What are your financial goals?

25204 Views 67 Replies 53 Participants Last post by HappyCat, Apr 27, 2010

FrugalTrader

Discussion Starter · Apr 3, 2009

My goals are made public, but I'm curious, what are your financial goals?

Besides my net worth goal, my ultimate financial goal is to have enough investment income to cover all of our expenses (and then some).

1 - 20 of 68 Posts

CanadianCapitalist

· #2 · Apr 3, 2009

Our goals are fairly simple:

1. Financial Independence. I'd like to be at a point where we don't rely on a pay check and any work we do is because we love it, not because we have to.

2. Save for retirement; hopefully early, say when I'm 55. (Yes, I'm sticking to Freedom 55).

3. Save for kids' education. We do intend to pay for our kids' undergraduate education; after that, they are on their own.

I'd suspect most people's financial goals are along those lines.

Canadian Finance

· #3 · Apr 3, 2009

Have the mortgage paid off by 50
Retire by 60
Survive the next 2-3 years while the wife is off work having kids!

Patricia

· #4 · Apr 3, 2009

As a retiree my financial goals are:

1. Maximize savings afforded by income splitting to keep us in the lowest tax brackets.
2. Continue to save at least until I'm 65.
3. Continue to educate myself on investings and build a home resource library.

moneygardener

· #5 · Apr 3, 2009

Make money less important in my family's life.

Achieve this through a high rate of savings, investing in dividend paying stocks for the long term, and making the most efficient use of money always.

darkwing_1978

· #6 · Apr 3, 2009

Debt Free (with the exception of the mortgage) by 30 - complete
Mortgage Free by 40 - working towards this
Enough Investment Income to cover Expenses by 55 - working towards this

Sampson

· #7 · Apr 3, 2009

1. Retire by 55. - by building up nest egg large enough to self sustain our $40-$60k expected expenses.

2. Pay of mortgage on principle residence in 16 years from inception. (1 year in

)

3. I really like MG's - make money less important in my family's life. After just returning from Vancouver Island, I'm feeling like we could live a simpler (less expensive lifestyle). This really could be as easy as off-loading some debt (from the rental).

fifi

· #8 · Apr 3, 2009

1. Primary mortgage paid off within 4 years.
2. Not have to worry about not being able to afford the occasional luxury, like a new pair of expensive runners, buying the 'good' ketchup, or ordering the odd pay-per-view event--my wife's making me work on that one (ie being ok with spending money too)...give me a couple years...
3. Pay off trailer for camping with family (3 months to go!)
4. Keep regular investing through highs and lows of economy.
5. NOT look at my net worth when I know it's less--only look on the good months..I guess a goal would be to see the positive more (ongoing, but getting there!).
6. Retire by 55.
7. Support about half of kids' college/university expenses (I think they should cover some of it).
8. Have at least one vacation condo, even if shared with some family, somewhere out of the city, by 50.

moneygardener

· #9 · Apr 3, 2009

"buying the 'good ketchup'" LOL

... I love it.

The Financial Blogger

· #10 · Apr 4, 2009

#1 make enough money so my wife can stop working
#2 make enough money online so I can stop working

#3 get a loft downtown Montreal where I will have my office, work 8am to 4pm and play golf on Friday.

it doesn't hurt to dream, doesn't it?

Four Pillars

· #11 · Apr 5, 2009

Mine are identical to Canadian Capitalist.

If I could only state one goal it would be to get to the point where I'm not sweating bullets on "layoff" days....

Financial Highway

· #12 · Apr 5, 2009

Mine is pretty much the same as everyone else,

Financial Freedom, where I don't HAVE to work but want to. that is pretty much the ultimate goal and would like to achieve that by 45-50

mfd

· #13 · Apr 5, 2009

CanadianCapitalist said:
Our goals are fairly simple:

1. Financial Independence. I'd like to be at a point where we don't rely on a pay check and any work we do is because we love it, not because we have to.

2. Save for retirement; hopefully early, say when I'm 55. (Yes, I'm sticking to Freedom 55).

3. Save for kids' education. We do intend to pay for our kids' undergraduate education; after that, they are on their own.

I'd suspect most people's financial goals are along those lines.

Mine and CC's are exactly the same. With the exception of education. We do intend to pay for their education but there will be a few exceptions that if we can muster it will pay for some extra education like medical school. We aren't going to pay for 8 years in some arts program though. They can find themselves on their own dime

refutor

· #14 · Apr 5, 2009

Mortgage paid off in 8 years, retire at 50

MTNG

· #15 · Apr 6, 2009

Long term? Financial freedom.

Closer term?
6 months worth in my contingency fund
$1500/month passive income
Save for downpayment on another rental property

DrStan

· #16 · Apr 7, 2009

Interesting how many of these posts are similar... These are the goals my wife and I have set:

1. House and all debts paid off. Done last year at age 30.
2. Retire at 55 with $80K net income in 2009 dollars. We're on track.
3. Take 8 weeks off every summer with the kids, starting in 3-4 years.
4. Raise money savvy kids. If only my parents had taught me better... Things like: put away 10% of everything you make; don't buy a new car as a 19-year old male, the insurance will ruin you; negotiate; invest in low-cost funds... my kids will know this.
5. Become millionaires next door. Keep the same lifestyle, but have money working for us, instead of the other way around. That's sweet.

UpNorth

· #17 · Apr 7, 2009

Short Term: By the end of the year we want to pay off our student loans and the car loan, get married without going in debt and start to build our emergency fund.

Medium Term: Max out our RRSPs and TFSAs, avoid all consumer debt, ramp up our mortgage payments and build a good sized emergency fund.

Long Term: Over the course of our working lives, we want to continually use our employers deferred salary leave programs. Every two years we'll take six months off or every four years we'll take a year off (or some combination like that). To me, that's finanical freedom, but now. Ultimate finacial freedom by 55-60.

Alexandra

· #18 · Apr 7, 2009

I don't know if this is bad or not, but my goals keep changing. I guess you'll miss your target unless you adjust to changes in the wind though, right?

Here's the deal:
My husband changed careers and now is self-employed in a field where he is building a business that can sustain itself all his life with less and less input as he ages. So he doesn't want to retire. Before this change I had wanted to retire early, but with my husband at my side, so now I don't see the point.

I am thinking that maybe later on I will leave my career to work with my hubby as an admin or something easy, that doesn't pay particularly well, but that is stress-free and allows me to spend time with him. We can half-retire to warmer climes in the winter months and work together in the summer.

His career move has really changed the picture of what our retirement will be like, so I am still trying to get a sense of what I will want.

Anyone else in the same boat? What do your retirement goals look like when you are not really going into traditional retirement?

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moneygardener

· #19 · Apr 7, 2009

Enjoyable Thread

Great thread to read. DrStan I love your #5.

Tim

· #20 · Apr 8, 2009

Goals

Goals?!?! Mmm, I haven't played hockey in years. I suppose I remember how to do it.

Long term: Make working optional at age 45 (plus or minus four years).

Short term:
1) Pay off mortgage in under 9 years.
2) Start a hobby business of publishing and try not to lose money at it.

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