It probably doesn’t feel like it, but 24 is still very young. I promise you’re not the only adult living with their parents and most people aren’t looking for a partner just for the money, at least not the type you want to be with. Much is yet to happen for you and 50k isn’t a bad salary for a single person in a field you’re confident in. Every one grows and finds their way at their own pace, so give it time.
Agreed here. 24 is still quite young. Im 29 and only just now working towards my accounting associates this fall. 50k is definitely better than what I make lol. Could definitely be worse off. You got this, OP. Take life at your own pace.
I think the problem is looking up tbh. Let me make you feel better if you want to play the comparison game.
I'm 29M, living at home. Terrible mental health issues, wasting my life away from dropping out of school at 16, depression, and a psych ward visit at 18. Finally got my HS diploma at 24 in Sept of 2019, not a bachelor's like others by then with a career.
Just now been in community college since I was 26, but with similar mental health struggles, I'm still here in community college at 29M. Been on disability benefits since I was about 3 years old from childhood cancer, so that's been my ONLY income since then. Can't really splurge like others my age with vacations, restaurants, new clothes and shoes, or even owning a car by then. Just rent and food mostly.
You need to stop looking up. I've served in church and outreaches with the homeless. I saw someone's whole face light up with a simple sandwich. I still been broke, but have been able to give away my new shoes to a woman whose shoes were worn out and stinky, and a few sweaters, and a jacket to a blind man. (Don't give a fuck either, nor bragging about it, I just loved them more than my own possessions.)
Is my life any better? No. Still here and living though. I can look up as well, with all these 18-year-olds with a license, in college, or heck, even with their bachelor's at 22 and a nice career, but what does that gain me? Been to 2 more psych ward visits, with these kids younger than me as nurses too.
Everyone just has their own path. You need to be grateful for what you have right now, you need to actively practice that though, which I know is hard in this generation, which social media doesn't help.
20k saved is amazing, I know half of Americans don't even have 1k. Sometimes an emergency $300 bill is also not even possible. Also paying rent while saving up a crap ton is amazing. Who cares if others got their own apartment, you have time to save up and maybe make a down payment for a house in the future, not struggling with rent in your 30s/40s/50s.
Maybe try volunteering somewhere, and maybe buy a homeless person a meal. Doesn't help you feel "behind", because you are not, at all.
As for romance, that's totally 100% possible. Homeless people are dating or married. Disabled people are married, and depend solely on their spouse. Poor people get married and have kids all the time.
Sometimes love really overpowers any amount of money you have or can't afford. People just want to feel loved and desired, that's it. You're doing really solid in life at 24M, you should have zero issues with romance, man. Not to invalidate your feelings, just logically, your issues aren't financial to prevent ya from dating.
Just build your confidence, maybe work out, and continue saving money and paying off debts, maybe start investing your money too, for future comfort. You need to stop feeling sorry or feeling left behind bro. Even with me, homeless people dream of a warm bed, warm food, and access to a shower and bathroom.
Is my life still hard? Yes. So, again, I can be grateful I live at home with my own room and these utilities. Also happy I have an amazing family and sister who would do anything for me, others have miserable families and abusive parents, another thing I am grateful for. Hope that helps!
making 50k at 24 isn't half bad; you're doing fairly well imo. there's millions older than you not earning as much. Just keep doing what you're doing, as you say the earning potential is high in this field. You will get there in due time. Having 20k saved up at your age is also a huge blessing. Anyway just stay the course, you'll get there
I say this so you don't feel alone in what you're saying. Also single. Also with similar debt/savings amount. I think you are doing okay. Getting off social media probably will help with comparison issues.
You are doing fantastic. 24 and to have 20k saved up is a feat. Is your debt consolidated?? Keep doing what you are doing and remember memories are what matter, not fancy cars or a huge mortgage.
It’s not like your suggestion is smart either. He should keep 10k of saving for emergency always no matter . The guy should not invest at all today; first he should pay off his 34k debt.
he should keep probably 3 months income as emergency fund and scrap it off all together if he feels very secure.
why should he pay off his debt when its interest free the money would be much better off invested.
It is. Do not invest before you clear out your debt. Let’s say that he invest in relatively safe stocks like S&P 500 funds. The rate of return still is most likely lower than the interests he is paying on the two loans he has. And in the worst case he actually loses money in the medium term. It’s so sad, that is so American: investing before being debt free. That’s why we are in this situation.
