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I just want to say this, “Hakuna Matata”
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My expenses went up in tandem. Wasn’t until recently I felt I have a surplus. Things that changed was increased use of services. At about this level I had a housekeeper come 2x a week to change sheets, do laundry and ironing , take/pick up dry cleaning and other odd jobs like shopping for basics that I needed. Quality of holidays went up and I stopped looking for “deals”. Safaris, himalaya trekking, all that good stuff. Stopped flying economy long haul - use points where possible but no way am I sitting 10-12 hours in cattle. I started having clothes made rather than off the peg. There is a big difference. Also I invested in much better bed linen. That’s about it. Oh and frankly the girls got hotter.
Edit: a lot of sensible people above but you make me yawn. And yes every late night in the office was worth it for the life I now have
I am interested in what part of the country you live in....in my city $300k doesn’t get you all of those luxuries..... I’ve been both single and single parent in my partner years and can vouch life with no kids allows for a lot more of these perks (But to be clear. Sitting home in sweats eating Mac and Cheese with the child is ultimately way more fun than all the other fun i used to have !).
haven’t changed my lifestyle or living costs, still in the same home, same car only more miles and my frequent flyer miles and hotel points are astronomical to the point that I don’t really know what to do with them.
I save a lot more, invest a lot more, continue to build retirement and charitable gift funds for later in life, saved for kid’s college funds. We don’t stress over money anymore as a result, we did for the first 10 years of marriage.
I focus on family, friends and enjoy my life. In my own personal pursuit of happiness, that is the American Dream ... at least my American Dream.
Considering I grew up with very little in a broken home with little to no money, I thank god everyday for the gifts he’s given and the choices he has helped me make in my life.
I highly recommend stop worrying about how other people are doing and focusing on your own well being and that of your family. Don’t let others define success for you.
Love this😊
I think you’re seeing that we all have different journeys here.
My life changed little between $150K and $300K. Had bought a condo when I was just a bit above 150. For me, the bigger changes came in the 500-700 range when I got a house and started upgrading all sorts of other things. From 700-1.5M, things haven’t changed much.
I’ve felt rich the entire time.
I work in some combination of commercial strategy and advanced analytics. Firm profits / partner sit somewhere between B4 and MBB.
Booo these responses 🥱 looks like I’ll need to aim to make a lot more than $300k
I’m not quite there but about ~350. Still not married, no kids, and renting the same apartment I did when I was at ~150 TC. Mostly just went from being cost conscious to not being concerned about what I spend on gifts, work clothes, drinks, food and hobbies (like skiing). Doing everything in my power to keep my overhead low to avoid a golden handcuffs situation, which is why I haven’t gotten a nice apartment or car or any other big lifestyle upgrades
Restructuring Advisory
I would ask yourself the same question, was there a significant change in lifestyle from 75k to 150k? For me, none whatsoever. If anything I probably lived better at 75k, first job out of college, bought a used M3 and drove it to the office like I was some boss. Regardless, it was simpler times indeed.
At 150k, I was a home owner. 3rd home infact, I’ve boughten and flipped my primary residence ever since I was able to buy my first 700k home.
Im 34yo and I’m now at the 300k TC mark (and no, I don’t work at BAH). VPs and up, maybe Principals make this lunch at BAH. Anywho, I’ve made some decent real estate investments, rode the market, and I’ve managed to lock in a 30yr fixed on a SFH under $3M a year ago. I’ve probably made about $1.5M on just flipping my homes within the past 6-8yrs. Prob should diversify my investments, but the house is not just for me, it’s houses a few little ones (and critters) also.
This might sound like fun, but I was happier at 75k driving my used M3, reporting to a mid level manager. Times were easy, the biggest stress in my life was deciding where to eat lunch, and the work was work, challenging but not hard, and I had the youth and vigor.
I would recommend to live and enjoy the moment, without focusing too much on the future. I’ve found myself turning more into the latter, and I’m missing out all the enjoyment that comes with day to day living.
We can trade salaries if you miss 75k so much!
Not much has changed, only incrementally larger biweekly checks. Just saving a lot more and investing a bigger portion. Haven’t really changed lifestyle, but have only been in my new job a for less than 6 months.
Left for industry
Chief
I was making avoid $170 2 years ago, now at ~$280k TC.
Before I was spending half my income on my mortgage and not saving anything outside of retirement accounts and very modest 529 contributions.
Now I’m maxing out my 401k, contribute $3k a month to kids’ 529 accounts. Save more, splurged a little bit on an RV.
Agreed with folks above... doing my best to avoid increasing fixed expenses like housing to hedge my bets
Chief
TC at the step in between was $205. Got a pretty good bump with the current role. Not my typical pattern to jump around after less than 2 years, but if you do, make it worth your while...
I grew up poor. When I was at $150k, I used to be worried if I can support my beautiful family. Can I pay for my kids college? When I was around $200k I decided not to follow the partner path. I went to business school and felt I could become an entrepreneur and do better than becoming a partner. It worked exactly as planned. Kept a low profile in consulting but started a real estate venture. Now, total income would be $500k or so. Venture could give $400K or more rest of my life after 7 years or so. I live without fear now and do the things I love. I am thinking of buying a little expensive house finally! No fancy hobby. Looking for ways to help others. I try to be in great shape so that I can enjoy what I have.
