Welcome to Money Talks! New approaches to money have exploded. Yet, money remains taboo. Less than half of you share personal finance information with your friends and family.
But that’s all changing. Now more and more of you are talking about money because it leads to better outcomes.
In an effort to provide personal finance insights through transparency (and have a bit of fun), I’ve created a series titled Money Talks that showcases how real people in Charlotte approach money.
It’s an anonymous way for you to share your money experiences and insights with our city. Answers are lightly edited for clarity and privacy (ex, exact age). Want to participate? Take the Money Talks survey.
Here’s a look at a 40-year-old couple’s personal finances.
Living situation:
My husband and I own a house. We moved to the area 3 years ago for my job, which unfortunately meant giving up our 2.8% interest rate for a 6.7% interest rate, which still causes me heartburn.
We found an amazing property in Union County, so at least it was cheaper than the Charlotte market with more land. No kids.
Job and salary:
I’m a senior marketing manager. I make $97K with an additional annual bonus of $5K along with a 401(k) and a pension.
My husband is a senior account executive for a software company and makes $90K with an additional annual bonus of $5K, 401(k) match program and yearly stock options, which can range anywhere from $5K – $25K a year.
So in total, our household income is around $220K.
Salary journey:
I started my career as a copywriter making $38K. I worked my way up at a few different companies and was recently a senior director making $165K.
I was working nights and weekends, completely stressed and really unhealthy. So about six months ago, I took almost a 50% pay cut for my job.
I’m thankful to have been in a position to do so and my new role offers so much more flexibility. We’ve also had some fun finding really creative ways to save money.
This is the second time I’ve taken a fairly significant pay cut in my career, and each time it’s been worth it and has paid off in other ways.
Work-life balance:
With my new role and a step back, it’s better than it’s ever been.
I rarely have to work past 5 p.m. or on the weekends. I haven’t had consistent free weekends in 11 years and I can’t explain how much I love it!
Debt:
Aside from our mortgage, we have combined $42K in student loans (we both had to take out loans throughout undergrad and grad school) and $7K left to pay on my husband’s truck.
Our goal is to have our student loans paid off in 2 years. We also never want to have more than one car payment, so I will drive my 10-year-old sedan until the wheels fall off.
Credit card:
We have the Capital One Venture Card. We love to travel and love being able to redeem our points on travel.
Budgeting:
Absolutely. We use a Google Sheet that we’ve set up for every month.
I prefer to manually enter in all my expenses because it holds me more accountable. I update it at the end of every week. Then, each quarter, we update our investments and debts in that sheet so we can see how much progress we’re making.
Favorite expense:
$4 New York Times subscription. It’s so affordable, something I read multiple times a day and get to play all the games.
My least favorite expense is our new mortgage. I’m still shook over our interest rate and it’s such a huge chunk of money over a long period of time.
Splurge:
I love finding small, inexpensive things to splurge on like a $4 flower bouquet from Lidl.
We also love to travel and try to rotate between domestic and international trips every year.
Charlotte money hack:
Live outside of Charlotte 🙂
Restaurant pick:
Dogwood! Save room for the cheesecake.
Investment strategy:
We both put 15% into our 401(k) and max out an IRA every year. Every month, $1K goes into our savings and whatever we have leftover for the month, we invest in ETFs.
Our net worth is $500K, which all came from our earnings and investing.
I think the best advice is to live below your means.
Savings goal:
We have an upcoming vacation to Italy, so we’re saving up for that trip. And longer term, we’re saving up for retirement and a move to the mountains.
Retirement:
Ideally, I’d like to be done with my career between 50 and 55 years old. I’ll definitely keep working, but something part-time.
Both of us would love to downsize and move to a cabin in the mountains, so hopefully we will be able to sell our house in 20 years for a decent profit margin.
Personal financial freedom number:
At this stage of our lives, I think we’d need around $5M to feel complete financial freedom. That would allow us to live the same lifestyle and invest enough to keep that money going.
“Rich” in Charlotte:
Myers Park. Enough said.
Worst money decision:
Putting my rent in grad school on a credit card. It put me into some credit card debt.
Financial goals:
- Retire from a career by 55. Hopefully our investments and savings will allow this.
- Continue to travel. As long as we set aside some savings and travel smartly, I hope we get to continue our trips.
- Maintain our lifestyle. We do a good job of living below our means and staying comfortable, so I’d just like to keep that up.
On your mind:
Lately, I’ve been struggling with what’s “worth the expense” because we’re so budget conscious. Sometimes I feel like we may miss out on some experiences, but I can’t justify the expense — like concert tickets or going to a play.
Money Talks is a weekly series showcasing how real people in Charlotte approach money. Participate
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