I had dinner with my mom friends last Wednesday, and at some point in the evening, the conversation turned to the topic of saving for the future versus spending money right now. We’re all lucky enough to have some disposable income to spend on things like sleepaway camp for our kids, home renovations, and family vacations. (Though I’ll add not one of us is doing all of these things in one summer. None of us have that much money!)
We’re also all at the age that our parents are settling into retirement, and we’re seeing firsthand what it means to be spending down the savings that took decades of hard work (and good luck) to acquire. The truth is, it’s complicated! When we swap stories of our parents’ experiences, it strikes me that retirement is not exactly the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow that glossy magazines would have you believe. If you want to travel and pursue hobbies, don’t delay! As The Specials sing in their 1980 cover of a ’40s classic, “Enjoy yourself. It’s later than you think.”
I’m not the first to have this revelation, of course. And today’s Home Economics writer shares her own experience of trying to balance saving for the future versus living in the moment. Earlier this year, her mom died after a long illness, and she inherited over $800,000. At 40, that’s probably not enough that she can retire and never work again. But it’s still life-changing money, and it might be sufficient savings that she can significantly cut back her workload and take some time to figure out where to go from here. She’s trying to figure it all out in the fog of grief, and it can’t be easy.
This is our first edition of Home Economics from someone based outside the U.S. Our writer is a U.S. citizen who lives in a city in western Europe. She asked us not to identify the exact city as an additional measure of protection of her identity.
Please note, I left her expenses in euros. As of writing, the conversion rate is USD $1 = €0.89. (So if her mortgage is €1,600, that’s around $1,867 USD.)
We’re always looking for new editions of Home Economics and we’re hoping to publish editions from all 50 states by the end of the year. That means we need your help! If you’re based in South Carolina, Mississippi, or Nebraska, please consider submitting your story!
And now on to today’s Home Ec!
Age: 40
Location: Europe
Relationship status: Living with my long-term partner of almost seven years
Age of partner: 34
About me: I’m just a regular gal living my best life in Europe. Originally from New York, I moved here in 2019 to start over after getting divorced in my early 30s. I make a living as a freelancer, and on the side, I write and edit a Substack magazine. My mom died in January after living with a terminal illness for almost five years, so the experience of watching the disease steal her away and being a long-distance caretaker has dramatically changed my relationship to work and money, and I’m in the midst of reevaluating my priorities.
Income:
- Your job title/salary: Freelance content marketer, writer, and strategist, currently on track to earn €22,300 this year. I drastically reduced my workload after my mom died. Previously, I was making over €100,000 gross.
- Partner’s job title/salary: Software engineer. We keep our finances separate.
- Your monthly take-home pay (paycheck amount after taxes and other deductions): I don’t foresee paying a lot of income tax in 2026, at least not on my relatively low freelance income because anything I owe will likely be offset by self-employed and other tax credits. Taxes owed for the capital gains on my assets might be a different story. I’m aiming to live off of my assets and inheritance for a bit, but I’m still crunching the numbers.
- Additional income: I have a rental property in New York City, and until recently, I had long-term tenants. But with co-op fees, assessments, etc., I never profited—I'm actually at a small deficit each year. This spring, the couple who had been renting the co-op from me for seven years decided to move out, so I put it on the market just a few days ago. The only other additional monthly income would be from my three paid Substack subscribers, so not much. Occasionally, I submit essays to literary publications (and occasionally they’re accepted), but they don’t pay much. It’s around $25 to $50 per piece.
- Total monthly income: €1,910 from my part-time freelance gigs.
