When someone is a little over thirty, he/she thinks he/she finally begins to understand how to properly handle personal finances. At this age, people know exactly how not to repeat their past financial mistakes, like unwanted or unnecessary expensive purchases or saving money excessively. Still, they continue making new ones.
By age 30, many of us have a stable career. Most of us get married or have plans to do this in the near future. Some begin to travel more, buy apartments and cars. Give birth to a child or even two. But all this does not give reason to be pleased with our attitude to money.
This rule may be working throughout our life; we continue to make mistakes, but we also continue to learn from each of them and try to avoid new ones. So here’s the list of potential money mistakes for everyone who is over thirty. Surely you do not want to torment yourself with the thought that you would prefer someone to have told you about them ten years before you celebrate your fortieth birthday.
1. We buy too many clothes for a child
Perhaps this mistake is made by all parents. You buy clothes for the children not because kids want to look good, but because you want them to look like that. It is hard to imagine how much money is spent on these nice little dresses, shoes, instantly breaking machines, and “developing” mobile applications. It is better to save this money for their future education.
2. Get married without discussing finances
Of course, money is the topic devoid of romance, but you are expected to learn to discuss difficult issues by the age of 30 years. It is extremely important to have utter understanding with your partner, when it comes to money. Otherwise, money will be the main source of conflict in your marriage and a potential cause of divorce. So talk about money with the person whom you are planning to build your future with and develop your financial goals.
3. We have debts and loans
Okay, let us not take mortgage into account. We often hear such excuses:
If I lived alone, I would have paid the loan back.
I would pay off all the debt, if we had no child.
There’s always something that will happen in your life, both good and bad. But if we ignore our debts because of this, they will become a barrier to opportunities that can make our lives much better. Get rid of credits! Stick to a hard budget, earn as much as possible and pay the loan. By the way, the life of a single man at 20, 30 and 40 years is quite different.
4. Try to live “with the Joneses”
There may be a bigger TV, a more powerful machine, a more expensive phone. In fact, all ages are susceptible to the idea of having things “like other people have”, including those who are thirty. Society may be particularly strong in its demand to confirm your status of a “well-to-do” man from the beginning. In any case, do not forget to balance your own expenses with the income; do not yield to false temptations of an expensive lifestyle and stick to your financial course.
5. Ignore the will
If you are in a loose relationship, and you have a child, then take care of the legal side of the issue. It’s unpleasant to think about death when you’re only 30 years old, but you would not like your loved ones to fight for their rights in court when you are no longer with them.
To make it brief, there are three types of events that should trigger an audit of your finances: marriage, birth, and death.
6. Do not insure your life
Again, no one likes to think about death, but if there is someone in your life, who is financially dependent on you totally, you should insure your life. It will be useful to think about health insurance, which will cover more than MHI.
7. Do not think about retirement
There is a long time of about thirty years until you retire. Of course, retirement savings are too early to put at the forefront, but it is time to sit down and calculate how much money you need and when you will stop working in order to maintain your current standard of living.
8. Do not share revenue
Many of us are loyal hired employees; the employer appreciates and cares for us. Our parents have worked all their life in one place and now have received a pension, but that option is not available for our generation. We must look for the ways to maximize and diversify our revenue. Try to earn something other than work: if there is a hobby that can bring money – let it bring the money. In the end, losing a job is not an uncommon phenomenon since no one will take care of you and your future.
9. Do not invest in your health
Your body is not getting better with years, and the more you live the less it will forgive you. Regular exercise, good physical condition, proper nutrition – all this will ultimately cost you less than medication and treatment that you will need after forty.
Something of this we see in our own life, something is noticed in the lives of friends.
The good news is that we are not the same naive children as we were at twenty, and we can wake up and bring the situation under control, beginning to manage finances really well.
