OP, home cooking isn't just cheaper, it's healthier and better. It's an investment in your family. You don't to go fancy. Meal prep, simple meals, and get the whole family involved in helping together. |
Like some here I enjoy the game of small savings. For instance yesterday I was wearing a pair of socks that I got from my MIL which she received as a "gift" from a charitable organization soliciting her. That's $8 kept for me that I didn't spend on a pair of socks! Sometimes if we have a breakfast at work and there are leftovers, I will have a bagel for lunch and save the lunch I brought for the next day. As others said, moving to a job which pays more and an organization with better benefits would probably yield more financially, but in the meantime being cheap is a fun game to play and admittedly gives me some sense of control. |
Do you have an emergency fund? If not, HYSA. If yes, brokerage account of your choice: taxable, tax advantaged, whatever. And if you have a big purchase planned for the next two years, HYSA. |
This is OP. I will look into brokerage account asap! |
Also check out Acorns. Basically every purchase on their card can be rounded up with the difference invested. Also good rate on checking accounts. Easy way to save for a lot of people. |
OP here.
Are there any disadvantages of opening SPAXX Fidelity Brokerage account? |
I guess maybe ask yourself WHY you are trying to save this money and see if that helps guide what you should do with it. When I still had tons of student debt, I used to send in an extra $50 or $80 payment several times a month (on top of my big monthly payments). It did add up. Now I do that with my little Fidelity investment account. We are far behind saving for retirement and don't have nearly enough in savings - working on it! - and several times a month I'll just stick another $80 or $150 into my investment account. It's all saved in an index fund. I've managed to squirrel away about $24,000 in the last three years. What is it that you are saving money for? Is it the security of a nest egg? Is it savings for a vacation? Whatever it is, I'd recommend creating an account for that purpose and sticking all those $80 savings in there. It won't make you rich overnight but it does add up. |
“Are there any disadvantages of opening SPAXX Fidelity Brokerage account?”
Okay, I had to look this one up. Seems that it is a money market fund. So that would be what is considered a conservative investment - while these may be paying over 4% now, that will decrease as the Fed eases interest rates over the next year or so. A great choice if conserving your money is your main goal. For example, if you want to use it in the next few years to pay for college or buy a bigger house. If building wealth is your goal, then you need a more aggressive investment choice. The most sane way to do this is to invest in low cost ETF or funds. The minimum wage PP’s recommendation of VOO (Vanguard’s s&p 500 ETF) is a very good choice, as is VTSAX (Vanguard’s total stock market mutual fund). Vanguard is very well known for being more low cost and consumer friendly, so you may want to open a brokerage account with them and set up monthly auto investing into VOO or VTSAX. And PP’s recommendation that you do this as a Roth IRA, if you qualify, is great advice too. roth’s are amazing because earnings are tax free forever. |
Thank you! |
Go to a compound interest calculator. $80/week ($320/month) at 8% return would be about $60,000 in 10 years.
At least that is how I explain it to my teenagers who only make enough to invest about $100/month |
I should have added they both have VOO through Vanguard. |
This is simply garbage advice. OP you are correct, what will make the biggest impact is for you to have an income that way exceeds your expenses. Sure you can save $80/wk but that will not make you rich. We have 200k in a HYSA and made a few thousand in interest last year. We also bought a sold land with our excess income. That generated 14X the HYSA interest. Get a higher paying job if you can. |
This is simply garbage advice. OP you are correct, what will make the biggest impact is for you to have an income that way exceeds your expenses. Sure you can save $80/wk but that will not make you rich. We have 200k in a HYSA and made a few thousand in interest last year. We also bought a sold land with our excess income. That generated 14X the HYSA interest. Get a higher paying job if you can. |
What a great post! |