How late is too late when it comes to planning?

Hi guys,

Due to @kierank fault of making me feel like an ignorant with his post in the NYE and Plans for 2020, I decided to create a new thread as I have no idea really where to go since reading kierank's post.

Sometimes I think we were too late to the party, partly because of our decision to come to Australia almost 13 years ago. As I said before, we just became permanent residents about 4 years ago and since then we started to save for a house.

I don't know if it is because being International students somehow limited us to survive the day to day life and you just worked during that time to pay for university fees. So for that reason, (maybe ignorance?) we didn't plan the way kierank suggested us to do.

Today I'm 43 years old and my wife will be 40 next week. We both work (she earns more than me ). Am I mistaken of thinking that we are too late? Our combined salary is about 116k after tax. We did a projection before buying the house that in 5 years we could save for a deposit for another property. But then 2 months after moving in it feels like a mammoth task. It seems I have become impatient, and I'm delaying some things we need to do at home so we can have a bump in our offset account.

Wife is not interested in money. I'm the one in charge of finances and the "planning" of things needed to do at home.

Baby is on his/her way, it was confirmed yesterday, we are happy about that but I'm a bit worried about the financial side now with the baby. It seems I'm in panick mode

I'm an IT guy, wife is a physiotherapist. Because of my deafness (since 4 years old) I have always had to work harder than everybody to get where I am. Sometimes I feel tired at the end of the day or in general. My knowledge of IT is nothing special, I work at a school as an ICT Support officer, people appreciate me and work environment is very good. I can say I'm very confortable in the job that I don't want to leave it as it is very hard for me to find another job being deaf. I did cleaning for about 9 years, at some point I worked 12 hours a day to pay for my wife university fees.

Don't think for a moment I'm not happy. It is just that my mind is "working" or worried all the time about things. Wife is happy but she is worried a bit since we moved as I seem not to be enjoying the house according to her.

I feel I just told you all my life guys, I would like to read some wise comments from any of you, I will appreciate it.

 

You are where you are. All you can do is try to improve the situation.

is it too late is a strange question. What alternative do you have? Do nothing and then what? Its a mindset question more than a practical one.

there are plenty of examples of people who do very well even if they start later. But you have to believe you can do it, or you wont do anything. Imagining you can achieve your goals is the first step.

 

From my perspective it's almost never too late to improve your financial position and it's certainly not too late at 43. It all depends on what financial goals you have in mind and what timeframe you have to achieve it. Also depends on your financial resources available to you.

I would keep it simple. Complicated is rarely the best path moving forward.

I'd buy some well recommended books on here to increase your general knowledge. That will be the bulk of your learning imo.

Then, identity your investment goals, even if they are rough goals you can always refine along the way. I think most investors end up doing this anyway.

Then choose an investment strategy which suits your financial situation as well as your risk tolerance.

Then take action. That is it. I would not overthink it and do not over complicate it.

You, your mortgage broker and maybe network with one or two people on the forum in your local area for support. As well as the general forum for broad knowledge and support.


Keep it as simple as you can.

1. Gain more knowledge
2. Get a good broker
3. Identify your goals
4. Take action based on the knowledge you've learnt and support form other investors.
5. Refine along the way.


I will add, ( like a broken record), do not underestimate working on your mindset. In my honest opinion most people who fall far short of achieving whatever goal they want in life do so as a result of their mind screwing them over.

 

Too late for what?

The way you phrased it all that is left is choosing the colours of your coffins...

 

Lol, I think I should have been more specific. Perhaps I DO plan but maybe not too far away like Kierank or other members do.

 

What are you planning for?
Investment
Retirement
passive income
estate planning
buying property
etc

 

Dear Original Poster

I agree with Trainee, you are where you are. You sound to me like a deer in the headlights thinking "OMG is this it?". I suggest you assess where you are at financially, think, read, make a plan and keep it simple. As you gain experience, your confidence will grow and your eyes will open to bigger challenges. I started off as an older investor (ie older than you).

 

Not necessarily - you can plan your estate so that 'you' keep on giving after your gone. One example i posted yesterday the the intergenerational debt recycling strategy.

 

colonel sanders was broke at 65

and a squillionarie at 70s!!

