Quote:
Originally Posted by 911 Rod
The part that caught me off guard is how fast life has gone by the last 15 years.
I have lots off assets, cash not much.
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Life does seem to go by faster as you get older. I would have thought the opposite.
We started out very poor and after about 10-12 years, we hit a point where we were comfortable and pretty much lived at that level (other than housing which kept improving each time we moved). I have always been big on assets...and never really spent money on "experiences" which are the norm now. Expensive vacations, eating out, or regular new cars were never in my budget...but we always tried to buy the most expensive home we could afford in the best areas/best schools. The best "experiences" seemed to come along with life and were pretty much free.
I have little problem pouring money into things that retain their value or increase in value. It is sorta like forced savings...and has a compounding effect over time. This eventually paid off as we moved often and typically kept our home and rented it out when we moved on (letting renters pay most of the mortgage) and the better schools ensured we did not have to pay for kid's colleges (as they were able to get scholarships that covered all their costs) allowing us to save more.
Quality cars, furniture, dishes, silverware, knives, hand tools, etc. last a lifetime...so they are a pretty good investment too. Only having to buy them once and getting to enjoy the high quality is pretty good deal.
401Ks are great too...because the money comes out before you see it and compounds without being taxed. Treasury Bills (3 month are well over 4% with no state or local tax) and I Bonds are pretty great for excess cash.
What does seem strange to me is that while I continue to live pretty frugally...shop sales, travel cheap, etc... I am much more able to part with money for nice things that I do not really need now (but still mostly finite assets). My kids are doing OK on their own, I have no future college or wedding expenses...and have a pretty finite number of years to support my wife and myself. I am pretty sure that I neither of us will live much more than another 20 years or so...so it is pretty easy to plan the spend side.
Things like a vacation house or furnishing/maintenance/update of my home (or vacation home) seem logical. Although a vacation home costs more than a couple of vacations at a nice hotel would each year, but the investment is an asset and the value seems to keep climbing (much like the rental houses which eventually are paid off). I still cannot bring myself to buy a new $100K car even though I can afford one...as they seem to depreciate quickly. The last almost new vehicle I bought is almost 20 years old now and has over 200K miles. It seems just fine. I guess if you never try filet mignon, round steak tastes great.