conversation: User (usukuchi): "I believe I am doing well financially.  I am 30 with zero debt besides a mortgage and I make low 6 figures.  Every year I max my 401k, Roth IRA and I put small amounts into my personal investment funds.  However after I pay all my bills and any surprises that may come along throughout the year, I feel super broke.  I feel like I am saving way more than the average person.\n\nMost of my friends aren't really savers or prepare for retirement, so I have no real comparison.  Generally what does the community think a person in there 30s should have in their retirement/personal investment accounts.  I am around 250k and I feel like it should be more, but maybe I am just crazy.\n\nEDIT:\n\nFew more things I wanted to add\n\n- I have a pension plan at work\n- Cost of living is super high\n- 401k has no match\n- and I hate property taxes =*( haha"
  Self: "Well you are saving way more than the average person. But the average person is going to go on disability, or work until they're 70 and hope social security is still around... you probably don't want to be the average person.\n\nYou can work on your budget... there's no shortage of frugality advice on a subreddit like this. Personally I max out my 401k at a slightly lower income level and don't feel like a miser, although I do live in a very low cost-of-living area.\n\nBut you're on a course to retire early, and without hoping for government programs to still exist in their current form. You are getting a huge benefit for some sacrifices today. It's a tradeoff I've never met anyone who regretted later in life. The best experiences of my 20s were hardly buying crap... it was time spent with friends. At most they were cheap-assed vacations that would definitely be accessible to someone like you. "
  