Want to learn money management tips based on how everyday people are managing their money? Look no further; here are some fresh money management tips.
Conventional wisdom tells us it’s rude to talk about money, but I think that’s bull sh*t! I love to challenge conventional wisdom. I think the only way we’re going to get better with money is if we talk about it! In this series, I interview everyday people about how they are managing their finances. Continue reading and you’ll gain insight into their finances and the creative money management tips you can leverage too.
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Interview with Mrs. Miller from Millers on Fire
Today’s money management tips come from Mrs. Miller from Millers On Fire.
What do you do?
I am a criminal defense investigator.
How much do you make a year?
We have a household gross income of $155,000.
What’s your biggest financial goal right now?
By the end of the year, we hope to reach our savings goal of $75,000 for this year.
What’s your savings rate?
It can vary, but we aim to have a savings rate between 45% and 50%. New York State and New York City income taxes are high!
Tell me about your life…
I was born and raised in New York City and I’m the oldest of five children. Currently, I have 10 nieces and nephews! We are a huge family.
I caught the traveling bug when I visited Italy when I was about 20. I made myself a promise that I would visit a new country at least once a year. Currently, as I write this I am in Ireland and have traveled to over 15 countries over the years.
Mr. Miller and I met and married in California but we currently reside in New York City. When we moved from Northern California, we became landlords. Rather than selling our home, we choose to turn it into a rental. The mortgage on the rental property is the only debt we have.
We save money by eating homecooked meals. We eat out just once or twice a month. I wish I were better at meal planning so I didn’t cook so often but I haven’t perfected that skill yet. We keep our living expenses low. We live in New York City and our monthly expenses are just under $3,300 a month.
What’s your favorite money hack?
Travel Hacking
One of the ways we save money is by traveling hacking! We cut our traveling costs by using credit card points for most airfare and hotels.
One of my favorite cards is the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Freedom credit cards (earn a $200 bonus by signing up for the Chase Freedom card here) I put as much of my monthly expenses as possible on the cards and I pay them down weekly. I am sure not to accrue any interest by carrying a credit card balance.
There are many good credit card reward programs but I like the Ultimate Reward Program by Chase the best. We try to earn as many points as possible. For example, with the Chase Sapphire card you can earn 2 points for every dollar you spend on certain things like food, hotels, and Uber. The Chase Freedom card allows you to earn 5 points for every dollar you spend with rotating categories. As of October 2019, you can earn 5 points for every dollar you spend at gas stations.
Recently, we paid only $102.46 for two round-trip tickets to Ireland! We used 60k points for each ticket and only needed to pay the taxes and aviation fees.
Winning Discounted Tickets
This year my favorite financial win was winning tickets to see Hamilton on Broadway for $10 a ticket. I downloaded the Hamilton App and entered the lottery several times a week for nearly two years. It was just a surreal moment when I received the email that I had won the opportunity to buy two tickets for only $20! You too can enter buy simply downloading the Hamilton App from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
What inspired you to pursue your current financial goal?
I came across this article about a couple who had saved enough money to retire in their 30s and travel the world. The thought of slow traveling and being able to visit a country for more than one or two weeks was incredibly appealing. I spent an entire weekend “googling” terms like financial independence and early retirement. Saving money was something that I knew was important, but I did not understand the power of compound interest and saving for a dream!
What’s your plan?
Our biggest financial goal is to reach financial independence by the summer of 2025. (Financial independence is the point where our passive income through investments would cover our living expenses.)
The plan to reach financial independence is pretty simple for us. We have a solid income which allows us to keep our savings rate high. Although we live in a high cost of living area, we keep our living expenses low without feeling deprived.
Our minimum yearly savings goal is about $66,000 a year but some years, if possible, we increase that as much as we can.
We hope to achieve financial independence by keeping our living expenses low while we are working and saving and investing as much as we can. We are fortunate to have access to several tax-advantaged accounts including a 401k, Health Savings Account (HSA), and IRAs which reduce our taxable income.
What’s a Fun Fact About You
I am a self-proclaimed money nerd. Listening to personal finance podcasts is my jam! Since that may not be so fun for some people, I also love playing card games like Spades and Uno. I am also quite competitive when I play Mad Gab.
Anything else we should know?
Financial wellness is pretty simple but not always easy. Many factors can affect the road to financial independence. Naturally, I am a spender, but I choose to be a spending optimizer. I use coupons (click here to learn how to coupon), discount codes and shop sales so that every dollar goes as far as it possibly can. I don’t spend just to spend anymore. Intentional spending and value-based spending has been key for me (click here to learn more about intentional spending). Listening to podcasts and reading personal finance books has also been motivating as I think about different ways to be a financial optimizer.
