Personal Financial Timeline

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    Youth (1-17)

  • SAT

    $60 per test and $450 for an SAT Tutor. This is a short-term financial goal and will require saving for about two months to earn enough money. This is an essential cost and important milestone as a high SAT score is required to get into Barnard.
  • Buy First Car

    Buy First Car
    First car is usually old and not very expensive ($5,000).
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    Young Adult (18-24)

  • College

    College
    $65,000 X 4 Years = $260,000 before financial aid and scholarships
    :(. This is definitely a long-term goal as it will require many years of student loans to pay off. However, it is definitely worth it as a good college degree from a prestigious college lays the groundwork for a good career.
  • Rent 1st Apartment

    $1,500 rent per month for a studio in NYC.
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    Adult (25-40)

  • Switch to my own cell phone plan

    Around $150 per month. This will be budgeted out of my weekly/biweekly salary. This expense will be planned as a short-term goal.
  • Wedding

    Wedding
    Estimated cost of wedding is $30,000. I could save $6,000 for 5 years. This is a medium length goal and an important milestone as it marks the beginning of a new life with someone and the start of a new family.
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    Middle Age (41-64)

  • Move to bigger house

    Move to bigger house
    A nice size family house with 4 bedroom and 2.5 bathrooms costs around $500,000. This is a long-term goal and is an important milestone as it'll be a house for the family to live in and will finally be the size that I would want.
  • Children's College Fund

    As a long-term goal, I plan to put $1,000 or so into a college fund for each child starting when they are born. If other investment options are available, like pre-paid, I will probably plan to invest in them.
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    Senior (65+)

  • Retirement

    I should already have money saved through a retirement plan, investments, and savings.
  • Money to travel in retirement

    Money to travel in retirement
    As a long-term goal I will have a separate savings account for travel money for after I retire.