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 into the personal finances of a successful professional and newlywed DINKs (dual income, no kids).
Living situation:
My wife and I bought a townhome in Dilworth less than 2 years ago. We had been renting in the area and loved it, so when a townhome popped up, we jumped on it — putting just 3.5% down as first time homebuyers. It’s been a great way to live in Dilworth without the mansion price tag.
We have a 6.13% interest rate on a 20 year mortgage but hope to refinance to a lower rate and switch to a 30 year loan. Long term, the plan is to rent it out once we outgrow it.
Job:
I work as an accounting manager for a consulting company.
Salary:
$150K base + $20K annual bonus potential. My wife makes roughly the same amount.
I started in public accounting right out of college making $60K. Since then, I’ve switched jobs every 2-3 years, earning 25%+ salary jumps each time.
Work/life balance:
It’s great. I rarely work more than 40 hours a week, and even though I’m in the office five days a week, I don’t mind it. After working 65+ hour weeks as an auditor during the busy season, I definitely appreciate the change.
Debt:
We have the mortgage on our townhome (6.13% over 20 years) and 2 car loans.
Our car loans are at lower interest rates, but we’re considering paying them off aggressively using Dave Ramsey’s debt snowball method.
Budgeting:
My wife and I are recently married and we still keep our finances separate, each with our own budget. I track all my expenses in a Google Doc.
Since we make similar incomes and save a lot, it works for us. It also helps avoid conversations like, “You spent $X on clothes?” (me to her) or “You spent $X on Magic: The Gathering cards?” (her to me).
Best/worst recurring expense?
Favorite recurring expenses are NFL+ with Red Zone or HBO Max. Those are the only streaming services I pay for, and you can find plenty of good content there. Both are around $15/mo.
My most wasteful recurring expense is $3/mo for additional iCloud storage. I don’t even know what it does, but I like the safety blanket if I were to lose my phone? I think?
Splurge:
Experiences, trips and dinners. It’s easy to rationalize a good time.
Charlotte restaurant?
Copper on East Blvd. Fire Indian food. We always get the Palak Paneer.
Total savings and investments?
I had a great boss at a job I had in college. She preached the power of saving early. This past year was the first year where I was able to max out my 401K. I have about $180K in the stock market – mostly just ETFs and index funds. My wife has a bit more than me.
I always think about the Rule of 72. If I can get 8% returns in the stock market, my money will double in roughly 9 years.
We are young enough where these savings can double 3-4 times before we retire. That puts us in a great spot for financial freedom.
Savings goal:
Trying to find a way to buy and rent out a condo in Hilton Head. It feels a bit out of reach for the short term, but maybe one day.
Total net worth:
My net worth is $260K between investments, cash, and home equity. I try to keep 6 months of expenses in cash, then invest the rest.
My best advice for saving is to track every dollar you spend. It’s not that hard if you put all your expenses on a credit card. It gave me great visibility of my spending habits.
Retirement:
We’re fortunate to be in a position to retire in our early to mid-50s. As long as I’m enjoying it, I wouldn’t mind semi-retiring — maybe doing some consulting, fractional CFO work, or even picking up a part-time job at Plant House to stay busy.
Best/worst money decision?
I’m really glad we bought our townhome when we did. Sure, rates were high, and we stretched thin for the down payment, but it’s always tough to buy your first home. It feels great to build equity now, and historically, home prices appreciate. I’m proud we pulled it off.
As for regrets, I exercised some (now probably worthless) stock options when I left a startup job. In hindsight, it was my worst investment, but the risk/reward profile made sense at the time.
Financial goals:
- Save 2.2x my income for retirement by age 32 — it’s a solid benchmark to maintain my lifestyle in retirement.
- Spending less in 2025 than in 2024 — keeping lifestyle creep in check.
Where did you learn how to manage your money?
My dad. He’s pretty frugal. Starting in high school and throughout college, I had to pay my own way if I wanted something. It taught me discipline, saving, and the importance of always having a job.
Anything else:
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