Welcome to Kiplinger’s My First $1 Million series, in which we hear from people who have made $1 million.
They’re sharing how they did it and what they’re doing with it. This time, we hear from a 45-year-old married mental health professional in social services who lives in Arkansas. She reports that she and her husband have a combined annual salary of $250,000.
See our earlier profiles, including a writer in New England, a literacy interventionist in Colorado, a semiretired entrepreneur in Nashville and an events industry CEO in Northern New Jersey. (See all of the profiles here.)
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Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice – straight to your e-mail.
Each profile features one person or couple, who will always be completely anonymous to readers, answering questions to help our readers learn from their experience.
These features are intended to provide a window into how different people build their savings — they’re not intended to provide financial advice.
To learn what these millionaires have taught us, check out the articles 5 Key Insights We Learned From 50 Millionaires and 5 Things 50 Millionaires Wish They’d Known Before They Retired.
And to hear more about My First $1 Million, you can check out this podcast with bestselling author and tax attorney Toby Mathis:
The Basics
How did you make your first $1 million?
Building a net worth of a million dollars took around 12 years for me and my husband. We got married in 2004. Thanks to scholarships and family help, we were both able to go to college. We both graduated with bachelor’s degrees with no debt.
It was important to me that he eliminate his credit card debt before we got married, which he did. We were dirt poor but made ends meet working minimum-wage jobs.
We met (while we were getting) our master’s degrees and were able to graduate the program without debt again. This was due to my mother paying for my tuition, his grandmother giving him money for a third of his tuition and us paying cash for the remainder.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
When we entered the working world, we had no debt but quickly dove in. That’s what we had been told adults did. I wish I wouldn’t have listened.
We both got jobs that paid $50,000 each. We bought a house with no money down, we financed a car and a motorcycle and decided to have a baby.
I didn’t like the state of our financial health, so I educated myself with lots of YouTube videos, blogs and articles. I had a basic understanding of finances but didn’t have a good strategy.
Once I figured out how debt held us back and investment could push us forward, we paid off the car, sold the motorcycle, refinanced the house and eventually sold one to buy another.
Buying houses helped build the first million, but we really did it by investing in our company’s 401(k), opening and investing in an IRA and steadily saving.
We went from a negative $150,000 net worth in 2008 to a million dollars in 2020.
What are you doing with the money?
Most of our first million is invested in a variety of accounts and investment types. Nothing fancy. Some high-risk, some low-risk, some mutual funds, some bonds.
Our only real estate is our home.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
When we hit the million-dollar mark, we didn’t do anything fun. I simply just told him with a big grin, and we moved on.
The Fun Stuff
Did you do anything to celebrate?
Not a thing! It was nice to know we did it. Then it was on to the next million.
What is the best part of making $1 million?
Peace of mind.
Did your life change?
Yes. It freed us to make some decisions that were important to us. I was able to drop down to part-time work to spend time with our three children while they were small.
I don’t remember much about that time, but I’m glad I did it. We have flexibility at work. We can choose if we wish to continue, and that makes it easier to do so.
Does anyone know you’re a millionaire?
I disclosed our financial standing to others. I don’t think I will continue doing that. I told my work supervisor so they could understand my motivation for work — I’m not motivated by needing a paycheck, and that’s nice. I thought it was important to tell them so they could trust my motivation for helping others.
It changed things when I didn’t have to go to work. Now I choose to go to work, and that makes it easier to handle the stress.
My husband feels the same. We keep showing up — and will as long as it suits us. If we suddenly lose our jobs, we would be OK. There’s peace in that and peace in having confidence in the choices we make.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
I have disclosed it to a sibling, but I think this was a mistake. I won’t continue to share growth or changes. My hope is they will assume it’s gone badly.
I have told one parent, and they are able to celebrate crossing milestones with me without it complicating the relationship.
I have avoided disclosing to the other parent because they seem to have a different view about money. My intuition says it would be unhelpful to share what we have.
My husband hasn’t told anyone. He views money differently than I do. He wants to have enough to enjoy hobbies, have a nice home, travel, and that’s about it. He isn’t driven by ensuring security like I am. It works out well for us.
Any plans to retire early?
We would like to retire early, I suppose. I’m not sure what life will look like then, so I don’t put much dreaming toward those years.
I would like to work less if and when my children have children.
We would like to travel more and work less.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Retirement isn’t the goal. Living well and by our values is the goal. Having money makes that possible.
Looking Back
Anything you would do differently?
I don’t think we would have done anything differently. However, I wish there had been better financial literacy in my high school and college.
I didn’t have any money to invest, but I wish I’d understood the dramatic difference time can make when investing. No one stressed that to me when I was turning 18.
The internet was just getting going at that age, so the wealth of information out there was quite limited.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
The same advice I would give to others (see below). Invest early, even if it’s just $10 a pay period.
Saving is a practice, and developing that habit is best if it’s done early.
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Avoid paying interest so you can earn interest.
Look for a good deal on big assets.
Did you read any books that helped you on your journey?
I’ve read a few. Most are pop hits:
Did you work with a financial adviser?
