Do you want to ruin your financial life by the age of 30? What a stupid question, right? Well this isn’t something that we plan. It just happens.
Frugal Dad put together a very thought provoking piece not too long ago– 44 Ways To Ruin Your Financial Life By Age 30. I wanted to highlight and comment on some of the points that really resonated with me:
Take out three times as much in student loans as your first year’s salary.
Paying back student loans can set you back a LONG time financially. I understand that a post-secondary education is extremely valuable and often times needed, but there are ways around acquiring massive amounts of debt for college. As honorable as it is to follow your passions and get into a high-reward/low-profit field, but hopefully you can do this without putting yourself deep into debt.
Form a partnership with three old fraternity brothers from college.
Friends and money does NOT work, will NOT work, and should NOT even be attempted. Just because you enjoy drinking with your buddies, it doesn’t mean that you’ll enjoy working with them. I’ve seen moving in together ruin friendships. I can’t imagine what starting a business together would do.
Borrow money from your parents.
Isn’t that what parents are for? Nope. Their job is raise you. A 20-something should never rely on their parents. It’s beneficial to have a supportive family. Money could dramatically alter family relations as you grow through your 20s. Do you really want to rely on your parents financially as you hit 30? Or even worse, do you want your parents to delay their retirement because they gave you money?
Drive like an idiot.
Driving tickets can do some serious damage to your record. Not only will your car insurance rates go up, but you’ll have to pay some pretty hefty fines. The absolute worst part is that these charges will stick to your record for a few years. You’ll be paying higher insurance rates for a few years just because of a mistake you made at a young age.
Marry the wrong person for the wrong reasons.
Don’t marry for money or because you feel stuck. Life is short. Weddings are expensive. Divorces are even more expensive.
Share a mortgage with your boyfriend/girlfriend.
Ouch. This happened to one of my friends last year. Purchased a condo with his long term girlfriend (NOT wife!) and moved in together. Everything was fine… until they broke up. Selling a condo while dealing with a breakup is not easy by any means. Watch out who you share a mortgage with and make sure that you’re always protected. You could also save up more money and buy that new condo on your own, instead of with your casual girlfriend.
Eat out every single meal.
I understand that it’s difficult to cook for one. There’s nothing wrong with preparing small meals or eating left overs for a few days. Eating out 3-4 times a day could obliterate your wallet and eventually your financial situation.
What else do you think can be done to ruin your financial life by the age of 30?
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Impulse Magazine, how are you reaching your retired by 30 goal?
Here’s how my husband and I stack up and we’re attempting to retire by 52 (currently we’re 27):
1. No student loans – hubby’s parents covered him and I worked 3 part-time jobs, got scholarships, and my parents covered the bit that was left. Yes, we know how lucky we are…we thank our parents all the time.
2. We lost $12,000 going into business with the wrong people…we have since earned much of it back selling off inventory and doing side jobs because we felt silly, but it’s a lesson learned.
3. We have never borrowed from family or friends, just a mortgage company and a couple of car loan companies…
4. I have a spotless driving record and hubby’s has been clean for more than 7 years.
5. So far, so good in the marriage arena…we married because we love each other and fit well together.
6. We bought our house 2 years after our wedding and 6 years after we started dating.
7. We were spending way too much on fast food and restaurants, so we’ve cut that in half this year.
That’s impressive! You’ve managed to cover the areas where I feel our generation will suffer the most.
High divorce rates, fast food restaurants, get rich quick schemes, and student loans are going to haunt our generation I feel.
Any other way you think one could ruin their financial life before 30?