Money advice for a 19 year old

[roosiebull]

Hey everyone I’ve been on this forum for probably a year now maybe and I’ve seen that at least some of you guys are going on really cool hunts and building these insane rifles with 2-5 k scopes. So clearly you guys know what your doing when it comes to saving money and planning for the future. So I’d like to ask for your money advice for a 19 year old kid. I have a few stocks and cryptos like 150 dollars worth. And I do plan on starting a Roth IRA this year. And I’m also planning on getting a little better paying job. 12$ an hour currently. I don’t have a truck yet which is what I’m saving for currently. Thanks for any advice.

you are starting off way better than me at your age(thinking about the future).... when i was 19 i was paying my bills and spending the rest as fast as i could, and i was working up in AK making good money. your thought process is impressive, and will serve you well.... i wish i had your level of care at 19.

i can't offer any surefire great advice, just props to you for having the priorities you have at your age, that goes a lot further than you realize.

relationships are a big deal man, i got dumb lucky in that regard, and my wife kicks ass at managing money.... we don't make a ton of money, but there is always extra money around when i want to buy something, that wouldn't be the case if i was responsible for money management. i got very lucky there, can't take credit for that.... that's not the real point i'm trying to make.... the bigger issue...

a very good friend of mine i worked with for 16yrs chases money harder than i do, we were harvest divers working together, mostly oregon sea urchins, but a couple years up in AK too, and some sea cucumber diving up there and here. once i got a family going, i wanted to stay in Oregon, so i just dove urchins here year round, my buddy goes up to washington late summer for cucumbers, then up to AK for cucumbers, and probably made about 40k more per year than me... maybe 50k...

he is always broke, literally.... he doesn't have any expensive habits, or expensive hobbies, they just suck at money management. i buy a lot more "stuff" than him, and we never go broke or even stressed about going broke. my wife is awesome at money management, his is not.... his wife is a very cool lady, good person, but they have no concept of money management and when he's not actively making good money, he's actively on his way to being broke.

if you get with a girl who likes spending money, and isn't good with managing it, you need to be.... there has to be someone good with managing money, or how much you make or don't make doesn't matter much (within reason)

acquiring property is another big one.... again, if it wasn't for my wife, i may still be a renter.... we bought our first house, then we bought a commercial building we couldn't really afford, but i trusted my wife more than myself, so we did it, and it worked out. i'm 38 now, and we have bought 3 homes and a commercial property, and now have sold one home and the commercial property, and did well on those sales.... money management, it's a big part of having money.... spending money is just as important as making it, and i have been blown away the stuff we have been able to buy with the money we make, especially considering i worked with my buddy for 16 yrs, and had a comparison of him making more money than me, and not really having anything to show for it..... again, i take no credit for that, but it's been profound seeing it all unfold over the years. money management is huge, and with your attitude, i strongly suggest you take the reigns there in case you end up married to a spender.... if you don't, and you both share the concept of money management, even better.

 

[Trapperkid]

My girlfriend likes to spend but she also wants to retire early so it should be easy to get her to managing her money better and we aren’t in a hurry for marriage or kids which is great. She’s pretty much down with whatever as long as she can be involved. I’m pretty lucky in that regard.

 

[Dos Perros]

1) Happiness is more important than wealth, so don’t lose focus on the ultimate end goal.
2) Your time is better spent growing your income than cutting coupons and pinching pennies. If that means more schooling, side hustles, you can invest in your future today.
3) Think big! You’re young so you can take bigger risks than when you’re older and have a family to think about. But remember it’s all risky, even the safe bets, because by choosing conservative options all the time you’re also limiting your upside, which ultimately erodes your potential.
4) Surround yourself with the right people, people you want to be like. Find mentors. Just by doing that you’ll be exposed to opportunities and wisdom than can change your life.

 

[roadrunner]

I'll second, or third, or fourth...a vocation (trade) over a formal education. It's the quickest way to owning your own business.

Also, once you figure out you don't have to do what everyone else is doing (big fancy hunts, equipment/gear, etc) the better off you'll be. Just focus on building and living a life, the rest will follow when it's time.

There is a season for everything, and at 19, there are many seasons ahead of you...

