CNN Money recently presented their latest Millionaire in the Making profile: Ryan and Hope Wells. Here’s a snapshot of their profile…
Ages: Ryan, 25, Hope, 23
Occupations: Car salesman, Medical billing coder
Salary: Approximately $56,000 combined
Home and land: $125,000 estimated value
IRA, 401(k): About $22,500
Mutual Funds: $3,000Utilities: $310 per month
Groceries: About $350 per month
Entertainment: $300 per month
Car payments: $330 per month
Mortgage payments: $570 per month
Credit card debt: $100 per month
School loan payments: $65 per month
The Wellses want to retire at 50. Their plan is to “put roughly 10% of their earnings toward retirement, 10% toward bills, 30% toward debt reduction, 15% into taxable mutual funds, and 35% to daily expenses and emergency savings.” That’s a great system if they can stick to it.
According to my database of profiles, the Wellses are one of the youngest profiles ever. They also have one of the lowest incomes ever profiled. However, they aren’t the lowest in every category: their retirement savings is impressive compared to others their age. Maxing out your IRA contributions in your early twenties is no easy task, and should be applauded.
The Wellses have made a few other smart moves recently: Although it’s a little too much debt ($19K) for their income, they bought their car used (instead of brand new). Also, they’ve used 0% balance transfers to manage their high-interest credit card debt. Hopefully they didn’t pay too much in transfer fees.
Bottom line, I think it’s impressive that the Wellses seem to have the savers mentality this early in life. As their income rises and they continue to make smart choices, they should do fine.
What do you think of the Wellses stats? Do you think they have a chance to retire with millions?
Don’t forget…you can check out the complete list of CNN Money’s Millionaire in the Making profiles here at Prime Time Money. Also, see my list of Tycoons in the Making and Extreme Savers.
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I think at the current stats, the Wellses are going to have a tough go, especially with that debt, but the thing you CAN’T see now is where they’ll be in the future. With a job promotion or 3, they’ll be right there…
I’ve talked with some others recently about how some people might become millionaires in the future, but how much purchasing power and security will that really give them in 30-40 years?