Hi PF. Using a throwaway because I don't want this linked to my main account.
My husband makes a significant amount of money. I am worried we are not planning correctly, or that we are missing out on opportunities to ensure we are in a better place come time for him to retire. I am basically just looking for you guys to tell me that we are fine the way things are... or that we need to consult with a professional... etc.
For background, he is 54, and makes a base salary of $208,000 and receives 2 bonuses per year. His mid-year bonus is usually around $100,000, and this bonus also maxes out his 401k for the year (he also does the max 401k catch-up). Christmas bonus is usually around $125,000 - $150,000. To be clear - we do NOT assume that he will get these bonuses every year, just in case. The bonuses used to be significantly less than they have been in recent years, so we look at the bonuses as extra, and never make purchases or financial moves based on assuming he will get large bonuses.
I make only $42k a year, and contribute 10% to my 401k which my employer matches up to 4%.
My husband has 4 kids - one is in his 20s and we are done paying for his education (which was approx $55k a year), a 19 year old that is in community college (and I don't see him going further than that but you never know) and 2 teenagers that are still in high school.
Our home is 2 years old, and the total of the mortgage was $450k, and is currently $435k. Our taxes and insurance are included in our mortgage payment. We live in a VERY high cost of living area in NY, so our yearly property taxes are just shy of $20k. Once my husband retires, we plan on moving south to a much lower cost area. Here is a breakdown of our general expenses and finances in case it helps.
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Take home pay (combined) - on average, about $10,500/month. His fluxuates during the year once he maxes out his 401k. so I am using the lower figure. I did not include bonuses in the $10,500. Health insurance for the family comes out of his paychecks, so I am not including health insurance in the below expenses.
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Mortgage - $3,800/month (interest rate is 3.875%)
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Car insurance - $150/month, I expect this to increase next month when my stepdaughter gets her license and goes on my policy
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Car payment - none, my car is paid off, and he drives a company car. We are giving my car to my stepdaughter and purchasing a new car for me in the next couple weeks. We will pay cash so we will not have any payments.
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Utilities - $450-550/month - I'm rounding up since it varies seasonally
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Child support - $2,500/month
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Life insurance - $350/month (two policies - one with kids as beneficiaries, one with me as beneficiary)
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Savings - approx $150-200k as of right now. Between building the house and all that comes with furnishing a new home, his son's college tuition, alimony payments (which are over now), and me taking a year off work when I moved out here, we were not able to save as much as I had hoped in the past couple years.
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Stocks - approx $50,000 currently
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His 401k - approx $600k. However, he wants to try to avoid using this money and be able to give it to his kids (???!!!??). I think this is my big concern - we certainly don't have enough saved to put two more kids through school and for him to retire comfortably if we don't use his 401k. I don't want him working forever. He works 13 hours a day, 6 days a week, mostly using his hands.
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My IRA from my former job - approx $20k. I also just became eligible for my current jobs 401k plan, so that doesn't have much in it yet (less than $1,000).
So PF... are we on the right track? Do we need a professional to guide us? Are we doing something wrong? I am a big worrier and do not like to take financial risks, so feel free to slap me and tell me that we should be investing more money or something.
Submitted December 27, 2017 at 11:07AM by pfthrowaway888888888 http://ift.tt/2pEuP3k