 

[Azone]

Save 10 to 15 percent of every paycheck, put it towards retirement savings and the SHTF fund.
Wild women, drugs and alcohol may sound like fun in the movies or on social media but they can ultimately lead towards your demise, be careful.
No shitty, sketchy friends that will use or manipulate you for financial gain. Being a bleeding heart because your friends or even family are morons will get you no where but screwed.
Buy a affordable, dependable vehicle and don’t get sad when the dude your age down the street buys a brand new power stroke or duramax. Odds are he is financed the **** out and likely spending over half if not all of his pay on his new pavement princess between principal and interest.
Any woman who is overly materialistic and shows even a hint of narcissistic traits should be avoided at ALL COST. The bedroom tricks may be awesome but women like this turn into headaches, and will eventually move on to new sugar daddies when you don’t fulfill their wants.
I know guys with 5k gun setups that have probably, maybe 1 or 2K saved up. DON’T be that guy.
Credit cards are for emergencies, not hunting crap or buying rounds at the bar.
Most of all, common sense! Is it a want or a need?

 

[Elk97]

Lots of good advice here, but I'm going to buck the trend. You're 19, seem to have a good head on your shoulders and I assume no real responsibilities. If you have any experience at anything, start a business. Doesn't matter if it's mowing lawns, small home or business repair, auto or body repair, etc. You might not be able to swing it right now but when you can go for it. Start small and build it up as you can afford to and as you learn more. It's not as safe as getting a good paying job but you know what they say about risk/reward.
I did it, and if I can, I bet you can.

 

[Idaho_Potato]

It doesn't matter how pretty or nice she is, make her sign a pre-nup.

 

[browning2480]

My girlfriend likes to spend but she also wants to retire early so it should be easy to get her to managing her money better and we aren’t in a hurry for marriage or kids which is great. She’s pretty much down with whatever as long as she can be involved. I’m pretty lucky in that regard.

One thing I will say about this, you are not married yet. Keep everything separate until then. No living together or anything like that. Have these financial conversations, but remember you have yours and she has hers, until you are married. Then it is all together. No partnerships or co-signing or anything crazy

 

[awasome]

Spend less than you make

Save and invest money

Never get into credit card debt that you can't pay off the balance too every month like the plague. You will become a slave to the bank trying to pay that debt off instead of having money in your bank account.

Don't cosign for any loan/mortgage even for family. If they can't get the loan/mortgage on their own, can you really trust them to pay it back and keep your credit in good standing?

 

[Rob5589]

Tons of great advice already. The only thing I'll add is, if you're already thinking about this at 19 you are far and away ahead of the curve. Kudos to you!

 

[Mighty Mouse]

My number 1 piece of advice for building wealth: live below your means and put the margin into savings.

What to do with those savings is the subject of endless debate. Unfortunately keeping it all in cash is not a viable long term strategy due to our perverse inflationary monetary system. I personally put my savings in a permanent portfolio-esque blend of diverse assets: stocks, bonds, cash, precious metals, and Bitcoin.

Other advice:

• Invest in yourself. Learn everything you can while you're footloose and fancy-free.
• Don't let money become an idol. Remember that it is a means to an end, not an end itself.

 

[ZAK13]

Rich people take 1/2 of what they make and put it in savings, wealthy people take 3/4 of what they make and put it in savings. Best advice is to learn to live on as little as you can. At 19, probably still live at home, good, you can save more. I couldn't afford much when I was your age either, I wanted a pickup truck for hunting, fishing & camping, but figured out the station wagon I bought worked out just as good, less the 4wd and better on mileage. You don't need that $2,500 rifle or that $800 scope, that $500 rifle and $200 scope will get you by just fine for a few years or more.

 

[b0nes]

Pick up a trade that pays decent and work your a$$ off. The rest will come.

 

[OutdoorsMD]

Whatever you chose do be driven to be the best at it. In general, people that have a career are happier than those that just have a job regardless of income. The most important thing that I hope to pass on to my kids is work ethic.

 

[TheGDog]

ALWAYS BE LEARNING!

At this point, you need to be all about getting knowledge into your head, first and foremost.
Right now? Even though it might go against all your senses.... don't be chasin' tail relentlessly 24/7.

You can still chase tail, that's just gonna happen no matter what, but don't get too caught-up in it. Just make sure to keep your mind on the "long-game" man.

What I mean is... keep your mind right and focused on the milestones you gotta hit in order to achieve the long-term goal you've got your aim on. Because it literally does work like it says in that Rap song, quoting the movie Scarface. First you get the Power, then you get the Money, THEN you get the B****s, fool, don't be no dummie! And for you right now? Power comes in the form of knowledge and education, all the while trying to gain experience that's pertinent to the field you want to go into.

