The Financial Pitfall of Making Six Figures

My Partner And I Make 6 Figures, Where the Hell Does It All Go?!

There’s a common refrain I’ve come across with many of the families I meet with in Decatur and surrounding neighborhoods: We make a good living, our family is thriving, but we don’t have any money at the end of the month? After I review their spending accounts, I see big pay checks coming in. I see nice sized chunks of cash going out for nice cars and houses. And then 75-ish seemingly “insignificant charges” of between $50 and $250 throughout the month. This is the beginnings of an archetype, I am starting to call “We make enough money, that we don’t have to worry about our spending”.

You may fit into this category if:

• Your family income is greater than $175k/year

• You have 2 to 3 kids that have expensive extracurriculars and/or tutoring

• You go on a week long vacations 4 to 5 times/year

• You may have a stay at home partner

• When you see something interesting, you just buy it

• You emphasize convenience over cost

• You contribute money to your kid’s school and class all year long

• You don’t really check your bank/credit card statements

• You are well respected in your professional career

This is an interesting group, and something that seems to happen much, around Decatur and other in town neighborhoods. The amount of income you make, lulls you into thinking you don’t need to be intentional with your finances. That is, until something happens that causes you to reevaluate your situation: A friend gets laid off, you decide you hate your job and want to make less money and contribute more, a major housing renovation or project, a friends kid heads off to college, you want a pool in your backyard, etc.

Which inevitably leads to a quick analysis of the family’s current situation, and you realize:

“Dang!! Where does it all go?” or “I am too busy to deal with this, I am going to punt for some time in the future when I have more time”.

If you are in this situation, with just a little bit of work, you can make a big difference in your family’s long term outcomes. Let me help you:

• Consolidate your credit cards

• Set up automated bill pay

• Set up automated investments

• Pre-plan and budget for your family vacations

• Check out your car/home owners insurance for the best price and coverage

• Prioritize and fix the things in the house that need to be addressed

• Get the kids set up for college savings

• Land a new job that matters to you

• Sell your RSU’s

• Minimize your tax bill

A good financial planner does so much more for your family, than just manage your investments. They are an advocate and partner, working in lock step, to make sure that you are living your best life, NOW and IN THE FUTURE. **But you can’t afford to wait. Guess what? You will never have “enough time” to get this work done. It is all about prioritizing the work, and getting started.

Let’s set up some time to get your family moving intentionally towards your goals.