Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Saving the money for what?
Good question.
If she's single and childless at 36 -- probably the ability to retire at a reasonable age and enjoy her retirement. Say she saves 20k per year from age 30 to age 55 (assuming she is contributing financially to the household via food and utilities plus buying her own clothes and electronics and taking occasional vacations which she should reasonably be able to do while still saving 20k because she has no housing costs). She could then retire at 60 with $2.5m. If she inherits her parents' house then she would be okay.
Single and childless people don't have to worry about paying for college but retirement and healthcare costs can be scary. I absolutely think there is value in finding a way to avoid paying rant past age 35 if you can help it at all. The preferred method is to buy a home and build wealth by building equity. But without a partner and with a middle class salary this is going to be hard. You also have no buffer on your income -- if you buy a house solo and then lose your job there is no safety net in a two-income household.
Living with parents provided they are okay with it and you contribute and take care of them as they age is a reasonable compromise. If the parents don't want it that's a different situation and she would need to come up with another plan. But 36 is around the age many people start looking ahead and trying to figure out how to make sure they don't have to work for the rest of their lives.