how to save+build house+parent the children?

Question

I find some couples very secure financially in their retirement age. It is not necessary that they have a great paying job but still have a good funding and are not dependent on their children. Neither do they have any business to increase thier money pool. I wonder how they manage to save & build house & cope up with growing children at the face of keeping ones standard of life in front of the society.

Answer 1

buy lotto

Answer 2

I think you're getting tripped up at the "face of keeping ones standard of life in front of the society" -- what does that really mean?

Parenting the children had to come first, and if you really stop to think about what you ABSOLUTELY need (despite the fact that everyone else has everything that they don't need) you will realize that you really can live beneath your means -- i.e. spend a lot less than what you are capable of spending on silly things (clothes, entertainment, eating out, gadgets, etc)

Make a budget and stick to it -- live in a much smaller house than you can afford, drive a far less expensive car than you can afford, instead of shopping all day topped off by movie and an expensive dinner, pack a lunch and find a cool hiking trail and enjoy the company of your spouse / family from the incredible view atop a mountain you just climbed....

And make sure you are making as much money as you can without sacrificing time with your family -- demand the raise at work you know you deserve, and if you don't get it find a position at a better firm -- work smarter and think of ways to make yourself more valuable -- skip the next vacation and instead go look for rental properties in a part of the country that has very affordable housing...

Invest in your future -- make a budget and stick to it, and the first part of your budget goes like this: 1/3 into savings acct right away; max contributions to 401k, Roth IRA accts, live on less than 50% of what you make -- find it within that amount of money to splurge on whatever your desires are and truts me you can discipline yourself to do it, you get used to it and you HAVE TO above all not give a damn what anyone else thinks (mpst of those people are up to their ears in debt anyway -- or as I have seen have a lot of $ b/c a loved one died and they got the insurance payoff or have rich families that never gave them love but do share their money ... is that what you would want? Be grateful for all you have and take care of your children as well as your money!)

Answer 3

Since putting children into daycare before they are three to five years old is extremely damaging to the child and extremely destructive to the family attachments, one must prioritize. If you end up with a great retirement, a house, and children who are sociopathic, depressed, and/or don't like you much, you lose.

So, first things first. Try to enter adulthood saving as much as possible and planning your career so that kids, when they come, will be properly cared for - mommy's milk on demand for years (two according to WHO), mommy's arms, mommy's reassuring smile whenever the baby/toddler needs it, no separtion from mom of more than ten hours a week.

Get that in line, and, with your prioritites in line, you can start building for the other things when your kids get a good foundation. The way that your values and character develop when you actually raise your children properly best prepares you to meet your other challenges and choose wisely for them.

Also, buy real estate as soon as you can, tho don't buy overpriced things in overheated markets, because the prices almost always go up. and having real estate will help hugely if you're an american. (can't speak to other systems.)

Answer 4

The generations before us had it a little easier. Housing was cheaper comparatively, and i think people stayed at jobs for long periods of time, and acrued a good deal of retirement money. Back then, one couldnt just go and get a credit card as soon as he/she turned 18. Nowadays, people are in debt by the time they are 21 and paying huge interest rates and fat student loans. Its nearly impossible to get ahead without some sort of inheritance or financial miracle. College education used to mean a really good job, now it doesnt necesarily mean anything at all unless it sets you WAY apart from the norm like medical school or something. I remember when I was growing up, our house sold for 120,000 when we moved. It was a gorgeous 5 bedroom 3 bath, 2 car garage, with family room, bar and swimming pool. Today, 120,000 wont buy anything in seattle (where i live). I marvel at my retired in-laws who travel and relax constantly. whats worse, is that after Im done raisng my kids and have a chance to catch up, those in-laws will need ME to take care of them. How will our generation pull this off?