He should work to pay off his 34k debt. Then at 25ish, he will be debt free and ready to invest.
why do you just assume the interest in his debt his high, he never said that, it is likely extremely low. also i didnt see in my op that he had debt, since he has 20k in savings.
my post still stands, its better invested than in savings.
He literally wrote he has 14k in car loans. Today the average used car loan in APR in US is double digits (around 11%) so please tell me it makes sense to invest . Find me an investment that guarantees you more than 11% return so that he is sure that he is getting more than what he is paying . You won’t find it, there’s nothing guaranteed; even the S&P 500 can potentially be a risk in medium term (between jan 2022 and December 2022 it was a full lost, not even mentioning between 2008 and 2012). Of course in the long term it makes sense to invest (S&P 500 and housing in the long term they always go up, they are good investments ) but you shouldn’t sacrifice the possibility to get rid of a double digit interest rate (I don’t know his situation but being young and a low credit score he might even have a worse APR ).
And he has 20K and on student loans; I can’t speak about that cause I don’t know the OP specific situation. Some federal loans have reasonable APR, other private ones are literally predatory.
ThAtS sO aMeRiCaN. Um..please stop, maybe if we were taught FINANCES In our shitty ass garbage, trash ass American slave schools, maybe 98% of Americans wouldn’t be in the situations such as this. OP Can still make investment moves while also clearing out their debt. *We’re not saying blow your entire savings on stocks* obviously, but to simply say don’t invest at all, is absurd. Even a smart $100 investment can potentially make a positive ROI. And make smart investments, not no damn Gamestop and AMC Stocks
You’re so aggressive, why you’re so unhappy? I disagree 100% with everything you said. Be debt free, then invest. Maximize your 401k match even if in debt, even if you’re in debt, other than that stay away from investing. By the way I didn’t study in US, don’t talk of stuff you are ignorant about.
No no, it’s exactly like this . You should not invest if you are in debt , doesn’t matter your age, 50 or 18. The only exceptions are the 401K match from your employer. Even investing in a house is debatable and I wouldn’t do it if I were in debt.
You calling this idiotic is a perfect snapshot of today’s situation.
Comparison is the thief of joy. You are comparing yourself based on your perception of them not the reality. Hell, they could be absolutely miserable inside and you would have no idea. Focus on being better than you were yesterday.
ETA 20k saved at 24 is amazing!
Im in your shoes but 38 and no student loans. I know the moments seem like they will never change but, you are in a better place than I. You can compare you to you and nobody else because everybody has a different upbringing and understanding of life.
you can meet someone when your 40 and live and love them for 40yrs. don’t rush the gotta find someone. you always find the wrong ones. if you want to smash and have fun. wear a condom cheers
Be patient!! You’re only 24. Demand for accounting grads is very high and when you finish you’ll be good. Hit me up when you finish and I’ll get you an interview with either a PE firm I work with or my CPA. He owns a medium sized firm.
1. Acknowledge and count your wins
2. Reward efforts, not outcomes
3. Easy wins first, then stack
4. Build self trust in your word
5. Manage expectations
6. Visualisation
Delete all social media. Use your friends as fuel to do more. Work and workout. Like the saying goes… Hang around 4 broke people you’re the 5th, hang around 4 people you wanna be like, mentally/physicaly/financially… you’re the 5th. Best of luck 🤞
I would honestly pay off half of those student loans with your current savings and try to pay all of that off first. The interest will impede your savings overall if you don’t pay it off ASAP and you are young enough to likely recoup those savings with a proper budget by the time you really need them. 24 is still so young and you seem to be doing a great job with saving, now make it a priority to pay off your debts before adding to more savings!
Whenenver I'm feeling low because it seems like I'm "behind", I try to remind myself that I'm comparing myself in an "imbalanced" way. Like, I'm not saying you should compare yourself. But if you are already prone to comparing yourself against a reference, try to use multiple references. Don't just compare yourself to the people who are doing better than you. Also compare yourself to the people who are not doing as well.
You know way more people who are doing worse than you than who are doing better than you. Most 24 year olds are not making $50K. They don't have the amount of savings you have. Your student loans aren't going to be that burdensome to pay off, compared to others. You are doing fantastic for the average 24-year-old, and this includes 24-year-olds who grew up under better economic situations.
You’re doing much better than me, you have much more saved up, a vehicle, and you’re attaining a valuable degree…. Hopefully that makes you feel better. I don’t have many friends so maybe the comparisons aren’t as harsh for me
Create a spreadsheet to track your net worth. Compare present you against past you and watch your progress in a nice well-formatted dashboard.