At the very least, right about now, you work on knocking out your General Education requirements in a Community College. Right off the bat... employers will like that you're applying effort towards moving forward towards a goal. That'll up your chances over other applicants which are stagnating in their education goals.

Then... while that's happening... either thru your job, or thru friends you know and their jobs... you'll start hearing about potential careers you think you might dig-on and could see yourself getting into it. Those will help you decide how you pick what kinds of topics to "specialize" and focus your studies on later on as you need to start making those more specific choices in what to learn, once you're kinda settled and focused on what you think that should be for you.

Do not think that you need to have a College Degree to make decent bank. I went the route of having the boss man take me under his wing and learning coding on the job from actual coders. He was impressed with the savvy I was displaying in problem solving in tech support, and offered to switch me over into programming. But I'd have to prove myself first with some first projects he'd given me.

In my household (at your age I was already married the 1st time), the plan was I'd go this route, and my ExWf would focus on getting her education stuff outta the way, then we'd flip the script, and I'd go back for my classes later, because with this switch I was already making better money than if both of us had entry-level jobs.

Unfortunately, that relationship came to an end... but I continued on coding ever since. And coding is different in that you constantly have to then re-learn anyway. So that degree of today, quickly goes out of relevance as things "at the bleeding-edge" of technology end up needing you to learn and adopt what you already know how to do into tons of new paradigms anyway. You're constantly having to re-learn.

BUT.... DO understand that if you do manage to get that degree, it could help you take far less time to reach the higher-end of salary ranges for the position you're considering. You'll still need to grow some experience first and show and prove what you can do. But overall, you're likely to get to the higher-end of the salary range in your field in a shorter span of time, if you've got some kind of degree you've finished before. Doesn't even have to be a degree in the same topic the job is about either. It's more about the person sticking with it and seeing it thru til the end. Is what the degree can show, when it's not a degree in the same topic.

When picking a new job, always be mindful as to whether or not this job can lead to further upward mobility of some kind. (Yeah, I know, kind of a tall order when you're talking about first jobs. But even then it applies too.) Just Remember.... We all will get old some day, so throughout your entire career you need to be always mindful to move yourself more and more towards a functionality/position that requires your brains/experience/savvy, rather than being about your muscle/brawn in the trenches all the way up until retirement.

Try to avoid the scenario of shacking-up with a GF right now, you might be tempted just because it can save you tons of money in housing expenses. Being younger now... your likes and dislikes are still forming. You really won't know yourself thru-and-thru enough yet... so you don't want to sell yourself short just yet... wait until you have a much better idea of where you are going and how you are getting there. Then... you can consider adding into the scenario some young lady that understands that wealth is something the both of you build TOGETHER thru sacrifices.

 

[BigNate]

First, congrats on asking for advice. It's smart to seek wisdom from others mistakes.

Saving is important, investing is the key.
Buy gold when everything is going good in the world, sell it when things get crazy like now. Oil / energy stocks fluctuate in similar fashion. Having some flexibility in investing is smart.

Don't invest in things subsidized by the government. Those things can't survive without it, and congress can change their mind.
Land prices change with the economy. Be patient, buy when others can't.

You've gotten good advice. Another good book to absorb is "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by Robert Kiyosaki

 

[rooster440]

Have you considered marrying a girl with generational wealth?

Probably the best advice actually.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[woods89]

I'd be looking at getting experience in HVAC/plumbing/electrical service work. Get 5-10 years of experience and if you aren't satisfied where you're at start your own business. There's tremendous demand out there and almost all techs are in their 40s and up.
If you do start your own business, find a way to learn business skills. A lot of guys are good at their trade but fail because they don't know how to run a small business.
Oh, and the right girl is one of the best things that can happen to you. I'm told the wrong girl can wreck your life. The challenge is to find the right girl, and then be the right man. Good luck.

 

[Trapperkid]

No we aren’t doing any of that her money is hers and mine is mine until we are married she wants to live together but I told her not until we are married

 

[TheGDog]

Any woman who is overly materialistic and shows even a hint of narcissistic traits should be avoided at ALL COST. The bedroom tricks may be awesome but women like this turn into headaches, and will eventually move on to new sugar daddies when you don’t fulfill their wants.

^^^THIS!