Why is financial stability so hard to obtain??

1. 59

   kevin-adolfposted 13 years ago

   Why is financial stability so hard to obtain??

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2. 70

   dashingscorpioposted 13 years ago

   1. There is no such thing as job stability anymore.
   Long gone are the days where a person could get a job with a company hold onto it for 30-30 years getting an annual raise of 3-5% like clock work. In the "golden era" a person pretty much knew how much they would earn each year and what they could expect for retirement. It made it easier to plan for the future. Once "job security" was removed it became difficult to plan too far ahead. We "out sourced" our long-term future for short term profits.
   
   2. Unstable Investment & Real Estate Markets
   
   There was a time a person could put their money in a moderate risk mutual fund or 401k and never bother looking at it until it was to time to retire. They knew each year they were getting anywhere from 8-10% annual growth on their investments. Home owners  looked at their home like a "nest egg" investment that was likely to double or tripple in value by the time they retired. Today many home owners are "under water", being foreclosed on, or simply walking away from a "bad investment". Interest rates remain low which means the banks aren't paying hardly anything to people with money in CDs and pass book savings accounts.
   
   3. Taxes continue to rise in one form or another along with cost of living.
   
   Even when the Feds cut income taxes the states and local taxes rise. Property taxes have continued to rise inspite of the fact that property values have gone down. Most major cities are crying broke. They're looking for more ways to extract money from their citizens (red light traffic cameras for "right turns"), traffic speeding cameras, increase in sales taxes, closing loop holes for deductions. There was a time in the 70s and earlier where interest off of credit cards and car loans were tax deductiable. Closing loop holes is the same as raising taxes!
   Food, Gas, Utilities, college tuitons, day care, and health care cost rise quicker than payroll raises. And God help you if you marry the wrong person! A spender and a saver will never live happily ever after. Divorce can be costly depending on which side of the fense you are on. Child support, alimony, and providing for kids period could put a dent in your pocketbook. According to a recent article published it's estimatted it takes about $350k to raise one child today from birth to age 18!
   
   Anyone who is not constantly looking for ways to increase their wealth or keeping a close eye on their investments with back up plans to move them as the market dictates is probably losing ground. Becoming rich is no longer the "American Dream", it's a requirement! The middle class is dying.
   There are only two groups of people left.
   Those who get what they want and those who take what they can get.
   Your mindset should be "I am CEO & President of Me, Inc." (even if you have a job). Always be planning and looking ahead because you are on your own. That's the world we live in today!

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3. 0

   Poetic Foolposted 13 years ago

   My guess is because it takes self-discipline and the ability to delay gratification, both things in short supply in many people today.  I know people with low incomes that live quite comfortably and I know wealthy people who are constantly worried about paying their bills this month.
   
   Financially stable people invariably demonstrate financial discipline by living within their means and are able to wait (read: save) to buy things they want or need rather than accrue debt to get it now.  The latter is also known as delayed gratification.

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