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I’ve been reading these forums (and the book) for several years, but a few recent threads asking for a “financial check-up” have made some of the fundamentals a lot more “sticky” in my head. In that context, could I ask for some feedback on my situation?
I am starting intern year in IM, am a little older (32 – did an MD/PhD), and my wife is a PhD engineer. She makes very good money in industry, so our pre-tax income this year will be around $190k.
We own a house in a “hot” housing market worth ~$425k. We value the safety of outright home ownership, so have aggressively put money towards this house – at this point, we owe ~$100k on it, which we’d like to pay off, soon.
No debt, other than the ~$100k remaining on the house note.
We own decent cars that we take care of, and should last us at least another 5 years.
We have ~$80k saved in various 401k’s, which we realize is low for our ages, but that doesn’t concern us too much, given our lack of debt and high equity in our house. We’ve obviously always contributed whatever is necessary to get any matching contributions, and will continue to do that.
No kids (or plans for any), and no pets (although we’d like to get a dog once we’re more settled).
I’m leaning towards doing a fellowship, but the thought of being 40 before getting a “real job” is scary. I’m also burning out a little on training and have considered being a hospitalist or doing outpatient IM in a more rural area. I know some people don’t like the hospitalist schedule, but I think it would work well with my lifestyle ambitions.
Wife would like to semi-retire after I get a “real job” – ie, teach a few courses each semester at a university, tend the garden, cook good food, etc.
Our long-term ambition is to build a new house that fits our lifestyle better (ie – we don’t need a bunch of bedrooms and living space like our existing house has, but we would like a small pool and a gym). We anticipate needing about $1M for this, which given the equity in our existing house, seems doable.
We both have disability insurance paid by our employers, but aren’t very concerned about our insurance coverages, since we have no real debt and both have high earning potential. We have generous umbrella liability coverage.
Our immediate plans are to pay off the house note (this year), then begin aggressively contributing to retirement accounts. I’m unsure what else we should be doing, especially given that our income is high, presently, and will more than double once I finish training – to an extent, I feel like we should be enjoying life a little more, now, given the favorable income potential in our future. Thoughts?
I am starting intern year in IM, am a little older (32 – did an MD/PhD), and my wife is a PhD engineer. She makes very good money in industry, so our pre-tax income this year will be around $190k.
We own a house in a “hot” housing market worth ~$425k. We value the safety of outright home ownership, so have aggressively put money towards this house – at this point, we owe ~$100k on it, which we’d like to pay off, soon.
No debt, other than the ~$100k remaining on the house note.
We own decent cars that we take care of, and should last us at least another 5 years.
We have ~$80k saved in various 401k’s, which we realize is low for our ages, but that doesn’t concern us too much, given our lack of debt and high equity in our house. We’ve obviously always contributed whatever is necessary to get any matching contributions, and will continue to do that.
No kids (or plans for any), and no pets (although we’d like to get a dog once we’re more settled).
I’m leaning towards doing a fellowship, but the thought of being 40 before getting a “real job” is scary. I’m also burning out a little on training and have considered being a hospitalist or doing outpatient IM in a more rural area. I know some people don’t like the hospitalist schedule, but I think it would work well with my lifestyle ambitions.
Wife would like to semi-retire after I get a “real job” – ie, teach a few courses each semester at a university, tend the garden, cook good food, etc.
Our long-term ambition is to build a new house that fits our lifestyle better (ie – we don’t need a bunch of bedrooms and living space like our existing house has, but we would like a small pool and a gym). We anticipate needing about $1M for this, which given the equity in our existing house, seems doable.
We both have disability insurance paid by our employers, but aren’t very concerned about our insurance coverages, since we have no real debt and both have high earning potential. We have generous umbrella liability coverage.
Our immediate plans are to pay off the house note (this year), then begin aggressively contributing to retirement accounts. I’m unsure what else we should be doing, especially given that our income is high, presently, and will more than double once I finish training – to an extent, I feel like we should be enjoying life a little more, now, given the favorable income potential in our future. Thoughts?
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