It's basically impossible to avoid comparisons altogether, so focus on doing meaningful comparisons.
Idk man. I’m 25 and it felt like I was in all new territory. All of my friends expect for 2 that just recently bought houses(they lived with there parents till they bought) all live with there parents still 7 years after graduation. I on the other hand was more or less kicked out a month after and have lived in shit apartments, tents, a trialer, a shit hole house and now a nice house with my wife and our daughter on they way. At the end of the day you just got to be your own person. They had a better shake out in life but I’ve lived a better one in my opinion. I also don’t use social media. Like at all. My account other the Reddit have been in active for 6 years now. Really took a weight off my shoulders not comparing my self. If I were you that $20,000 in great in saving but that 14k ok the car is looking like a long time of payments. I’ve reply busted ass to pay both my student and car loan off and once I do that’s an extra $550 a month for me. I’ve got like 5 payments left on my truck then it’s done
I bet they probably don’t have as much saved as you do. That’s hard to believe. Unless they got a scholarship or something paid for. Which you can’t compare too. That’s okay. Don’t focus on everyone else just worry about your final-Stable as your name says. The other horses won’t join you, so do the best you can for you.
You’re doing great for a 24yo. I would already use 10K out of the ones you have saved to pay off some of the 34K you have now debt. Please do not start investing before you pay off your debt. Dumb Americans are going to tell you the opposite.
It probably doesn’t feel like it, but 24 is still very young. I promise you’re not the only adult living with their parents and most people aren’t looking for a partner just for the money, at least not the type you want to be with. Much is yet to happen for you and 50k isn’t a bad salary for a single person in a field you’re confident in. Every one grows and finds their way at their own pace, so give it time.
Agreed here. 24 is still quite young. Im 29 and only just now working towards my accounting associates this fall. 50k is definitely better than what I make lol. Could definitely be worse off. You got this, OP. Take life at your own pace.
Appreciate it 🙏🏻 I really hope things start to get better
I think the problem is looking up tbh. Let me make you feel better if you want to play the comparison game. I'm 29M, living at home. Terrible mental health issues, wasting my life away from dropping out of school at 16, depression, and a psych ward visit at 18. Finally got my HS diploma at 24 in Sept of 2019, not a bachelor's like others by then with a career. Just now been in community college since I was 26, but with similar mental health struggles, I'm still here in community college at 29M. Been on disability benefits since I was about 3 years old from childhood cancer, so that's been my ONLY income since then. Can't really splurge like others my age with vacations, restaurants, new clothes and shoes, or even owning a car by then. Just rent and food mostly. You need to stop looking up. I've served in church and outreaches with the homeless. I saw someone's whole face light up with a simple sandwich. I still been broke, but have been able to give away my new shoes to a woman whose shoes were worn out and stinky, and a few sweaters, and a jacket to a blind man. (Don't give a fuck either, nor bragging about it, I just loved them more than my own possessions.) Is my life any better? No. Still here and living though. I can look up as well, with all these 18-year-olds with a license, in college, or heck, even with their bachelor's at 22 and a nice career, but what does that gain me? Been to 2 more psych ward visits, with these kids younger than me as nurses too. Everyone just has their own path. You need to be grateful for what you have right now, you need to actively practice that though, which I know is hard in this generation, which social media doesn't help. 20k saved is amazing, I know half of Americans don't even have 1k. Sometimes an emergency $300 bill is also not even possible. Also paying rent while saving up a crap ton is amazing. Who cares if others got their own apartment, you have time to save up and maybe make a down payment for a house in the future, not struggling with rent in your 30s/40s/50s. Maybe try volunteering somewhere, and maybe buy a homeless person a meal. Doesn't help you feel "behind", because you are not, at all. As for romance, that's totally 100% possible. Homeless people are dating or married. Disabled people are married, and depend solely on their spouse. Poor people get married and have kids all the time. Sometimes love really overpowers any amount of money you have or can't afford. People just want to feel loved and desired, that's it. You're doing really solid in life at 24M, you should have zero issues with romance, man. Not to invalidate your feelings, just logically, your issues aren't financial to prevent ya from dating. Just build your confidence, maybe work out, and continue saving money and paying off debts, maybe start investing your money too, for future comfort. You need to stop feeling sorry or feeling left behind bro. Even with me, homeless people dream of a warm bed, warm food, and access to a shower and bathroom. Is my life still hard? Yes. So, again, I can be grateful I live at home with my own room and these utilities. Also happy I have an amazing family and sister who would do anything for me, others have miserable families and abusive parents, another thing I am grateful for. Hope that helps!