 

Thank you for the comments guys,

I wasn't looking for pity ir "this is it" comments, also, I don't take offence too easily for what people say or write. Maybe I didn't write the post properly or I was just thoughtful of life since I'm still on Holidays with my cat while my wife is at work

Is there a section here in the forums about books recommended for reading?

 

You may be interested in some of these. Imo none are the holy grail ( doesn't exist) but if you really study them, you'll gain an independent perspective and be able to avoid many easy mistakes. As well as be much less likely to fall prey to others.

Michael Yardney, How to build a multi million dollar property portfolio

Jan Somers More Wealth from Residential Property

Margaret Lomas How to achieve property success

Margaret Lomas How to Create an Income for Life

I buy Houses, Paul Do

20 must ask questions, Margaret Lomas

 

It takes @ 20 years to pay off a PPOR and to pay off multiple INV properties, provided you can afford to run them all P&I and make a few hundred dollars per month extra repayment onto the PPOR loan. The INV properties- if you buy product that pays for itself, will never impede the speed at which you can pay down the PPOR, as they will self service and even provide the extra repayments for themselves over time as the rents slowly mature. This can and does deliver a 20 year outcome.

Or, you can go the far more popular route and pursue growth. But if you buy resi INV properties that cannot pay their own way, they will require topping up from your post tax salary. And they will require even more topping up when they revert to P&I - which they will after 5 years, or possibly 10 years if you can refi your IO term again. But at your age you likely wont get a 15 year / 3rd IO refinance for a 30 year term, so you very likely will be paying P&I at some point ... and it will be a point before your PPOR is paid off. That will dramatically reduce your ability to make the same level of extra repayments and it will dramatically slow down the speed at which you can pay off your PPOR, unless the INV properties you have been propping up happen to make monster gains before your IO period expires and the repayments jump 50%, you sell them and use the post CGT profits to retire PPOR debt. That can be really effective, but then you have a PPOR but no INV properties or associated rental incomes for retirement ... and you are in the same position as most retirees. Asset rich. cash flow poor. Certainly CAN work... but WILL it work? Very few seem to pull it off. Will you be one of the 3% who do or one of the 97% who dont? We already know for a fact that today, very few people retire with adequate incomes. Very few. They certainly retire asset rich for sure, but just as surely they retire income/cash flow poor. And thats after 30 years of what everyone can agree has been spectacular credit expansion and growth across resi property in Australia ... perhaps never to be matched again.... now, you have 20 years to outperform those outcomes in a more regulated and restrictive credit environment than the last 30 years ....

So, to me the choice is very clear if you wish to be set for retirement within @ 20 years

But yes...you have time.

 

Or just

pay a bit more off the mortgage each payday (if you can)

salary sacrifice a bit into your super.

Enjoy your family and

stop comparing your situation with random people on the internet who may have very different circumstances to yours

and no it’s not too late, you may be less than half way through your life!

 

Simple answer : NEVER!

 

There is an old saying ,
Happy wife happy life.
But you have to do whats most important to you.
Probably just knuckling down and putting away a bit extra into the home loan first for a few years is a good start and also getting your home into order.

 

As stated above, it's absolutely not too late. Stop looking backwards at possible reasons you're not where you think you should be, it serves you in no way at all. You have to accept where you are to be in the right mindset to do well i.e have gratitude, keep a positive, curious mindset. @euro73 is absolutely correct, buying so called 'growth properties' may well set you up well if you're still alive in 15-20 years time but will require you to pour money in until then, meaning more work and more financial sacrifice. Be very careful whose advice you follow. @Charlotte30 says above she started later than you. She has achieved incredible things and is a very successful property developer. @skater started with little funds according to her own accounts. I'm was in the same boat. Talk to investors who've achieved financial freedom from a similar point to where you are now.

 

Would love @Charlotte30 to post more on her projects. Don't even need to post specific numbers, just the overall project with maybe some pics and lessons learnt would be great and inspiring.

 

The whole post reads very negatively. Every line feels like the op is going to start it with 'but'.

Op, you have to be careful about how you think about things. eg do you think we only make 116k, or we make 116k which is more than people who manage to build portfolios!