Personal Finance News Tuesday 4/23

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

How Extreme Savers Can Retire By 40

By Michael Foster | TheStreet.com 

NEW YORK (MainStreet) —Financial advisers have long recommended saving between 10 and 15% of your income for retirement. For a growing number of people around the world, that just isn't enough.

Instead, these extreme savers have decided to save half or more of their income to get on the fast track to financial independence. While the average American family has a savings account of just $3,800 and a quarter of American families have no savings at all, these men and women have found some key habits to avoid the trap of living paycheck to paycheck and struggling with high credit card debt.

Housing, Transportation Choices Key

While a lot of personal finance gurus focus on things like the "latte factor," extreme savers focus on the big things like housing and transport, says Olivia Campbell, who saves around 75% of her $90,000 salary. "I don't have much interest in cutting down on little expenditures," Campbell says.

"They really don't add up that much, and its often little things like the coffee with a friend that add a lot to your happiness." Instead, Campbell keeps housing and transport costs low.

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So does U.K.-based Chenda Forrest, who credits her housing situation for her 50% savings rate. "I live in a small shared flat close to local amenities, which means I can live without a car," she says. "It seemed such a waste of my working hours to have nothing to show for it. A 50% saving rate always seemed a simple goal to have; whatever I spent I banked."

To read the entire article from Michael Foster | TheStreet.com:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/extreme-savers-retire-40-125900782.html

Inspirational Quotes@Inspire_Us from Twitter:
Most people give up just when they're about to achieve success. They quit on the one yard line. -Ross Perot

Hi my name is Philip J. Miano and I am the founder of PJM Personal Finance and Productivity Coaching specializing in Budgeting, Debt Reduction, Bank Reconciliations, Goal Setting, Time Management, and Organizational skills. Please visit my website: http://pjmcoaching.com.