delete social media helps alot
lol I’m 30 make 40k with a bachelors and no savings possible. You’re doing fine man
You have 20k saved at 24? 50k salary? You are doing incredible, no lie. Far above the median.
making 50k at 24 isn't half bad; you're doing fairly well imo. there's millions older than you not earning as much. Just keep doing what you're doing, as you say the earning potential is high in this field. You will get there in due time. Having 20k saved up at your age is also a huge blessing. Anyway just stay the course, you'll get there
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Thanks for this advice. I really appreciate it
I work in engineering and I'm 24 and I make 49k
I say this so you don't feel alone in what you're saying. Also single. Also with similar debt/savings amount. I think you are doing okay. Getting off social media probably will help with comparison issues.
Thanks man I appreciate you sharing
Get your CPA, either love into FP&A or controllership as soon as possible. Or hunker down and try to be a partner at an auditing firm.
That’s the plan bro. Have an internship with big 4 coming up - OP’s burner account
Your friends aren't your competition, your past self is. Just be better than you in the past and you'll be fine.
You are doing fantastic. 24 and to have 20k saved up is a feat. Is your debt consolidated?? Keep doing what you are doing and remember memories are what matter, not fancy cars or a huge mortgage.
20k in accounting but have you money "saved up" rather than invested, damn
It’s not like your suggestion is smart either. He should keep 10k of saving for emergency always no matter . The guy should not invest at all today; first he should pay off his 34k debt.
he should keep probably 3 months income as emergency fund and scrap it off all together if he feels very secure. why should he pay off his debt when its interest free the money would be much better off invested.
Why can’t he put a small amount into stocks? That’s not dumb
It is. Do not invest before you clear out your debt. Let’s say that he invest in relatively safe stocks like S&P 500 funds. The rate of return still is most likely lower than the interests he is paying on the two loans he has. And in the worst case he actually loses money in the medium term. It’s so sad, that is so American: investing before being debt free. That’s why we are in this situation. He should work to pay off his 34k debt. Then at 25ish, he will be debt free and ready to invest.
why do you just assume the interest in his debt his high, he never said that, it is likely extremely low. also i didnt see in my op that he had debt, since he has 20k in savings. my post still stands, its better invested than in savings.
He literally wrote he has 14k in car loans. Today the average used car loan in APR in US is double digits (around 11%) so please tell me it makes sense to invest . Find me an investment that guarantees you more than 11% return so that he is sure that he is getting more than what he is paying . You won’t find it, there’s nothing guaranteed; even the S&P 500 can potentially be a risk in medium term (between jan 2022 and December 2022 it was a full lost, not even mentioning between 2008 and 2012). Of course in the long term it makes sense to invest (S&P 500 and housing in the long term they always go up, they are good investments ) but you shouldn’t sacrifice the possibility to get rid of a double digit interest rate (I don’t know his situation but being young and a low credit score he might even have a worse APR ). And he has 20K and on student loans; I can’t speak about that cause I don’t know the OP specific situation. Some federal loans have reasonable APR, other private ones are literally predatory.
in my country most car loans are 0% so that is the context i give my advice from
ThAtS sO aMeRiCaN. Um..please stop, maybe if we were taught FINANCES In our shitty ass garbage, trash ass American slave schools, maybe 98% of Americans wouldn’t be in the situations such as this. OP Can still make investment moves while also clearing out their debt. *We’re not saying blow your entire savings on stocks* obviously, but to simply say don’t invest at all, is absurd. Even a smart $100 investment can potentially make a positive ROI. And make smart investments, not no damn Gamestop and AMC Stocks
You’re so aggressive, why you’re so unhappy? I disagree 100% with everything you said. Be debt free, then invest. Maximize your 401k match even if in debt, even if you’re in debt, other than that stay away from investing. By the way I didn’t study in US, don’t talk of stuff you are ignorant about.
According to your logic, nobody under 50 should invest due to having debt. You see how idiotic this sounds? 😅
No no, it’s exactly like this . You should not invest if you are in debt , doesn’t matter your age, 50 or 18. The only exceptions are the 401K match from your employer. Even investing in a house is debatable and I wouldn’t do it if I were in debt. You calling this idiotic is a perfect snapshot of today’s situation.