IBM 1 - would you be open if I DM you to learn more about your path? I’m getting started on a real estate venture of my own and would love to learn more. Thanks for considering!
This thread is so comforting and gives happiness thinking of a better future
Pro
My income grew quickly from about 125k to 300k around the years 2009-2012. Joining a new field amidst a scarey economy led me to ramp up our already aggressive saving. We were already secure and good savers but we saved even more.
Built a rock solid financial foundation. We haven't worried about money jn years and will likely retire at 55.
We fixed more hassles and problems with money when we could.
Season tickets to local pro team
We added amazing vacations (life list 15k per trip stuff)
Bought a vacation home.
Planned a 55 or younger retirement.
Most of our lives don't indicate our financial status; no maid, no expensive car or watch. But our lives are great fun and not worrying is amazing.
And at 55 I'll walk out the door very comfortably.
Btw; lifestyle creep leads to hedonic adaption; which is part of why money often doesn't buy happiness.
Partner and I will pull in around $675K total comp this year. Early 30s no kids. 5 years ago we made half that and when we started dating 7 years ago we made about $175k (I made significantly more but now she makes nearly double thanks to her job in tech).
Honestly, not a ton has changed since doubling our income the past 5 years. We bought a condo we could individually afford at the time. We max 401k and save a lot each year. Our car is 5 years old and we’ll get a new one soon. She now likes buying used luxury goods whenever she wants and I’m into flying, which is an expensive hobby. We take very nice vacations (well pre-COVID) but a fair amount was covered by points and upgrades - no long haul coach for us - and we’ll splurge for $1k/night lodging.
Overall, we live well within our means but don’t sweat big purchases. We don’t have any major saving and purchase goals in mind.
P3 why do you feel overshadowed?
Pro
I’d say the biggest change was moving to industry for better WLB and realizing anything above 300k you can basically do whatever you reasonably want. (Disclaimer we have no kids). I don’t see how we would ever need to make any more than we do to be happy.
Our yearly family (of 4) vacations (international) are now in business class. 5 years ago this would not have been possible. We both drive nice cars. We have house help daily. Wife buys designer wear more frequently. We live in the same house though. Did not upgrade and it’s nearly paid off. We are at 500k combined.
Rising Star
Not much lifestyle creep for me.
Taxes go up certainly. So has my charitable giving. I save more and worry less about normal spending. I’d rather spend time and energy trying to nail a trade than squeeze out an extra 0.00037% is a HYSA.
Big tech here.
Not significant difference. We started maxing a second 401k, and take vacations to europe rather than cancun.
Between taxes and a lot of that additional TC being stock it’s not that radical of a difference in my paycheck, maybe 1200 more bi-weekly. Bigger lifestyle change for sure was moving out of NYC
Funnily enough, I’ve been pretty much everywhere in Europe, and I really want to go to Cancun...
My wife and I together make about $350k TC per year.
We are in HCOL city. So at $150k we were still a little frugal. Still had to get a smaller apartment, still mindful of our spending, etc.
At $200k that really all went away. Was able to get a bigger apartment. Spend on what we wanted while still being able to save.
You also begin to take home more. After $137.5k you stop paying social security tax. So you are able to save more. You don’t notice it at $150k too much.
But there is no real noticeable difference for us past $200k. Aside from being able to pay cash for things. We were able to pay $25k cash for a car with no hesitation.
Obviously we were able to save more. So makes it less stressful in this time. We both had significant jumps to put us at this number about 9-months ago. We went from $200k to $350k almost over night. In that 9-months we have saved about $60k in cash and $30k in investments while still upgrading to a bigger apartment and not cutting back our lifestyle.
150K - 450K (2017- 2020)
The biggest change in quality of life is from being able to hire help to save us time and energy. Between nanny, maid, other help.. we are probably spending $1-2K a week. Obviously will be nice to be able to put those money in investment, but oh well
D2, actually it was 100% of the consulting skill that I developed at Deloitte that got me the job in Tech - problem solving, framework, storyboarding.. all the basic stuff. I’m not in a technical role by any means.
Bought a house and have a dog and 2 cats now. I don’t have kids. I grew up with pets so having mine is important to my happiness. Expenses went up with home maintenance. The one important thing for me was the ability to spend money on things that make my life easier given the hours I work. I have a house cleaner once a month. I bought a bigger bed and nice sheets. Nicer towels. Better tv and audio. Better kitchen stuff. Some nice art supplies. These are all things that make my life better, happier, and easier.
Aside from that, I save and invest a lot more and I was able to pay off my student loans quickly. Oh, and travel. I can actually afford to travel to some wonderful places now without worrying about cost.
$150-$275K in recent years and my husband is on a similar trajectory. Paid off student loans and saving up a down payment so life hasn't shifted that drastically.
Like others have said, we have maxed out our 401K contributions and are also starting a college fund for future kids. I donate a lot more to charity than I used to. Tend to stay in nicer hotels when we travel now; will splurge on the really nice places if it's a beach resort and we're actually going to be there all day.
I think less about big shopping purchases but I still don't shop that much. Haven't really changed our eating out habits at all either. Probably the biggest change is the lack of anxiety about money. It's also killed my desire to earn more. I still want to be successful at work but I could honestly be happy at this relative income level for the rest of my life.