I’m a 28-year-old doctor from a financially unstable family. I’m a first-generation doctor, and my family cannot support me financially.
I’m considering pursuing a clinical postgraduate medical seat, but the total cost could require an education loan of around ₹70 lakhs. The alternative is to take a government seat in a non-clinical branch with a much lower financial burden.
I’ve already spent a significant amount pursuing medical residency abroad, but things didn’t work out as planned. I want to build a stable career, but I’m worried about taking on such a large debt when I also have family responsibilities.
I would like to understand:
Is a ₹70 lakh education loan financially sensible for a medical PG degree in India?
What would the approximate EMI and total interest be?
How manageable would repayment be during and after residency?
Would it be wiser to avoid the loan and choose a government non-clinical seat?
Has anyone taken a similar loan, and how did it affect their finances and career choices?

My fiance 29M and I 27F plan on getting married next year. Thankfully the wedding is paid for by our families and we do not have any expenses.

Our combined take home is 2L/month. Here is our financial breakdown:

Rent: 0 (own house)
Maintenance: 3k
Domestic help & Cook: 15k
Groceries: 15k
Other Misc Expenses like eating out/fun etc: 25k
Investments: 60k SIP
Send money to parents: 20k
Petrol/Travel: 15k

We have individual heath insurances and FDs for emergency fund. We have our individual family assets which will be passed down to us eventually and are not counting it.

This is a liberal estimate of what our finances will look like post the wedding. Here are a few questions:

1. Where do we stand? Do we have to cut down our lifestyle or are we good?
   
2. How can we improve our finances?
   
3. How to plan for international vacations? Do we start an RD?

I honestly don’t know what I’ve done to my life. I’m struggling with a serious trading addiction, and things have completely gone out of control.

It started with trading losses. Then, to clear smaller loans, I started taking bigger loans. I kept thinking I could somehow recover my losses and get everything back to normal, but I only made things worse. Now I’m sitting with around ₹40 lakh in loans, and I have no idea how to get out of this situation.
I have a job and earn around ₹1.2 lakh per month, but my total EMIs are also around ₹1.2 lakh. Whatever I earn goes towards the loans, and I have nothing left to live on. I genuinely don’t know what to do anymore.

The worst part is that my parents are old and have health problems. I haven’t told them about the full situation because I’m scared of how badly it could affect them. I’m worried that telling them about this huge debt will make their health and our family situation even worse. I feel like I’m dealing with all of this alone, and I don’t know whom to turn to.
I’ve been thinking about switching jobs, moving to a different city, or even shifting my family somewhere else and changing my phone number. I know this won’t make the loans disappear, but I’m honestly scared and don’t know what other options I have.

Even if I try to negotiate settlements with the banks, I don’t know how I’ll arrange the money to pay them. I don’t have enough savings to clear these loans, and I can’t keep paying EMIs like this.

I want to understand what actually happens in a situation like this. If someone changes their phone number, moves to another city, and changes employers, how do banks and recovery agents usually trace them? Can they find your new workplace or address? What legal action can they take if you genuinely cannot afford to pay?

I’m not trying to run away from my responsibilities. I know I’ve made terrible decisions, and I take responsibility for them. I’m just completely lost and trying to figure out what options I have left.

Has anyone here gone through something similar? How did you handle it? Is there any realistic way to get out of this debt when your entire salary goes towards EMIs and you have no savings to fall back on?

Please share your experiences or any practical advice. I’m genuinely struggling right now.

I honestly don’t know how everyone on this sub seems to be earning 6 figures in their 20s 😭

I’m 26M, working as a solo creator/freelancer, earning around ₹45k per month. My girlfriend is 25F, working as a tech analyst at an MNC and earning around ₹44k per month. So our combined monthly income is roughly ₹89k.

We’ve been together since college in 2018 and moved in together in 2022. We’re planning to get married in 2028, and thankfully, our parents will be sponsoring the wedding.

