It's a big milestone of accomplishment in my life, but I feel weird just telling family members or my online friends about it. The only other people who know are my coworkers because we all got the same raise. Money doesn't go as far nowadays due to crazy inflation post COVID and my area has higher cost of living than where I grew up, but I'm still very happy about this. I remember back when I used to only make minimum wage. All those years of schooling eventually made their way back to me. I'll never make as much money as someone like a doctor, but it's definitely enough for me to live comfortably as a single person.

Anyway, I'll delete this in a bit (or sooner if it gets removed by a mod), but I hope you guys out there have a good weekend.

Edit: Thank you guys very much :)

Edit 2: Jeez there are so many more comments than I expected. You guys are so nice!!

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[–] JustZ 5 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Yeah, living space upgrades are not a good financial investment.

I would suggest you pick a few smaller or low cost upgrades to get the most bang for the buck, for example, fix up your entryway, fix up your curb appeal a little. Make your space a little more pleasing to walk into.

Get some savings going for emergencies, and start paying down your loans from highest interest or lowest interest. You may be able to look at consolidating the loan with a private bank to get a better interest rate.

[–] dingus 7 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

I guess my point is that just because it's not technically a good financial investment doesn't mean that it's necessarily always a bad idea. You have to do things for yourself now and then too. We only have one life on this planet and living like you're homeless just so that you can pay some giant corporation off slightly quicker isn't necessarily the right move for mental health and general life happiness, even though on paper it's the best move financially.

In general, I would consider myself to be fairly cheap compared to some others I know. I don't have a ton of expenditures and I don't carry any "bad" debt like credit card debt or anything. My loans are only my mortgage and federal student loans.

[–] AA5B 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Yeah, too many people look at the numbers and try to give advice solely on those. However, while it would be nice to maximize your returns, the entire point of working for money is to benefit your life. I understand that part of this tendency is that common bad spending g habits benefit the current self at the expense of future self, but we all should be looking for that balance where both can be happy

[–] dingus 1 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

Yup, exactly! It's figuring out that balance that's the important part. I've known people on both ends of the spectrum...some who spend excessively to the point where they go into massive debt, and some others who take the opposite approach and never do a single thing nice for themselves. Interestingly, two people I was closest to in my life exhibited these polar opposite behaviors, so I'm able to witness these effects firsthand.

It's a process trying to find the right balance. I'm at a bit of a life crossroads and trying to figure out some of that myself. I think for me, personally, I actually need to start spending a bit more on life experiences as opposed to saving every penny.

[–] JustZ 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I agree. I didn't mean to suggest you should not do upgrades. I was suggesting you should do upgrades for you. In fact I would say that you should specifically do it as a reward for meeting certain goals that you set for yourself. Be your own source of positive reinforcement and rewards, not just your salary, but how you spend your salary.

I just mean like, don't install a swimming pool now for $50k because you think you'll get it back when you're able to sell your house for more money. Such improvements might boost property value, but you won't get a positive financial return. If you want to buy a pool, do it because you want to go swimming and because you met your goals and deserve a nice reward.

Also, upgrades are expensive. If you've got debt, focus kn the debt. Look for smaller, higher value upgrades. For example, if you have a home office, don't remodel the entire office, buy yourself a new desk and chair. Another idea would be to hire a pro to come in and install modular closet storage; an upgrade to make your life easier, more organized and efficient and that you'll use and appreciate every day.

[–] dingus 3 points 10 months ago

Oh don't worry, I'm not offended or anything! I don't expect people to know my entire financial situation and my financial knowledge from a single post! It's just that I know a lot of moneybros go ham on the "save and invest every penny" model without looking at the bigger picture. Was just a comment on that is all.

Yeah, I would be putting money into it knowing that it wouldn't really be a ROI to sell, just for my own personal pleasure. The tricky part is figuring out what decisions to make!

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago

As well, if there are large credit card balances, consider a zero interest for n months, and see if you can pay that off within that time.