Reply #8: Two ways - well, maybe three.

[trashcanistanista]

Put off buying a house until you can put a huge down on your home so your payments are small aim for $1,000/mo. house payment. Put maybe 50% down. Get a good used car that's good with gas. With these two needs met at $50K a year you can go out, go on vacation, splurge once, and a while and save money. This is very different than how most people live. One other tip. Never use a credit card. Pay with cash and save up for what you want and buy it when you have the money. Always have an emergency fund of cash so you don't have to rely on credit cards for emergencies. How do you get there? Work a lot while you're young, live cheaply - sacrifice - so that when you are in your thirties and forties and above it is smooth sailing financially.

Right now you should be living in a studio apartment paying low rent and deposit 1/2 of your joint earnngs into a savings account. Start a retirement savings from work and contribute the max.