Age: 23
Location: SW Virginia
Occupation: Master's Student
Salary: $20k/yr
Family Status: Single
Monthly Rent: $350 + utilities
Do you keep a budget? Yes, I track most of my spending and divide it into different categories
What's a weekly grocery bill for you? About $75. I cook everything and also spend about $100/mo on going out to eat or going to bars.
One thing your family needs but can't afford: Nothing. I'm very fortunate in this regard.
One thing you want but can't afford: I'd love to move back home. I've been on the other side of the country from my family for ~6 years and it stresses me out. I miss being able to have fun with my family. On top of that, cost of living back home is insane, so while I'd like to be able to move home, I wouldn't be able to afford it.
The last thing you bought that required serious planning: My upcoming trip to Burning Man.
Do you have credit cards? I play the credit card rewards game a bit, but currently use one credit card (cash back) and pay it off every month.
How much debt are you carrying now? $0. I'm fortunate to have grandparents that set up a trust for my brother and I. In fact, I went to a state university, received merit based scholarships, and only had to pay $9000 a year out of pocket. My trust exceeded my costs, so I now have $20,000 extra that I'm sitting on for the time being. Any advice on what to do with the money?
Saving for retirement? Just saving at the moment.
At what age would you like to retire? Whenever my health fails me. I hope this is around 65-70, but who knows.
College plans for your kids? I need kids first.
Looking at your current career prospects, how much money do you think you'll be earning in ten years' time? Hopefully 60-90k/yr.
How happy are you on any given day, on a scale of one to ten? Depends on how shitty my thesis adviser is being. I'd say a range of 4-9, with a mean of 7.
How often do you worry about money? Not often. I'm making more than I'm spending, so I generally rest easy.
How much money do you think you'd need to have the life you want? I just want to be happy doing something that I enjoy and get paid decent wages for it. Maybe 80k/yr?
Do you think your taxes are too high? Last year I was below the poverty line and got a pretty good tax return, so no.