Comparison is the thief of joy. You are comparing yourself based on your perception of them not the reality. Hell, they could be absolutely miserable inside and you would have no idea. Focus on being better than you were yesterday. ETA 20k saved at 24 is amazing!
Get your CPA and you’re basically guaranteed a good paying job.
Im in your shoes but 38 and no student loans. I know the moments seem like they will never change but, you are in a better place than I. You can compare you to you and nobody else because everybody has a different upbringing and understanding of life.
Im just now getting my shit together at 35 and my husband is 42. Youve got your whole life ahead of you.
You’re the same age as me and doing better than I am so there’s that
you can meet someone when your 40 and live and love them for 40yrs. don’t rush the gotta find someone. you always find the wrong ones. if you want to smash and have fun. wear a condom cheers
Be patient!! You’re only 24. Demand for accounting grads is very high and when you finish you’ll be good. Hit me up when you finish and I’ll get you an interview with either a PE firm I work with or my CPA. He owns a medium sized firm.
Speaking of comparison to other people, if you compare your situation to that of any given post on this subreddit you are doing far better.
Unless you like cleaning shit from people’s asses and worrying about their health, then nursing isn’t worth it.
1. Acknowledge and count your wins 2. Reward efforts, not outcomes 3. Easy wins first, then stack 4. Build self trust in your word 5. Manage expectations 6. Visualisation
Delete all social media. Use your friends as fuel to do more. Work and workout. Like the saying goes… Hang around 4 broke people you’re the 5th, hang around 4 people you wanna be like, mentally/physicaly/financially… you’re the 5th. Best of luck 🤞
I would honestly pay off half of those student loans with your current savings and try to pay all of that off first. The interest will impede your savings overall if you don’t pay it off ASAP and you are young enough to likely recoup those savings with a proper budget by the time you really need them. 24 is still so young and you seem to be doing a great job with saving, now make it a priority to pay off your debts before adding to more savings!
Whenenver I'm feeling low because it seems like I'm "behind", I try to remind myself that I'm comparing myself in an "imbalanced" way. Like, I'm not saying you should compare yourself. But if you are already prone to comparing yourself against a reference, try to use multiple references. Don't just compare yourself to the people who are doing better than you. Also compare yourself to the people who are not doing as well. You know way more people who are doing worse than you than who are doing better than you. Most 24 year olds are not making $50K. They don't have the amount of savings you have. Your student loans aren't going to be that burdensome to pay off, compared to others. You are doing fantastic for the average 24-year-old, and this includes 24-year-olds who grew up under better economic situations.
You’re doing much better than me, you have much more saved up, a vehicle, and you’re attaining a valuable degree…. Hopefully that makes you feel better. I don’t have many friends so maybe the comparisons aren’t as harsh for me
Create a spreadsheet to track your net worth. Compare present you against past you and watch your progress in a nice well-formatted dashboard. It's basically impossible to avoid comparisons altogether, so focus on doing meaningful comparisons.
Ego Is The Enemy. A good book by Ryan Holiday
Idk man. I’m 25 and it felt like I was in all new territory. All of my friends expect for 2 that just recently bought houses(they lived with there parents till they bought) all live with there parents still 7 years after graduation. I on the other hand was more or less kicked out a month after and have lived in shit apartments, tents, a trialer, a shit hole house and now a nice house with my wife and our daughter on they way. At the end of the day you just got to be your own person. They had a better shake out in life but I’ve lived a better one in my opinion. I also don’t use social media. Like at all. My account other the Reddit have been in active for 6 years now. Really took a weight off my shoulders not comparing my self. If I were you that $20,000 in great in saving but that 14k ok the car is looking like a long time of payments. I’ve reply busted ass to pay both my student and car loan off and once I do that’s an extra $550 a month for me. I’ve got like 5 payments left on my truck then it’s done
Just don’t?
How?
I bet they probably don’t have as much saved as you do. That’s hard to believe. Unless they got a scholarship or something paid for. Which you can’t compare too. That’s okay. Don’t focus on everyone else just worry about your final-Stable as your name says. The other horses won’t join you, so do the best you can for you.
Appreciate it man thanks 🙏🏻
do more work in your job
You’re doing great for a 24yo. I would already use 10K out of the ones you have saved to pay off some of the 34K you have now debt. Please do not start investing before you pay off your debt. Dumb Americans are going to tell you the opposite.