According to this article from msnbc.com Gallup found that the median amount of savings, real estate holdings and other investments Americans would want to have in the bank in order to feel rich was $1 million.
I thought this was an interesting tidbit, since Sam, Inc. has been over the $1 million mark for six months running. And guess what, I don't feel rich and Mr. Sam's favorite saying is "we must be the poorest rich people ever."
Mr. Sam's saying comes from the fact that we restrict how much we can spend via our allowance system and our rules. So its hard to feel rich when you have to pay attention to how much you are spending otherwise you'll run out of funds. I think I probably feel the same way, you are "rich" when you can spend without thinking or without care. We, on the other hand, have gotten to this point only because we think about our day to day spending every day (just about).
I also think that your target income or target net worth is driven by your peers, and by what you see in your circle of reference. I blogged about this back in December when I was at a "ladies who lunch" charity event on Palm Beach. A person's normal changes over time. So while I am very happy that we have reached the $1 million mark, and recognize the hard work and discipline it took to get to this point, I don't feel rich at all.
What say you? What is your target number for income and net worth in order to feel rich?
I have heard other folks echo the sentiments that Mr. Sam had to say about feeling like the poorest millionaire.
ReplyDeleteI feel that it is important to focus on a rich life and to enjoy rich experiences instead of focusing on becoming rich. I agree that wealthiness/richness is in the eye of the beholder. I think, I anticipate, that I will probably never be rich; however, my goal is to focus on being comfortable.
My continued focus is to acquire assets that cover my day to day expenses and I feel that my goal of being comfortable will be realized when I can live X days into the future with out a paycheck . . .
By the way; I found this article on Mint.com that I thought might relate to your blog post: http://www.mint.com/blog/how-to/the-overhang-theory-how-to-live-below-your-means-062012/
Keep making great things happen,
For a variety of reasons, I know that I will never acquire enough money to feel rich. I'll feel some measure of satisfaction when I get to the $500K mark ... more challenging though as a single person (no economies of scale) with a moderate income (less leftover after meeting minimum quality of life standards).
ReplyDeleteI am very impressed by your yearly financial goals and how close you reach them. But I'm wondering, while you post yearly goals, what is the end point, the goal so to speak. (have all mortages paid off, net worth of x?). do you have a plan for retirement or will you work until regular retirment age? Admittedly I have more modest goals, but if I knew I had a net worth of 1 mill, I don't think I could be as driven as you as far as savings. Partgypsy.
ReplyDeletePartyGypsy, Very good question, I can tell you that we don't really have an end goal because we find it difficult to formulate one (have you ever run one of those this is what you need in retirement calculators).
ReplyDeleteAs far as mid-term goals, we do want to pay off our primary mortgage as that will give us more flexibility regarding insurance which is quite expensive in Florida. But since we refinanced our primary home mortgage to a low 2.75% interest rate it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to push that in a super rapid fashion.
We have land on which we want to build our retirement/rental home. The goal is to sell off our rental properties here in Florida and turn that money into a big enough down payment on the construction. But with the real estate market so soft in Florida we have pushed that goal off.
I'll admit we are aggressive with our savings goals and I do find it hard to balance current fun with future peace of mind.