InkBlog

Our experts answer readers' investing questions and write unbiased product reviews (here's how we assess investing products). Paid non-client promotion: In some cases, we receive a commission from our partners. Our opinions are always our own.

• I wanted to save more for retirement but needed $3,000 to invest in my chosen index fund, VTSAX.
• To save that money in two months, I started by selling items online and looking for windfalls.
• I also temporarily paused saving to my sinking funds and cut back on some expenses.

Like most hardworking adults, having a plan for retirement is important to me. A few years ago,  I read a book titled "The Simple Path to Wealth" and it changed my entire mindset about financial independence.

Most importantly, this book helped give me clarity on how I wanted to invest and provided me with specific options to put my plan into motion. At its core, "The Simple Path to Wealth," is a straightforward guide to managing your money wisely and investing in a wide range of low-cost index funds consistently (and sometimes even automatically) over time.

After a lot of thought and research, I decided to open an investment account and put my money into VTSAX, which is the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund. This fund has been around since 1992 and it currently requires a minimum investment of $3,000. 

Setting aside an extra $3,000 to invest in VTSAX required some sacrifice and creativity on my part, but I was able to come up with this money in just two months using three strategies.

1. I sold stuff online

Whenever I need extra money super quickly, I often turn to selling used items online. It's so easy, and even though we don't keep a lot of stuff, there is always something that we're not using that someone else will buy. To stay focused, I set an initial goal to sell $500 worth of items from our home. 

Then, it was just a matter of going through our home and storage to find suitable things to sell. I often underestimate what people will buy and the saying "one person's trash is another person's treasure" could not be more true. I sold a 5 x 7 rug I got from Wayfair for $50. 

I also sold a lot of my son's shoes since he's going through a major growth spurt right now and has only been able to get wear out of some shoes for less than a year. We sold the gym shoes for $20 to $25 per pair.

I've sold everything from old computers and cell phones to home decor, clothing, and furniture in the past. My favorite places to sell locally are Facebook Marketplace and Offer Up. 

2. I saved my windfalls

Windfalls are basically extra money, but I rarely ever just spend the unexpected cash without a strategy. Once I decided I wanted to open a brokerage account, I kept an eye out for windfalls and even tried my best to create some extra cash flow so I could save more. 

As a freelancer, sometimes my clients offer me bonuses or the opportunity to earn a bonus. I took one of my clients up on this and was able to earn a $1,000 bonus for creating some extra content. 

I also took advantage of smaller windfalls, like the reduced insurance premiums we got for downsizing from two vehicles to one. We sold my husband's car with very high miles on it for $500 (since he wasn't really driving it) and were able to save $100 on car insurance each month, so this money went straight to savings, too. 

Wealthfront is one of the best robo-advisor investing options for low-cost automated or self-managed portfolios. Read our Wealthfront investing review.

3. I hustled with laser-like focus and temporarily scaled back my spending

One of the biggest things that helped me save $3,000 for the VTSAX in such a short amount of time was my motivation and laser-like focus. I really wanted to meet this goal quickly while my excitement was still high, so I prioritized it and gave up other things temporarily. This means not setting money aside for my sinking funds for a month. I normally put a fixed amount each month into high-yield savings for planned future expenses, including:

• Christmas: $145
• Medical expenses: $83
• Car repairs and maintenance: $100

Forgoing these savings categories for one month allowed me to throw more money toward my investing goal. Plus, it's not going to be hard to catch up my sinking funds' savings in the future. 

The benefit of saving money fast

Ultimately, it was not a matter of if I could save enough to start investing in an index fund through Vanguard, but more how I was going to do it. Two months really flies by, and while $3,000 isn't a small amount to fork over, it was a nice start to help diversify my retirement savings. 

While I do believe it's important to go at your own pace, time can also be one of those sneaky factors that can deter us from continuing to work towards a goal. Opening this account has only motivated me to keep saving and investing in my future.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7o8HSoqWeq6Oeu7S1w56pZ5ufonyxsdGspqeZnGKzqrrAp5qeZ6Opv6LAxKCgnqtdqK63sYytn6ito5a7pb%2BMn5isrF2eu7ex0q2gp59dZ31zfYxt