Retirement investment philosophies/strategeries

[Teachable Moe]

So you're saying pay off your mortgage before starting to put money into a retirement account? That's pretty awful advice.

Thanks. As I thought about it, I hadn't intended it as a sequence. It does seem to have come out that way. Definitely eek a steady stream into savings as soon as you can and let the magic of compound interest do its stuff.

One of the biggest things about my own efforts was to minimize thinking about it. Excessive attention to financial stuff seems like a form of sloth. Life isn't just money and paying attention to money in a finicky manner turns life into a race to accumulate it. Friends who took an active course with their money became like drug addicts or drunks. That's what they talked about.

 

[fuzz77]

Yes, 5% of my income is pretty significant even if it isn't to you. And the difference highest to lowest is over 8% of income:

https://wallethub.com/edu/best-worst-states-to-be-a-taxpayer/2416/

Throw out bottom two & top one, it's still 6% difference.

Taxes are but one of many expense items in any budget. Taxes are generally higher in the NE...so are incomes. Differences in housing costs, utilities, food...incomes...
The standard of living is pretty constant across the US for people in similar jobs.

Precisely. Amazing how hard this concept is for sheeple to grasp. Currency is what fluctuates in value. An ounce of gold is always an ounce of gold and will always (2600?? years running) buy you the same amount of goods (or more).

Surely you aren't trying to sell the idea that gold doesn't fluctuate in value?
Gold this past December was $1060/oz, in 2011 it was $1800/oz, today it is $1280/oz. Adjusted for inflation, gold in 1980 was over $2000/oz...Gold prices fell over 50% from 1980 - 2000, did consumer prices drop?

You can play word games that it's the currency that's fluctuating and not gold...99.9% of the items we buy are priced in that currency and if you want to buy gold, you have to trade them that currency. If you want to buy something with gold you have to give them the quantity that equates to the currency they want for the item.

 

[vhcat70]

Taxes are but one of many expense items in any budget. Taxes are generally higher in the NE...so are incomes.

I love how people make a few factual inarguable statements & then glide right into their opinion statements - as if they add value/weight to the opinions. NOT. Sounds like you learned that crap in law school or debate club.

 

[fuzz77]

I love how people make a few factual inarguable statements & then glide right into their opinion statements - as if they add value/weight to the opinions. NOT. Sounds like you learned that crap in law school or debate club.

To act as if there are blanket statements that are true for all is dishonest at best...especially when it comes to taxes.
BTW, what part of my statement was opinion and not fact?

 

[vhcat70]

To act as if there are blanket statements that are true for all is dishonest at best...especially when it comes to taxes.
BTW, what part of my statement was opinion and not fact?

Your blanket statement : "The standard of living is pretty constant across the US for people in similar jobs."

 

[fuzz77]

Your blanket statement : "The standard of living is pretty constant across the US for people in similar jobs."

Please note the exceptions.