BROADCASTS.com

#139: Five years ago, at age 29, Kim E. started her first professional, salaried full-time job, working as a firefighter for the City of Austin, Texas. She received a starting salary of $42,000.\n Today, five years later, she has saved: - one year's salary ($40,000) in an emergency fund - one year's salary ($42,000) in a workplace retirement fund - more than half a year's salary ($27,500) in a Roth IRA\n She also paid off her student loans ($10,000), paid off her car loan (roughly around $16,000-ish), and contributed to an H.S.A. account ($6,000, half of which came from an employer match.) Oh yeah, and she also bought and renovated a rental property.\n Translation? Kim has saved (or repaid debt of) $141,500 within five years, as a firefighter with a starting salary of $42,000, excluding the additional money she's invested into her rental.\n **She's saved more than 3x her starting salary, within her first five years on the job.**\n And she's done this while earning a middle-class public service salary in an expensive city.\n Wowza.\n How is Kim saving half of her firefighter salary? And before she became a firefighter, what other frugal tactics did she develop? How did she put herself through four years of college with less than $10,000 in debt? How did she travel before college, when she used to earn $10 per hour? Where does her resourcefulness and motivation come from? And what wisdom can she share with others?\n Find out in today's episode.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices