Help Me Stop Being a Coli Broke Boy!: Personal Finance Help Thread

[QuintessentialBM]

I'm making this thread for selfish reason, but I'd figured that anyone could use it. I'm going to be living in this thread and, ultimately, this forum for a long while.

I'm changing gears in my life. I really need to get my finances together because, in complete honesty and transparency, my financial situation is close to embarrassingly bad for a person of my age(37 in October) and, quite frankly, intelligence. I need to do better because I'll be approaching retirement age in about 20-25 years and I have very little money for retirement at this time.... I started a $25/hr job over 18 months ago which has 401K options. That little amount and $4,000 in liquid assets are the extent of my wealth. My annual gross income is a little over $54,000/yr. I have no other retirement accounts, investments, nor secondary income. My debt is a little over $20K; most of it goes towards a car payment. The remainder of the debit is miscellaneous shyt like financing my Note 9 which I'm about to pay off and other reoccurring debt. Rent is minimal(Thank God my fam got they shyt together!). Credit card debit is healthy and manageable; I pay my balances off in full for both cards I have when they are due.

The saving grace is that my job can offer me a lot of overtime which could put me anywhere between $90-100K plus if I decided to give my body up for the money. My job is in manufacturing and is very demanding, so my body probably won't last long enough to make enough money quickly so I can retire comfortably. I only want to give this company 10-15 years of my life, then I want to SIT THE fukk DOWN! (Really, ASAP!)

The master plan is to diversify with as many streams of income as possible to obtain enough passive income(or a very successful business) buy a nice home and to retire in the next 10-15 years; 20 max.

My job offers both traditional 401K and Roth 401K that matches dollar for dollar up to 6% in addition to withholding as much as 12% of personal income.

Right now, I'm going through my minimalist journey, selling a lot of unnecessary things. Next, I will get rid of all this miscellaneous debt, then focus on either making investments or starting a business. As far as the business idea... I have no earthly idea what I want to do or what I'm capable of doing. As far as the Investments, I need to get my money up to see the type of returns I want.

 

[Silkk]

Dope thread, I was thinking of making a big ass Financial Freedom thread in TLR since dudes be in there crying & shyt so much.

 

[QuintessentialBM]

Dope thread, I was thinking of making a big ass Financial Freedom thread in TLR since dudes be in there crying & shyt so much.

Well, here it is....

I GOTS QUESTIONS! LOTS OF THEM! I NEED THE ANSWERS! I'VE GOT TIME!

lol

 

[QuintessentialBM]

First question.....

Which financial institutions provides the best rates on high-yield checking & savings accounts? Looking for rates more than 2% and as high as anyone can find.

ETA: I forgot to mention.... I cannot utilize any JP Morgan & Chase financial institutions, so they are a no go.

 

[Silkk]

First question.....

Which financial institutions provides the best rates on high-yield checking & savings accounts? Looking for rates more than 2% and as high as anyone can find.

ETA: I forgot to mention.... I cannot utilize any JP Morgan & Chase financial institutions, so they are a no go.

Ally
Discover
Goldman Sachs(?)

Do you work for Chase or are you banned by Chase?

 

[Rawtid]

At your age, I don't think you should give more than 5 years of manual work. That pushes you well into 50 something. I know it's cliche, but think about turning your experience into consulting work aka your own business,but there are so many options that it can seem like you're basically working for someone else. As a minority, look at government contracts. Minority and/or Women owned businesses, get priority for certain contracts. I'm certain they need manufacturing in some way. You can bid on the projects and hire your own crew to perform the actual work. Pay yourself to be a manager/admin out of the money you're awarded. If you still want to do the actual labor, I'd say still go the consulting route, but do the work yourself. Pay yourself as both the manager and the employee if you want, but I would just try to be in a position to control your income without being reliant on overtime, which is just more manual labor.

As far as the finances go, do you have a budget? I use a spreadsheet, but they have online tools and web applications too.

 

[Skillz]

Glad you're choosing to take control of your finances. If you're not doing it already first thing you should be doing is taking advantage of that 6% match.

With your job can you move up to a less labor intensive managerial position? Might forfeit the overtime but maybe the pay bump/less damage on the body could justify it. You'll also have more time to work on what really matters, your own thing. Those are options you have to weigh though.

As far as savings accounts. Rates started going down around June. Ally is at 1.9 Discover at 2. I have both, the customer service is top notch and they both have checking accounts if you ever need quick access to the cash (ATM/Check). I heard a lot about Wealthfront when they released a product at 2.51 but has since dropped to 2.32.

Here's a list of HYSA with High Rates: Best High Yield Savings Accounts - up to 5% APY - Doctor Of Credit

I agree with @Rawtid Try tracking your spending and seeing where your money is going. I'm finally buckling down and using Mint to see where every dollar is going. I like it so far & it kind of automates what I want to do.

@Silkk drop the thread bro.

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

I'm going to agree with everyone saying create a spreadsheet of your finances. The best way to take control of them is to understand them. I used to have a document that was all my expenses itemized to the point that each thing I bought when grocery shopping was tracked. I even listed how much I decided to save off the top from my check as an expense. I knew who was getting my money, when, for what, and how often. It was helpful to figure out where I could cut back or eliminate entirely.

Now I have a new sheet that tracks things on a macro level. Gross monthly income, net monthly income, rent, utilities, subscription services, student loans, food budget. I did this in anticipation of buying a car to see if it was going to be affordable. It went through a couple of iterations: a rough calculation, a more accurate estimate with cost and savings projections over the lifetime of the loan, then a final using actual numbers. This might be a useful exercise for you.

