I make over $300,000 a year in San Francisco and still don’t own a car, couch, or TV.

This essay is based on a conversation with Raymond Zeng, 24, a meta software engineer living in the San Francisco Bay Area. Edited for length and clarity.

Many friends have told me that my living situation is very “Spartan”. I don’t have a car, a sofa, or a TV.

For me, that lifestyle is intentional. I could afford more furniture if I wanted and expand my lifestyle to be more extravagant.

I work as a software engineer at Meta and my annual salary is $306,500. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, but moved here about 8 months ago after spending 2 years in Dallas.

I think the key to personal finance is choosing where to spend your money and where not to spend it.

Right now, I’d rather prioritize investments, travel, and hobbies than fill up my apartment with things I don’t use often or experiences that don’t lead to a fulfilling life.

On average, their monthly salary, excluding bonuses and stock options, is between $7,000 and $8,000, representing about 60% of their total compensation. My take-home pay is typically about $4,000 a month before taxes and retirement. Depending on the month, you can save anywhere from $5,000 to $20,000.

My goal is to retire around age 30, but there are a lot of moving parts when it comes to retirement planning.

How to live a minimalist life to cut costs

Courtesy of Raymond Zen

The rent for my one-bedroom apartment is $2,600 a month, which I think is pretty cheap in this area. Similar apartments near my office rent between $3,500 and $3,700 per month. We also chose this location because it’s a 5-minute walk from the Bay Area Rapid Transit train station, which is filled with cafes, grocery stores, and boba shops.

I live a very minimalist life in terms of design. My living room doubles as my work and hobby space, and I don’t really watch TV, so I only use my computer instead of owning a TV. Also, since I don’t entertain many people, I’ve never felt pressured to furnish my apartment with anything other than the basics.

My bedroom setup is similarly simple. A file cabinet that doubles as a bed, blanket, pillow, and nightstand. But one thing I splurged on was a $400 bidet that I felt was a worthy quality of life upgrade.

I live without a car, so transportation costs are very low. Most months I spend very little on transportation, but sometimes I spend about $30 on rideshares and public transportation. Otherwise, walk or use the company’s shuttle service.

I’m also trying to cut down on food expenses. I spend about $300 a month on groceries and budget another $75 for eating out, but my company subsidizes breakfast and lunch, so I usually don’t even reach that limit.

Most weekends, I spend time in VR with friends who live far away and don’t get to see each other regularly. We meet in person once every few months. I don’t go to bars, restaurants, or other social outings as often as I used to, so in a way, it’s a serendipitous money saver.

What I actually spend my money on

I spend about $400 to $500 a month on travel and hobbies, including about $1,000 a year in annual credit card fees. I use points and travel rewards to offset the cost of my flight. Also, since my day-to-day expenses other than rent are relatively small, I’m more focused on maximizing my sign-up bonus than earning points on day-to-day spending.

The strategy worked. Last year, I used points to book business class flights for my dad and I from Los Angeles to Singapore, saving us over $5,000 in airfare.

A lot of my discretionary spending also goes to the furry community where I design characters, commission artwork, and attend conventions with the same friends I spent time with in VR. This community is centered around anthropomorphic personas that people identify with and use as creative avatars. For me, it’s an outlet for self-expression that’s hard to find in my day job in the tech industry.

She also saves money to buy custom onesies, which can cost up to $7,000 depending on the manufacturer.

Another luxury I prioritize is living alone. I know I could save more money if I had a roommate, but having my own space is worth the trade-off for me.

How to track and invest your money

You can save between $5,000 and $20,000 a month, depending on stock vesting, bonuses, and retirement benefits.

Every year, I max out my 401(k), Roth IRA, and health savings account and put additional money into a brokerage account. Currently, I have about 80% invested in the US stock market and 20% overseas.

I also track everything closely. Every month, I create a new version of a budget spreadsheet that I designed myself. I don’t use templates because I prefer a DIY system where I can add or remove categories depending on what I need to track.

I also keep large spreadsheets dedicated to taxes, salary projections, and investment growth. Some sheets estimate where I will be financially in the future depending on my investment returns and contribution rates.

Right now, if everything goes according to plan, I expect to have over $2 million invested by the time I’m 30. By age 40, I predict that amount could grow to more than $7 million, but there’s still a lot of moving parts when it comes to retirement planning and market performance.

I also try to stay informed and openly seek feedback on my plans, actively participating in several Reddit and Discord communities, and sharing my numbers and plans on my YouTube channel.

One of the biggest ideas I got from the FIRE community is to build the life you want and save for it. But I’m flexible. As my circumstances change, so do my retirement plans.