Hi everyone! I've been quiet but still paying attention to the conversations. You've all motivated me to take steps and not stop. I usually stop, so I know this community is helping me. Thank you! 1. I've paid off my credit card debt with the help of a family member. 2. My donations to family members have decreased drastically, so now I can save more. They've agreed to make more sacrifices. 3. I signed up with an online bank and now I direct deposit 95% of my paycheck to a money market account with 3 high yield savings accounts. I Zelle money to my savings accounts for bills, emergency savings, and investing. The other 5% of my check goes to my brick and mortar bank that has a debit card. I use the debit card for food and gas. It feels great not using a credit card! 4. From the money that's sent to my online bank account, I calculated that I would allocate 65% to bills, 25% to investments, and 10% to savings. I'd like to invest for income and fund a Roth IRA. 5. I'll open a Roth Account and make catch-up contributions in the amount of $667/month. I hope to buy on a biweekly schedule when I'm paid. I don't know what to buy yet. 6. I opened a Schwab checking account and will fund it through Zelle. I'm not really sure if that was necessary but at the time it seemed right. 7. I'm currently reading Activate Your Money by Janine Firpo. It's also helping me learn and stay motivated.

I’m thankful for the financial education that put me on a strong path before a car accident that totaled my car and an expensive move to be closer to work. Even though I‘ve been thrown off of my dollar cost averaging plan, I've been able to enjoy the fruits of the financial foundation I built before the accident. My emergency savings helped big time. Despite the increased spending on all kinds of things that I need now, I’m still nearly debt free. Very soon, I’ll be back investing. Knowledge is power and ignorance is expensive. I’m glad that I joined this group. I’ve learned so much. Big love to you all who continue to share your wisdom. It’s helped me so very much.

Hello Everyone, I officially retired from the Federal Government, September 30, 2025. Yesterday, I was so excited that I made an appointment with a tax planner to discuss tax strategies. I also registered for a free retirement workshop (7 Retirement Roadblocks) at my local library. This workshop discusses ways to position yourself for better returns on your investments, with lower possible risks and in the most tax-efficient manner.

Hello Wealth fam! I hope everyone is doing well😀 I recently opened up an account with Charles Schwab and invested $100/bought shares of 4 Index-Mutual funds- putting $25 each in: SWPPX, SFREX, SWTSX, & SNXFX (& also selected to reinvest dividends & capital gains). I chose these 4 because the 1st tracks the S&P500 index; the 2nd invests in real estate companies worldwide; the 3rd aims to replicate the entire US stock market & offers broad diversification; and the 4th invests in the 1,000 largest US companies/large segments of US market. I learned about the funds through the Wealth Twins Youtube videos... This week I plan to automate funds in these new accounts and look into buying ETFs (that I'll also select to reinvest dividends/capital gains). What do you think of this (any suggestions/words of wisdom or caution)? I welcome it all as I want to learn/grow! Thanks!

I haven't posted in a while because I've been busy working on filling in the gaps in our financial plan: Updating our life insurance policies to include a LTC option that meets our needs without breaking the bank, finally deciding on which pension option is best for me, determining when I will be taking social security, and working on our trust. There are so many things to consider when building wealth. Just want to remind you that as you build weath you also need to protect that wealth. I've challenged many of the things that were presented to me as financial planning options because they don't align with my goals. I've learned so much.