I hired a financial adviser after we crossed the million-dollar mark. The first person we hired was a nice person but wasn’t really available. It was fine, but then he passed away.
The firm handed me over to another person. They notified me by letter, and the new person didn’t take the time to call and get acquainted with me.
I took that opportunity to exit that service. We moved over to Wells Fargo. Our adviser there is approachable and kind.
He also keeps our earnings in a good place. I have no complaints. He helps with a longer-term strategy, which I like.
Did anyone help you early on?
My mother told me not to buy anything if I didn’t have the money for it. That stuck with me like nothing else. So much so, I wish I would have had cash to pay for the house. Maybe someday we will get to that point.
Looking Ahead
Plans for your next $1 million?
We are almost there. We have been building the second million the same way we reached the first million. If our net worth grows like it has been, we will have accomplished the second million in about six years after getting to $1 million.
I have enjoyed watching the money work and grow.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
The news, friends and family are often naysayers, talking about how it’s all going to hell. I haven’t had that experience.
The plan once we get there is to keep it growing. We will have more money than we will know what to do with, and that’s a nice feeling.
Of course, we understand it could all go away, but if it does for us, then it will for everybody else. There’s peace in that, too. At least we will all be miserable and stressed together.
Any advice for others trying to make their first $1 million?
Invest early! Don’t wait. Put saving first like a bill you pay. Make it a priority. Know what your spouse/partner believes about money.
I lucked out with my husband. He and I have shared goals and values surrounding money, so planning is easy. He trusts my decision-making and goes along with strategies I present.
We fight, but it’s not about money. We have enough that we both do what we like.
Invest in any employer plan if you can. We take full advantage of employer matches, and that has given us a healthy boost.
I’ve shared with my coworkers often that they shouldn’t leave that money on the table. Get the match. It’s an instant return on investment, often at 100%.
I would also share that we avoided debt like the plague. You won’t have money to invest that will earn you money if you are paying all your money to someone else for the privilege of borrowing their money. For example:
We bought into the sales pitch of the local car salesman peddling the idea that having a car payment was beneficial. That lasted about six months, and we got over it. The interest on auto loans butchers any chance of having enough money to invest.
We have paid cash for every car we’ve owned after that first one. We never buy new, always used.
We were fortunate enough to take advantage of some gains through homebuying. Our first home was financed at 9%. We pitched that as soon as we could and refinanced for 6%. That was still too high, so we sold the house and bought an older home with more square footage.
I kept my eye out for a house and saw one on social media. The owner had died, and their family was looking to finalize the estate, so we made an offer at about 20% lower than market price. Thankfully, they accepted the offer.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
We paid the house off within three years. No house payment was amazing, and we hope to be there again soon.
That allowed us to build up $100,000 to put down on our next home.
We sold our home during COVID. That was a fun time to be in the housing market. We sold it, making around $20,000 on the sale.
We stumbled into another great homebuying opportunity. We had enough to make a 20% down payment, so we avoided some costs on a mortgage.
The house was also undervalued, so we gained $60,000 at purchase. That was nice.
We got an interest rate of 3%. We put as much as we can on the house. Saving is the priority, but the house is second. We have a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage.
We should have it paid in half that time.
We avoid credit cards. People tell us that they don’t know how we do it. I find them to be tedious. I’ve had them but hate the idea of having any kind of a balance.
I’d rather just pay for what I need, and the credit card companies can keep their rewards.
We’ve tried two in the last decade, and both were compromised. I’d rather not fool with it.
Do you have an estate plan?
We do have an estate plan. We each have a will and powers of attorney in place.
We chose a will because we have three minor children who we want to be taken care of should we die unexpectedly.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
We also have term life insurance. If one of us dies within the policy time frame, the other will get a healthy little boost. If we both die, then our children will each inherit about a million each.
We have a plan in place for our children should that happen.
Choosing a will was mostly for the purpose of providing direction to the adults in their life.
We chose power of attorney for healthcare decisions and for each other. The healthcare POA was to have something in place in case the worst happened and we needed to make healthcare decisions for the other.
The power of attorney over the rest was for ease. We wanted to be able to conduct business for the other if we needed to.
What do you wish you’d known …
When you first started saving? I wish I had known about the power of compound interest.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
When you first started investing? I’ve invested for as long as I’ve had the money to do so. I haven’t faced a regret just yet. Let’s hope that continues.
When you first started working with a financial professional? Our net worth has grown with a financial adviser. I don’t know what it would be like without one and find it helpful to have someone who can sort through financial decisions with us.
What do you wish you knew now about being retired?
That question always itches in the back of mind. What am I missing, and what wisdom do retired people have for me? I value learning from the people who’ve done and can let me in on the strategies they’ve used.
If you have made $1 million or more and would like to be anonymously featured in a future My First $1 Million profile, please fill out and submit this Google Form or send an email to [email protected] to receive the questions. We welcome all stories that add up to $1 million or more in your accounts, although we will use discretion in which stories we choose to publish, to ensure we share a diversity of experiences. We also might want to verify that you really do have $1 million. Your answers may be edited for clarity.
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