Answer 5

Not sure if this is what you are asking, but if you are trying to build a house while you are raising a child just get a teen babysitter to watch your child at the house. A really good one. I did that as a teen for people running home business and remodeling. I kept the children out of trouble while the adults work and also gave them tons of attention.
Worry not about what things look like to society or you will be forever disapointed. You will not haveto figure out what is important to you. Realize that the media and companies tell us what is important in society so you will have to become in debt to have that. You have to decide where your values are and if you are going to follow them or if you care about what people think about you. Pick one. What is best for your children or if you want to go into debt becasue you care what people think of you.

Answer 6

This is the most asked questions that I get from clients or prospective clients of the late baby boomer or X generation crowd. The thing that I tell them (and the way that I live my life personally) is to do the following:

- Prioritize your Goals- In my opinion the first priority should be saving for retirement. All of your other financial goals (new house, education for kids, private school,) all have fallback positions where as you're only option if you don't hit your retirement goal is to work longer.
- Live within your means- This is the point that makes all other things possible. If you are constantly trying to keep up with the latest and greatest gadgets, the nicest cars, the best house on the block, the best private schools, etc you will have a hard time achieving your long term objectives.

- Limit your use of debt - This goes hand in hand with my previous point. You can't use debt to finance your hopes and dreams. That is a house of cards that will always result in failure. Debt should be reserved for big items such as a reasonable home and possibly cars. All other things should come as a result of saving and sacrificing. I know this sounds hard core but this is the attitude that one must adopt to maximize your opportunities.

- Save aggressively - Once your priorities are in place you must attack those goals aggressively. Pay yourself first starting by setting up automatic savings programs that are at least 10% of your income. Maximize your use of company sponsered retirement plans, IRA's first because of the tax advantages. You should feel a little uncomfortable with the amount that you are saving at first. That means that you are at the limits of your comfort zone. You will then be forced to adjust your lifestyle to fit into your saving plan. As you receive raises increase your savings amount into your various financial goals. Look at bonuses and other sources of money as found money with 50% going to savings and the other 50% going to fun.
- Your savings should be invested in products that give you the best chance at accomplishing each particular goal. For all goals under 5 years you should stick with products that offer no risk to principal. (Money market accounts, EE and I savings bonds, CD's) For goals greater than 5 years I would recommend using index mutual funds as the base of the portfolio. Mutual funds that are designed to track the markets are typically low cost, tax efficient, and on average more successful than managed mutual funds. Stay away from all get rich quick schemes (ex. trading stocks or options, flipping real estate, foreign exchange trading, Amway, all Ponzi schemes) If it sounds too good to be true, it is a scam.
- I know that my ideas aren't as sexy as starting an internet business or other ideas but this game plan will work. It takes sacrifice, discipline, and buy in by every member of the family so they need to be involved in the planning process. Good luck to you.

Answer 7

Most of them INHERIT that security. Some diligently save and make a practice of living BELOW their means. Some get lucky. Some plunder it unethically from others. Some go back to school and advance themselves. But, most get over the need to keep "ones standard of life in front of the society". Because, that same society won't matter to you someday and probably wouldn't come to your aid when you are old and helpless. Get your priorities better organized.

Answer 8

There are as many ways as there are hairs on your head, and your way will come to you as you go along, trust me on this one. If I told you how I got secure like I am now, you wouldn't believe it. And if someone told me how I'd make it through raising a family and being somewhat stable financially in my later years, I'd say "Hell No, I don't want to do that!" So, do some saving, even if it means just not spending too loosely, plan ahead on how you want to spend, roll with the punches when things come up and slap hell out of you, and never forget to pray to Jesus our Christ for total salvation. You ain't got a chance without Him. Trust me on this one. God Bless you.

Answer 9

Life is tough, and they faced it and succeeded. Me? I'll probably end up being a Wal-Mart greeter, or teaching until I'm 90.

Answer 10

It Ain't easy, but its all about planning ahead...way way ahead and keeping your priorities in mind.

Answer 11

Maybe they said screw the standards of society and did things the way they wanted to.........You never know..........