年薪4万的美国人如何实现买房梦

Matt Filippini has worked at two technology startups since graduating from college, is an avid skier and wants to buy a house soon.

菲利皮尼(Matt Filippini)大学毕业后曾在两家科技初创企业工作过，他酷爱滑雪，想尽快买一个房子。

The 27-year-old works in business development at app developer Ibotta Inc. in Denver, where he makes $40,000 a year. He also has an equity stake in the company, so he stands to reap financial rewards if it gets sold or goes public.

这名27岁的年轻人在丹佛(Denver)的应用程序开发公司Ibotta Inc.做业务开发工作，每年赚4万美元。他还拥有这家公司的股份，因此如果这家公司最后卖出去或上市的话，他还能获得财务回报。

Every month, he automatically transfers $800 from his checking account into his savings account, where he has about $38,000, some of which he plans to use for a down payment on a house. He also keeps at least $3,500 in his checking account.

每个月，他都会自动将800美元从自己的支票账户转到储蓄账户中去，他的储蓄账户中大约有3.8万美元，他打算用其中的一部分来支付房子的首付款。他还在自己的支票账户中保留至少3,500美元。

Mr. Filippini's big expenses include the $2,000 to $3,000 he spends annually on skiing, and the additional $900 to $1,000 he spent this year on flights, hotels and gifts associated with going to friends' weddings. But he pays off his credit-card balance every month and he tries to avoid using his car by commuting to work on his bike as often as he can.

菲利皮尼的大项支出包括每年花在滑雪上的2,000到3,000美元，还有今年在机票、酒店以及朋友结婚送礼上的花费900到1,000美元。不过他每月都会结清信用卡借款，而且尽量不驾驶自己的汽车，尽可能经常地骑自行车上下班。

Using , Mr. Filippini sets a budget for his expenses and likes how the site notifies him whenever he's getting close to his limit or has gone over it and spent too much.

菲利皮尼利用为自己的支出做了个预算，他每次花钱接近预算限额或是花得太多超过限额，这个网站都会提醒他，他喜欢这一点。

He pays $1,400 a month for his apartment, which he shares with a friend, but is hoping to buy a two- to three-bedroom house next year in the $300,000 to $400,000 range. He says he is 'sick' of throwing away money on rent.

他每月支付1,400美元的房租，公寓是他和一个朋友合租的，不过他希望明年能买一个两居室或三居室的房子，价格在30万到40万美元之间。他说，把钱浪费在房租上，这样他感到厌烦。

The house is 'not only a financial goal but a lifelong goal,' he says. 'I want to take the next steps in being a homeowner and having those responsibilities.'

他说，房子不仅仅是个财务目标，也是个一生的目标，我希望一步一步成为一名房主，然后承担随之而来的责任。

In the next five to 10 years, he also wants to start his own business.

在接下来的5到10年里，他还想要自己创业。

But Mr. Filippini hasn't started saving for retirement yet because he doesn't feel his income is high enough. 'Right now, I live day to day,' he says.

不过菲利皮尼还没有开始为退休存钱，因为他觉得自己的收入还不够高。他说，现在我只能过一天算一天。

Advice From the Pro: Mr. Filippini should rethink whether he can afford a house next year because if he buys a home in the price range he's targeting, the mortgage payment could take up too much of his monthly budget, says Sal Miceli, an independent fee-only financial planner in Littleton, Colo.

专业人士的建议：米塞利(Sal Miceli)说，如果菲利皮尼想买一个目标价位的房子的话，他应该重新考虑一下明年是否能买得起，因为抵押贷款将过多地占据他的每月预算。米塞利是科罗拉多州利特尔顿(Littleton)一名只收取咨询费的独立财务策划师。

One option would be to purchase a house in the $250,000 range and then rent out a room to a friend for $1,000 a month, which would cover much of the mortgage payment.

一个选择是，买一个价位在25万美元的房子，然后以每月1,000美元的租金把其中一间卧室租给朋友，这就够支付相当一部分抵押贷款了。

If Mr. Filippini wants flexibility to move to a different city in future years, he should keep renting, Mr. Miceli says. Another advantage to waiting: In the future, he might have a friend or partner willing to go in with him on the house, which would make the purchase more financially prudent.

米塞利说，如果菲利皮尼想保留一定灵活性，以便在未来几年搬到另一个城市去住，那他就应该继续租房住。暂时不买房的另外一个好处是：未来他可能有一个朋友或伴侣愿意跟他一起合力买房，这样会使买房在财务上更显审慎。

Mr. Miceli likes how Mr. Filippini is debt free, pays off his credit card every month and is ahead of his peers in that he carefully monitors his spending and has a sizable amount of savings.

菲利皮尼没有债务，每月都能还清信用卡借款，而且还领先自己同龄人一步，细心监督自己的支出情况，并且有数目可观的存款，米塞利认为这样很好。

If he uses some of his savings for a down payment, he should plan to replenish the account.

如果他利用部分存款来支付首付款，那么他就应该计划重新补足这部分钱。

Mr. Miceli also praises the fact that Mr. Filippini has an equity stake in his employer, saying: 'If he's lucky, that will work out . . . I think it's a good idea to do something like that' at his age.

菲利皮尼还拥有他所在公司的股份，这一事实也得到了米塞利的称赞，他说，如果他幸运的话，这会有一个好结果；我认为在他这个年纪做这样的事是个好主意。

Mr. Filippini should start a regular individual retirement account or Roth IRA as soon as possible to take maximum advantage of compounding, Mr. Miceli says. He should put 10% of his annual income into such an account and try to get a match from his employer.

米塞利说，菲利皮尼应尽快开始定期向自己的个人退休账户或“罗斯个人退休账户”(Roth IRA)存款，以最大限度地让复利为自己所用。他应该吧年收入的10%存入这样的账户中，并尽量让自己的公司也向该账户支付相应数额。

To afford those retirement contributions, Mr. Filippini can cut in half to $400 the amount he puts in his savings account every month, which isn't earning much interest. He also should use low-cost index-type funds, and since he's young, be fairly aggressive in his investing style: 90% in stocks and 10% in bonds, Mr. Miceli says.

为了向退休账户付款，菲利皮尼可以将每月储蓄的数额降低一半，至400美元，储蓄账户赚不了多少利息。米塞利说，他还应该利用低费用指数基金，因为他还年轻，在投资风格方面可以比较激进：90%股票加10%债券。