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Personal Finance

— Building wealth and financial literacy
54 members Created Apr 2026

My thoughts on the 'pay yourself first' principle after 10 years

I'm 30 and I've had exactly zero saved until 3 months ago when I got a raise and decided something had to change.

I know I'm behind. I know what the compound interest charts say about missing my 20s. I'm not here to ask if I should feel bad — I already do. What I'm asking is: what's the actual gameplan for someone starting from zero at 30?

So far: opened a Roth IRA and put in $1,000 (VTI). Enrolled in 401k at 6% to capture the full employer match. Built a $1,500 starter emergency fund. I have no debt except a $6k car loan at 4.9%.

What's the right priority stack from here? I earn $72k and can realistically save about $1,500/month after expenses.

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