Second paycheck of the new year in the books and I invested almost 100% of my paycheck into retirement accounts! This continues along with the strategy of front loading my investments at the beginning of the year. Being able to invest almost 100% of my paycheck into retirement accounts will allow me to max out my retirement accounts by the end of February. Let’s take a look at where my money went.
Breakdown of Second Paycheck
The total amount for my second paycheck of the year was $6,538. Of that, here is the breakdown
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401k: $3,269
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VTSAX: $1,200
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HSA: $1,000
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Taxes: $717
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Living Money: $352
What My Strategy Is
I have worked hard to document my strategy for this year. To read the full article of how and why I am planning to front load the year, you can click the link above.
The goal remains to max out my retirement accounts by the end of next month. This will then dramatically increase my paycheck for the rest of the year and allow me to invest more aggressively.
Don’t Forget To Automate
One of the keys to my strategy is automation. What do I mean by automation? Here are two ways I automate my investments each month.
First, I set up automatic deposits for my 401k and HSA contributions. For me, I set this up through benefits with my employer. We have a landing page I can go to and can update the percentage of my check to contribute to each of these accounts. I do this for one reason and one reason only. When automating this way, I no longer see that money in my bank account. This money will go directly to my retirement accounts and I don’t have to do anything on my end.
Second, I set up automatic investments every week in my Vanguard account. This money is transferred on pay day as well so I end up temporarily seeing the money in my account. Again, the goal is to automate things so I have less things on my end that I need to do.
Executing this strategy allows me to live paycheck to paycheck in an effective manner. The less money I see in my bank account, the less money I will end up spending.
Key Takeaways:
- Front loading your retirement accounts is one of many strategies you can utilize for saving
- Don’t forget to automate your investment strategy. The less you see in your bank account, the easier it will be.
- The cool thing about front loading is what my paychecks will look like after my retirement accounts are maxed out!
Don’t forget @TheYoungRetireeBy33’s 3 Core Principles:
1 – Your money should make money for you⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
2 – Start early to realize the power of compound interest⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
3 – Eliminate your largest expense by house hacking
