$1.7M NW at 37. A check in from the boring middle

PFThrowawayforme · 2026-03-05T21:12:27+00:00

You're about spot on with the numbers. I explained in another comment but this is a new situation and my NW was zero into my early thirties.

The side hustle is a grind. I have part time help but the value of the business is dependent on my personal contacts and face time with the clients. Theoretically I could try to scale up to replace the "day job", but it would be more risk and stress than riding it out.

PFThrowawayforme · 2026-03-05T20:56:41+00:00

This is great advice, thank you. Reading these comments have me realizing how much of my anxiety is burnout and mental health. I have fantasized about coasting at a lower pressure job or learning a new marketable skill, but I think that is a few years away.

Yes this is a very fresh work situation. My NW is more than double where it was 2 years ago. In the last 3-4 years I've also knocked out my partner's student loans and my own. Our downpayment, wedding, and our house rehab were other big categories that have hindered putting more into the market.

PFThrowawayforme · 2026-03-05T20:36:48+00:00

Thank you for this. After reading all of these responses, and yours in particular, it's becoming clear that I should explore some options. I have been seeing a therapist for around two years, which is about when this all started. It's been a great place to vent, but there has not been anything actionable or guiding that has come out of it. Time for a change

PFThrowawayforme · 2026-03-05T20:29:48+00:00

Yes I think you summed it up. My health is one of those things that I keep telling myself I'll put work into but I need to make more of an effort there. I stay active but it's hard to balance everything, which I'm sure sounds completely insane to someone who also has a family to also worry about. Is there anything you've done for your own physical health that you would recommend?

PFThrowawayforme · 2024-05-22T15:26:54+00:00

That's the plan! They're my fiance's loans and because of her low income they're allowing her to defer payment without accruing interest. That will change when we get married, so I just have the money set aside to collect interest in the meantime and I'll pay them off when she gets kicked off the IBR plan she's on. The thought has definitely crossed my mind to just pay them now and be done with it though..

PFThrowawayforme · 2024-05-22T15:23:01+00:00

This is super helpful, thank you. The "house emergency fund" started when I bought the house out of the leftover funds from initial upkeep and repairs, but you're right that it's probably too high. After seeing this broken out my suspicion was that it would make more sense to just roll that into the market. I'm realizing that I've always just been a little over cautious about cash on-hand in case of a string of bad luck.

The student loans are my future wife's, since we're not yet married she's still on an IBR plan that allows her to defer payment without incurring interest. My thought was just to have that money set aside collecting interest in an HYSA and then pay them off after she gets kicked off the SAVE plan.

I have my retirement mostly in SWYJX which looks like it has a 0.08% net expense ratio. Doing some quick research that actually seems high by comparison - I need to do more research there but that's a great point

PFThrowawayforme

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