Hello all,
I’m currently 28M in HCOL area working in aesthetic sales. My base is 60k with quarterly bonuses up to 10-15k. I started in June 2025 and since that time I’ve hit all of my eligible bonuses and have made around 100k in that 1 year time frame.
When I first started in June 2025 I was 7k in debt to my parents. Here are my monthly expenses and current saved amounts:
15k Robinhood VOO and BTC
7k 401k
2k HYSA
5k checking
Monthly expenses:
500 rent
60 phone
75 student loans (5k total)
500-1k in food/going out (I usually pay for me and my girlfriend)
Currently not paying for a car, carpooling with my girlfriend. My 2 week check is usually 1.7k but I get my quarterly bonuses which are around 6-9k after taxes. I’m trying to figure out how I’m doing based on the fact that my quarterly isn’t predictable. Before starting my job in June 2025 I had nearly 0 in savings so the 401k and Robinhood and all is all from this past year.
28, need input on my situation!
byu/Ramo029 inpersonalfinance
Posted by Ramo029
3 Comments
Honestly you’re in a pretty solid spot for going from almost no savings to that much invested in about a year. I’d probably focus on building the HYSA higher before adding more BTC, just so you have a stronger cash buffer if bonuses ever slow down.
I’d open a Roth and fund that fully before your other investments except for employwe match in your 401k. You’re early in your career so your tax bracket is going to be the lowest it ever will and those contributions are very time limited. But your savings are doing great!
Honestly, for going from basically zero savings in mid-2025 to:
* 15k invested,
* 7k in a 401k,
* cash in checking/HYSA,
* debt mostly cleaned up,
…you are doing very well.
A lot of people at 28 making ~100k in a HCOL area are quietly drowning in car payments, credit card debt, lifestyle creep, and expensive apartments. Your low fixed expenses are doing an enormous amount of heavy lifting right now.
The biggest thing I would focus on is structure and consistency before lifestyle inflation catches up to your income.
A few thoughts:
* Your HYSA is probably too low relative to your income volatility. I would personally build that higher before aggressively adding more BTC exposure.
* The quarterly bonuses are powerful, but mentally I would treat them as “wealth building money,” not normal income.
* Keep hammering the 401k while your expenses are still unusually low.
* The fact you are avoiding a car payment right now is honestly a huge financial advantage.
And this is important: do not underestimate how much progress you made in one year. Going from negative net worth to investing consistently is one of the hardest phases financially because you are building habits and momentum at the same time.
The one thing I would watch carefully is lifestyle drift. Aesthetics sales can create a lot of pressure to “look successful,” and people in commission-heavy environments sometimes scale spending upward every time income rises.
Right now your financial engine is actually pretty strong because your overhead is low. Protect that as long as possible.