The problem is that we’ve literally never saved a single penny. Whatever we earn just gets spent, and we don’t really know where to start fixing this.

Here’s our current monthly expense breakdown:

Rent: ₹19k
Groceries: ₹15k
Bills and recharges: ₹9k
Support for parents/family: ₹15k
Shopping: ₹5k
EMI: ₹15k

I know we’re not earning badly as a couple, but seeing people our age investing, buying property, and building wealth makes me feel like we’re seriously behind. I want us to build an emergency fund, start investing, and develop better financial habits before we get married. I also work as a freelancer, so having some financial security matters even more to me because my income isn’t always guaranteed.

For those who’ve been in a similar situation:

How much should we realistically aim to save every month?
Which expenses should we cut first without making our lives miserable?
Should we prioritize an emergency fund before starting SIPs?
What practical habits helped you stop living paycheck to paycheck?

Would genuinely appreciate some advice, especially from people who started with little or no savings in their 20s.

I want to get better with money, not just compare salaries with strangers on the internet.

I currently have a monthly income advantage plan from max life, which I started in 2017 with a premium of 55k/Year I have already paid around 4.5lacs and still 3.5lac is pending, Now I have received a call from Max life suggesting me to switch to ULIP and surrender the current MIAP, so they will give me back my 4.5lac with around 24k deduction and take 1lac premium for ULIP and I have to pay the premium for 5 years, The agent also suggested me to put the remaining amount in a FD and benefit the interest, He also claims that I would get a return of around 12% to 16%
Kindly suggest me what do I do? Should I stick with MIAP where still I have to pay 3.5lacs in a duration of 7 years, the plan will mature at 2042 and I would get 20lac Guaranteed or should I go with ULIP, where I dont have to pay anything additional but not sure about the returns.

25 is the age to start earning for the first time. Schools and colleges teach us to earn money or do they? That is debatable.

But they certainly do not teach us to manage money. so it is important to keep the basics right when it comes to money and what is better than learning from others mistakes?

Here are some financial decisions you should avoid at 25.

Not getting insurance: Most people ignore insurance. Despite knowing the financial consequences of a single health issue nearly 60% of indians still have no health insurance at all according to policy. Medical inflation is increasing by 12% to 14% every year.

Ignoring lifestyle inflation: People upgrade their lifestyle Clothes, car, and apartment with every salary increase. It stops them from achieving their goals or accumulating wealth. Instead you can make a budget and divide your money into needs, wants and investments. So nothing takes a backseat.

Learn to use credit card wisely: With their first earnings, people are introduced to credit cards and start using them as a salary. If they miss a bill, high interest rates make it difficult to pay it off. Paying your credit card bills on time keeping your credit utilisation low and borrowing only when necessary can help you build a healthy credit history. A good CIBIL score can make it easier to get loans for major life goals, such as buying a home or a car at better interest rates in the future.

Keep your basics right and apply these learnings to secure your financial future

Hi everyone,

My family has been through a difficult period following my father's passing, and I'm trying to figure out how to put our finances back on track.

We received a lump sum of roughly ₹45–50 lakh through employment-related benefits and insurance. I'm in my mid-20s, have a working sibling, and my mother is financially dependent on us to some extent.

Unfortunately, my father had several outstanding liabilities, including bank loans, credit card dues, borrowings from private lenders, and money owed to relatives. The total situation was complicated, and handling everything while grieving was extremely stressful.

A significant portion of the money went towards repaying relatives who had lent my father substantial amounts. There was considerable pressure from the extended family to clear these dues, and I was worried that delaying repayment would create conflict and put other family members in an uncomfortable position.

At the time, I felt that settling these obligations was the right thing to do for everyone's peace of mind. In hindsight, though, I'm not sure I made the best financial decision. Some of that money could have remained invested to secure my mother's future, especially since my sibling and I are earning and can manage our own expenses.

