RRSP, its a wash. They reduce your RRSP room, that's something to remember later when you get close to maxing the RRSP out. Overall they're still fantastic and always encouraged, its always free money. Your money counts as contributions though, since you're volunteering to reduce your income. I get a 3% top up for my longevity, its reduced the amount I can contribute and lowered my refund, but in the big picture I have a higher NW because of it. NW is all that matters, everything is aimed at increasing NW and should guide all decisions.

To be clear you've been there 4 years so you get 4% match, next year it will be 5%. That's a cool way of encouraging you to stay.

[erp]

All RRSP contributions off your paycheck will be pre-tax. It doesn't really matter whether it's a group RRSP or not, it's still pre-tax.

If you make a lump sum contribution with post-tax dollars (say, deposits into a questrade RRSP from your bank account), then you'll get a refund or pay less tax when you file. Does that answer your question?

[Prairie Stash]

Work contributions - no tax implication

Personal RRSP contributions are generally after tax and you get a tax refund as a result. If you want a lump sum at tax time that's the default. If you want to have the RRSP taken pretax at each cheque then you can fill in the T1213 form, send it to payroll and they can adjust your pay so that your personal RRSP contributions are pre-tax. This form needs to be filled in annually.

What form T1213 does is allow you to contribute $100 per cheque and only see  $70 less (or whatever your tax rate is), make sense?

Form for RRSP to make the deductions pretax (note, you won't get an annual refund since the refund is basically giving back the taxes you didn't need to pay)
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pbg/tf/t1213/t1213-16e.pdf   

Alberta form for random deductions
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pbg/tf/td1ab/td1ab-17e.pdf   

[Cryocash]

So it works out the same.

So in that case I'm better to only to get company matching and self direct any other contributions.  Sounds like a plan!

All RRSP contributions off your paycheck will be pre-tax. It doesn't really matter whether it'4s a group RRSP or not, it's still pre-tax.

If you make a lump sum contribution with post-tax dollars (say, deposits into a questrade RRSP from your bank account), then you'll get a refund or pay less tax when you file. Does that answer your question?

[Mattzlaff]

Great start you are light years ahead of a lot of Oil workers in Alberta. I'm from AB too and although a little younger than you I am in the same income range and only started my road to FI in Feb last year.

Take care of that debt, the higher interest ones should be priority.

Increase your matchable contribution to max out the companies portion. It's free money and it seems like you can handle putting the full 7% away. Watch your RRSP maximum yearly contribution though I don't think you'll have a problem because I think the yearly amount increases by 18% of your income up to a certain government set limit. You can find more on the CRA website.

Once you're done with that and you're looking to put into a TFSA or max out your RRSPs, you need to not fall into the banks 1%-1.5% "High" interest TFSA. You can do a whole lot better by yourself with a scotia Itrade account or a questrade self directed account. Both places can set up individual accounts for TFSA and RRSPs again watch out for contribution room. But if you're comfortable starting off with a savings account over an investment account to get started, that's fine too.

keep it up and eventually you will find some time to sit down and maximize your returns.

Try websites like http://canadiancouchpotato.com/ and look through the MMM blog a lot more. There's a couple posts about Mr frugal toque. I found them infinitely helpful.


For the health and fitness part, portion control seems to be your best option considering the sitting on you A** waiting for the customer. Cut the fast food out will save you loads and more meal prep might be better. You can set up a great breakfast and lunch by cooking things in muffin tins and freezing them.

If you end up finding time to work out do it. 1Hour of work out time is 4% of the day. The internet is your friend here there is lots of routines you can look up and do.

[Cryocash]

I enjoy the work. Just impossible to meet a significant other or keep friends when I am gone 27 days a month.

I've never been great at saving money... but I've always saved a little. You know how it works. You don't really need to save money out here as there is so lunch of it... as long as you are okay with working forever.

I've always only bought things if it was cash or 0.0% interest.

I've researched what's most likely best for me for several months. Canadian resources are not as good as the US ones seem to be. But I've managed and got a good plan.

Thanks for the tips. It is easier to keep on always rennie plan when others yell at you!

Ccards and credit line first is super hard for me to do when I love stock. But I'll be more vigilant now that you people are watching.

Great start you are light years ahead of a lot of Oil workers in Alberta. I'm from AB too and although a little younger than you I am in the same income range and only started my road to FI in Feb last year.

Take care of that debt, the higher interest ones should be priority.

Increase your matchable contribution to max out the companies portion. It's free money and it seems like you can handle putting the full 7% away. Watch your RRSP maximum yearly contribution though I don't think you'll have a problem because I think the yearly amount increases by 18% of your income up to a certain government set limit. You can find more on the CRA website.

Once you're done with that and you're looking to put into a TFSA or max out your RRSPs, you need to not fall into the banks 1%-1.5% "High" interest TFSA. You can do a whole lot better by yourself with a scotia Itrade account or a questrade self directed account. Both places can set up individual accounts for TFSA and RRSPs again watch out for contribution room. But if you're comfortable starting off with a savings account over an investment account to get started, that's fine too.

keep it up and eventually you will find some time to sit down and maximize your returns.

Try websites like http://canadiancouchpotato.com/ and look through the MMM blog a lot more. There's a couple posts about Mr frugal toque. I found them infinitely helpful.


For the health and fitness part, portion control seems to be your best option considering the sitting on you A** waiting for the customer. Cut the fast food out will save you loads and more meal prep might be better. You can set up a great breakfast and lunch by cooking things in muffin tins and freezing them.

If you end up finding time to work out do it. 1Hour of work out time is 4% of the day. The internet is your friend here there is lots of routines you can look up and do.