I’m constantly blown away by the number of women in their late 20s and early 30s who have no real savings or investments, and are living the life of a millionairess, only they’re really not.
I’m talking about young singles and couples with no kids and hefty annual paycheques. People like me.
But they’re not like me. My hubby and I are millionaires, making me a millionairess.
I remember when we became millionaires, the day the balance of all our savings and investments tipped over.
We went to Vue De Monde in Melbourne for their ten course degustation and matching wines to celebrate the milestone.
I ended up throwing most of it up when we got home, and we both agreed that while it was fun to celebrate in style, we were glad we’d waited to spend $999 each on a meal until we could actually afford it, but that we wouldn’t be going back there, or anywhere like there, in a hurry.
We’re much happier eating street food in Bali or Mexico than we are paying that kind of money on a single meal. Each to their own.
What really frustrates me about this whole scenario though, is that being a millionaire in 2017 actually means diddly squat.
A million dollars in investments would probably produce around $30,000 to $40,000 in annual income.
Not bad, but with our recent survey showing that 73 per cent of Generation Y are living on over $50,000 a year , it’s certainly not retirement money these days.
We know our generation are having kids later in life, earning more and living at home longer, so logic would say there is a huge opportunity for Gen Y to be capitalising on the years they’re spending earning income with little financial commitments, but we’re not.
We simply don’t have the big picture in mind.
Most Gen Y haven’t stopped to think about what their financial freedom number is. That is the total value of what your wealth would have to be for you never to have to work again.
What total investable wealth do you need to produce the income you require to live a reasonably comfortable lifestyle without necessarily having to work?
Essentially, creating a passive income stream.
Times have changed. In many cases, we earn significantly more than our parents did at our age and we’re marrying and having kids much later, if at all.
Yet, many of us are squandering this opportunity to be stockpiling the extra income.
Our discretionary spending is through the roof, appearing wealthy takes preference over actually being wealthy and as a result many Gen Y haven’t even started regular savings, let alone investing toward a ‘number’ that represents financial freedom to them.
What’s the block?
As Gen Y, we’re excellent at living in the moment, following our passion and not settling for anything less than what we really want.
As Australians, most of us have been fortunate enough to have always had a roof over our head, food on the table and a good education.
We get to spend time thinking about how we can be better versions of ourselves, and how we can be truly happy.
What we’re not very good at however, is looking to the future, particularly when it comes to our wealth.
My call to action…
Gen Y: We’re not getting any younger. Establish what that financial freedom number is and look at where you are now, and start taking action toward achieving it.
Stop waiting for the pay rise, the business sale, or meeting a rich partner and own your financial destiny.
The longer you leave starting the harder it is to catch up.
