- Jules Rogers started making more money in her 20s by combining full-time work with freelance work.
- Her income increased, but she also bought her first home and needed to cut back on expenses.
- Her savings strategies include prioritizing home improvements and monitoring discretionary spending.
Now that I'm 31 years old, I've started spending money differently than I did when I was in my 20s.
When I was about 29 years old, I started balancing full-time work with freelance work, and my income skyrocketed. In order to spend my budget wisely, I had to prioritize parts of it.
For example, my transportation costs are in the expensive category. When I was in my early 20s, I was making car payments. snowball and avalanche And even though that car was scrapped a long time ago, I was able to stay within my insurance budget and now own my own car.
My main goal is to even out my spending. increase savings and investment.
Here's how budgeting is different in your 30s compared to your 20s, and the strategies I use to avoid lifestyle creep.
housing
In 2022, my spouse and I closed on our 2001 townhome in Portland, Oregon and became first-time homeowners.
The monthly mortgage payment for our two-bedroom, two-bathroom home is nearly twice as much as if we were renting a one-bedroom, including an HOA. But it's worth it because I have a little more income, I can pay off my car payment, and I don't have to pay for annual moving expenses. You also no longer have to save up a large initial down payment.
Although it was in fairly move-in ready condition compared to many homes on the market, there was still a long list of repairs and maintenance that needed to be addressed. This was a first for me after 10 years of renting and moving every few years. healthy HOA This year we'll be helping you with all your outdoor gear, including installing a new roof.
As for the interior, the washing machine was flooded and one of the bathrooms had a broken vanity mirror. His top priority was to replace the two items.
We then categorized our priorities into three areas. Some require the work of a professional subcontractor, some require a small outlay, and some require just an armrest. We spread the cost of subcontractors by tackling tedious projects in between, like steam mopping bathrooms, resealing grout, and cleaning trim and baseboards.
I then saved up credit card points and took advantage of sales like Amazon's Prime Day to make small upgrades like hardware, light switch panels, cable hiders, and storage solutions.
Doing them one at a time at intervals allows you to spread out the cost and delay it, giving you more time to research exactly what you need down to the smallest detail.
investment account
One math teacher told me that I could only earn so much money in my lifetime, and then showed me a graph that explained the growth of money. exponential interest.
By adhering to that basic concept, I was able to prioritize saving money. retirement account During your 20s, even when your budget was tight. When I changed jobs, my 401(k) was often kicked out by my employer after a while. When I was only freelancing, I didn't have a 401(k).
During these times, I kept my retirement savings in a Roth IRA at a credit union, so the administrative part was easy.
By the time I was in my 30s, I had enough money in the account to purchase a clean energy IRA fund with a minimum investment of $5,000. I still have a rolling 401(k) with my current full-time employer, who matches my contributions with his 10%. Also, my spouse has an employer 401(k); health savings account.
discretionary spending
Thanks to my spreadsheets in my 20s, I was able to determine and balance key discretionary expenses such as groceries, hygiene and beauty, clothing, going out and entertainment, and more. I always pay in cash for these categories and pay my credit card bills in full each month.
Practicing this in my 20s has served me well now that food costs have skyrocketed and I have about $150 a month back in student loan payments.
I've found that “homebacking” (what I call not going to Starbucks and eating out less) doesn't save me a lot of money, but meal prep does save me time, so I do it. Masu. I freeze egg muffins and cook up a big batch of chili chicken for tostadas, burritos, and taco nights. We have an espresso machine and a French press, so I don't have to buy coffee outside, and adding coffee creamer to my grocery list is a lot of fun.
When your expenses spiral out of control, look for discretionary expenses that you can reasonably cut, like incorporating certain beauty routines into the winter or waiting longer between appointments.
Getting my nails done is tempting so I upped my game and splurged on a UV/LED light to do it myself. Branded clothes are very attractive, but my rule is to save up my monthly clothing budget until I have enough money.
When I was in my 20s, I subscribed to a monthly beauty box. This is a great way to try new things and stock up. Now that I'm in my 30s, the amount of hair care, skin care, and makeup products I own has increased considerably, so I've adopted a “replace, don't buy'' approach. r/makeup prefab.
In my 20s, I felt like I needed to try all the happy hours and rooftop bars and wanted to get out of my tiny apartment. Now I go there and enjoy being at home. For me, a bag of frozen fries is a great way to curb my happy hour cravings.
hobby
I bought the first Nintendo Switch in my mid-20s. Although the joystick has been refurbished and is a little squeaky, the system is packed with affordable indie games that are frequently on sale. No PlayStation 5 required. You can play what you already have. I also spend a lot of time reading free e-books from the library on my Kindle.
One of my hobbies outside of movie time is arts and crafts. This has a budget of $10. That's pretty much all you need for your next party or hours of crafting.
I am renovating a dollhouse for my niece that was given to her by her aunt when she was a little girl. It's great to be able to revive and pass on this old hobby. Her $4 spent on popsicle stick flooring saved us hours of crafting.