 

[QuintessentialBM]

At your age, I don't think you should give more than 5 years of manual work. That pushes you well into 50 something. I know it's cliche, but think about turning your experience into consulting work aka your own business,but there are so many options that it can seem like you're basically working for someone else. As a minority, look at government contracts. Minority and/or Women owned businesses, get priority for certain contracts. I'm certain they need manufacturing in some way. You can bid on the projects and hire your own crew to perform the actual work. Pay yourself to be a manager/admin out of the money you're awarded. If you still want to do the actual labor, I'd say still go the consulting route, but do the work yourself. Pay yourself as both the manager and the employee if you want, but I would just try to be in a position to control your income without being reliant on overtime, which is just more manual labor.

As far as the finances go, do you have a budget? I use a spreadsheet, but they have online tools and web applications too.

I may not have a choice in the matter as far as manual labor. I'm too far behind with my finances. It would take a side hustle becoming very profitable in order for me to slow down on the manual labor... or quit it completely!

I cannot obtain most of the managerial jobs at my company because a college degree is required for those jobs now. Everyone that has a managerial position that doesn't have a degree has been "grandfathered-in." If I ever get my cash flow right, I'll attend college, but at this moment in time, it's not an option.

I'll most definitely start tracking my spending!

Glad you're choosing to take control of your finances. If you're not doing it already first thing you should be doing is taking advantage of that 6% match.

With your job can you move up to a less labor intensive managerial position? Might forfeit the overtime but maybe the pay bump/less damage on the body could justify it. You'll also have more time to work on what really matters, your own thing. Those are options you have to weigh though.

As far as savings accounts. Rates started going down around June. Ally is at 1.9 Discover at 2. I have both, the customer service is top notch and they both have checking accounts if you ever need quick access to the cash (ATM/Check). I heard a lot about Wealthfront when they released a product at 2.51 but has since dropped to 2.32.

Here's a list of HYSA with High Rates: Best High Yield Savings Accounts - up to 5% APY - Doctor Of Credit

I agree with @Rawtid Try tracking your spending and seeing where your money is going. I'm finally buckling down and using Mint to see where every dollar is going. I like it so far & it kind of automates what I want to do.

@Silkk drop the thread bro.

See previous response as to why I can't get a managerial position....

Yeah, I need to get that 6% match ASAP! I'm bullshyttin! smdh.....

Thanks for the referrals!

I'm going to agree with everyone saying create a spreadsheet of your finances. The best way to take control of them is to understand them. I used to have a document that was all my expenses itemized to the point that each thing I bought when grocery shopping was tracked. I even listed how much I decided to save off the top from my check as an expense. I knew who was getting my money, when, for what, and how often. It was helpful to figure out where I could cut back or eliminate entirely.

Now I have a new sheet that tracks things on a macro level. Gross monthly income, net monthly income, rent, utilities, subscription services, student loans, food budget. I did this in anticipation of buying a car to see if it was going to be affordable. It went through a couple of iterations: a rough calculation, a more accurate estimate with cost and savings projections over the lifetime of the loan, then a final using actual numbers. This might be a useful exercise for you.

Bet!

 

[Silkk]

Co-sign Mint, they’ve fallen off a little bit are still great for budgeting & monitoring your bills.

I’d also recommend Personal Capital which is free as well.

 

[Steel]

This is the very thread I needed. I’m all in first course of business is enrolling in my employers 401k program. Also opening a savings account? I’m hearing Ally is good for the interest rates

 

[Hahahaha]

First thing you need to do (if you aren't already) is up your 401K to the level of your company match. I'd then put all of your extra money each check towards your debt with the highest interest rates.What's the interest rate on your car loan?

I'll be honest, you are starting really late to the game and an early retirement may not be possible. You need to cut down on any unnecessary spending, save your money and plan for your next career move.

 

[ThaBronxBully]

These Savings Accounts Are More For You To Store Emergency Fund Money, You Ain’t Doing Really Doing shyt Even If The APY Is 3%

I Mean You’ll Get An Ok Little Return If You Contribute Heavily Monthly And Never Touch It But For That Put That Money In You’re 401And Get Way More

I’m A Big Believer In Dave Ramsey’s Teachings

Check Out This Retire Inspired Calculator OP

Retire Inspired – Take Chris Hogan’s R:IQ Retirement Assessment | Chris Hogan

 

[phcitywarrior]

A lot of good advice in this thread. If you're a beginner to personal finances as a whole. I'd recommend Dave Ramsey's approach. It's on the conservative side but it's simple and it's a good starting point. If you follow the advice to the T you'll be far better than 70% of the general American population.

If you don't have a safety net/emergency fund, I'd say get a small one first. Then, focus solely on tackling your debt. Once you're debt in dumped, go ahead and start matching your companies' 401k

 

[blackgentlemenvoice]

I'm going to agree with everyone saying create a spreadsheet of your finances. The best way to take control of them is to understand them. I used to have a document that was all my expenses itemized to the point that each thing I bought when grocery shopping was tracked. I even listed how much I decided to save off the top from my check as an expense. I knew who was getting my money, when, for what, and how often. It was helpful to figure out where I could cut back or eliminate entirely.

Now I have a new sheet that tracks things on a macro level. Gross monthly income, net monthly income, rent, utilities, subscription services, student loans, food budget. I did this in anticipation of buying a car to see if it was going to be affordable. It went through a couple of iterations: a rough calculation, a more accurate estimate with cost and savings projections over the lifetime of the loan, then a final using actual numbers. This might be a useful exercise for you.

can we get your spreadsheet