Things, experiences, or wealth?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Such an interesting topic, OP!

Having grown up in a house where everything was trying to figure out how to pay the bills, I find great comfort in being able to not have debt and to buy a $9 bottle of lotion at Walmart instead of the $1.98 bottle for my dry skin. Weird example, but I am happiest when I feel monetarily safe in day to day living. Which means to feel safe, I have to earn and save.

Over the years that has grown to feeling happiness at being able to buy nice sheets, or a piece of art, or nice coffee and a coffee machine.

So mine would be save money to have a gracious daily living experience to feel safe. But this also includes the "experience: of being able to host a lovely (this doesn't mean fancy) dinner for extended family and friends.

I want to be able to enjoy the moments of being surrounded by family and friends without the stress of how to pay my monthly bills.

Next would be "things" beyond a $9 bottle of lotion. Such as a nice home and car, nice clothes for my kids, for me. I have a lovely wedding ring.

And I do want to leave wealth behind.

After that are the bigger experiences like travel. I've done a decent amount, but I don't live to travel.

I make money to live securely, and if something happens I have the ability to pay to fix it or live as easily as possible with it.

^^^TL;DR
Wealth/for safety
Experiences/in daily living with family and friends
Things/if there is money left over

[Anonymous]

We value savings, then experiences and things last. We are big savers and we travel a lot. We also have a lovely home, drive luxury cars, have nice watches, bags, shoes, etc.

[Anonymous]

Things. Like a paid off house. I am a minimalist so I don’t like things generally but a paid off house and cars would be my priority.

I don’t like travel. The experiences I like are free: walking, reading dancing.

Generational wealth is last. I won’t inherit a thing. I am fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We value savings, then experiences and things last. We are big savers and we travel a lot. We also have a lovely home, drive luxury cars, have nice watches, bags, shoes, etc.

You value things last because you already have them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I spend my money where is counts. Like one of the PPs said - there is no substitute for good quality high-thread count sheets. You won’t catch me with a Gucci handbag, ever. I do value experiences where I bond with people. Our family skis a lot, so we invested in good quality lessons when our kids were 3 and bought a ski home; we get about 15 days on the mountain a year. We travel to visit family overseas and spend money when we are with them. That said experiences like a Pink or Taylor Swift concert, although I like their music, will not increase the quality of my life one iota, so I will never buy a ticket. I buy my kids clothing that will allow them to fit in, but never be at the height of fashion (hard no to Golden Goose shoes!). With this - I actually bought 2 ski homes - one for each kid, held in trust. This ensures my grandkids will also have this experience. When I retire, I’ll buy something small for myself in the area. So, my priorities are BONDING experiences, then generational wealth. Things are just for comfort along the way, like a good night’s sleep, healthy delicious food, comfortable warm clothing, etc. - nothing fancy or showy.

I completely agree with you about the bonding experiences . But the "ensures" here seems a stretch--skiing may no longer be a thing with climate change, your kids may not have kids, their spouse may hate skiing, they may not have vacation time that they want to spend that way etc. Not to be nitpicky, but some of the generational wealth thinking seems to want to control and institute one's values down the line--and sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn't.

That was an odd one, buying two ski houses. I know too many people who got bored with skiing and moved on to something else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Skiing a white people thing?

Mostly. It’s fun but some people go overboard. How many times can you go up and down a mountain over the years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really prefer things to experiences. I feel like I get deep enjoyment out of them every time I use them. That’s everything from nice clothing, fancy handbags, high quality groceries, cozy sheets and comforters, nice furniture, a renovated kitchen, etc. I enjoy experiences, but I don’t need them all that frequently to feel good about my life. In terms of generational wealth, I plan to leave enough money behind to support my disabled child who will never live independently, but my line dies with her.

Agree, I’d rather have things than experiences. I get much more enjoyment from a beautifully decorated home than I would visiting some random village in Thailand.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Things. Like a paid off house. I am a minimalist so I don’t like things generally but a paid off house and cars would be my priority.

I don’t like travel. The experiences I like are free: walking, reading dancing.

Generational wealth is last. I won’t inherit a thing. I am fine.

You fool - why would you ever pay off your house? Don't you know how much more money you'll have in retirement if you keep a 3% mortgage and invest the difference in the market? Can't you do basic math?

J/k, but just posted to save the finance trolls the effort.

[Anonymous]

You can have all three as long as you know your budget.

If you make $150,000 a year you’re not going to have an extensive Rolex collection and still pay for 2 kids college education. However, you can buy a Rolex after saving for it for awhile.

Etc etc etc

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Horses!

Made me laugh but also + 100

Same here + 100

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Horses!

Horses, friends, dogs, cats, art, and music all go in the experience bucket for me.

I only need enough money to not be stressed about not having enough. Experiences, money, things. Because I have enough things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Things. Like a paid off house. I am a minimalist so I don’t like things generally but a paid off house and cars would be my priority.

I don’t like travel. The experiences I like are free: walking, reading dancing.

Generational wealth is last. I won’t inherit a thing. I am fine.

You fool - why would you ever pay off your house? Don't you know how much more money you'll have in retirement if you keep a 3% mortgage and invest the difference in the market? Can't you do basic math?

J/k, but just posted to save the finance trolls the effort.

This made me giggle! Thank you. I hate debt with an irrational hatred and my husband paid cash for our place because he feels the same, since his ex cleaned out his bank accounts before she left.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Skiing a white people thing?

Dunno, but I do know that Billie Holiday loved to ski and looked adorable doing it.

[Anonymous]

I split equally with direct deposit between vacation fund, savings (after retirement savings), and college savings. My attempt is to balance generational wealth and experiences. I’m pretty cheap when it comes to things buying secondhand

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Things. Like a paid off house. I am a minimalist so I don’t like things generally but a paid off house and cars would be my priority.

I don’t like travel. The experiences I like are free: walking, reading dancing.

Generational wealth is last. I won’t inherit a thing. I am fine.

You fool - why would you ever pay off your house? Don't you know how much more money you'll have in retirement if you keep a 3% mortgage and invest the difference in the market? Can't you do basic math?

J/k, but just posted to save the finance trolls the effort.

If I had enough money, a thing is a paid off house. Interest rates are not 3% and never will be again.