I also cleared a secured loan against our family home because I was concerned about the consequences of defaulting and wanted to ensure that the property-related paperwork was no longer an issue.

On top of everything, I had taken a 20L personal loan to help manage some of these liabilities. So, despite the initial lump sum, my own financial situation is now quite weak, with very little in liquid savings.

I keep going back and forth between feeling that I should have handled things differently and reminding myself that I was making these decisions during an incredibly difficult time, without much opportunity to think everything through.

I'm now trying to focus on what I can control and make better decisions going forward.

Here's where I stand:

* Monthly take-home salary: around ₹1.2 lakh.

* A substantial personal loan that I'm repaying through EMIs.

* Very little personal savings left.

* My mother still has some money available (10lakhs and would also have 30k pension)which I want to protect and invest sensibly.

I'd appreciate advice on two things:

1. My own finances: Should I prioritise aggressively repaying my personal loan, building an emergency fund, or strike a balance between the two? How should I structure my salary so I can rebuild my savings?

2. My mother's financial security: What's a sensible way to invest her remaining corpus? Capital protection and dependable returns matter more to us than chasing high returns, and I want to ensure she has enough money available for future expenses.

I'm not looking to revisit the past endlessly. I just want to make sure I don't compound the mistakes made during a difficult period and can build a more secure financial future for my family.

Would appreciate practical advice, especially from people who have navigated a similar situation.

Just a brief about my finances-

1.19 lakh salary in hand per month.

12 lakhs in FD

7 lakhs in Mutual Funds

55k per month SIP.

I already have an XUV 3XO AX5L purchased by my father. But I am dissatisfied with the mileage (7 kmpl in Mumbai City traffic). I spend 13k per month on fuel and the car is too wide for city traffic and narrow roads. Should I consider a small car with higher mileage like the Celerio AMT or Swift AMT top variants ?

I had one of those realization moments this weekend that completely shattered my self-image.

My wife casually goes, "I like that you're so careful with money."

At first, I just smiled and took the compliment because, honestly, I genuinely believed it too. I pay my bills on time, my monthly SIPs are automated, I don't buy random overpriced gadgets, and I'm literally the annoying guy in the friend group who keeps an expense spreadsheet.

Then later that night, I opened my Axis Bank app to check if my salary had been credited yet. Since I was already logged in, I ended up scrolling through last month's transaction history.

Big mistake.

Turns out the "financially responsible" version of me has a massive weak spot for late-night food deliveries.

There were Swiggy charges everywhere.

₹247.

₹318.

₹289.

₹191.

None of them felt like a big deal when I tapped pay. Every single one felt totally justified at the time. Rough day at work, too lazy to cook, match starting in ten minutes, or friends ordering over.

Looking at them individually felt fine. Looking at all of them lined up in one statement felt like reading a stranger's bad habits.

If you asked me last week where most of my income goes, I would’ve confidently said rent or mutual funds. Turns out late-night cravings have been quietly competing for the top spot.

Please tell me I'm not the only one whose actual statement tells a completely different story from what they tell themselves. What's that one hidden expense that always sneaks up on you at the end of the month?

I was recently sold Kotak T.U.L.I.P. as an investment plan for my 1-year-old son, and I’m trying to decide whether I should continue or cancel it within the 30-day free-look period. Husband and I have household cumulative income of about 1.5Cr/annum

The plan is to build a corpus for my son over the next 10–15 years, ideally for education and other major expenses.

Kotak T.U.L.I.P.: Premium of approximately ₹1.2 lakh per year for 5 years, after which I would stop paying and let the investment compound for another 5–10 years.
NPS Vatsalya: I’ve already started a ₹2,500/month SIP. Will do some other index fund investing

Risk appetite: Comfortable with equity exposure and market volatility.

The main reason I was attracted to Kotak T.U.L.I.P. was the potential for tax-free maturity proceeds. The idea of paying for just 5 years and allowing the money to compound for another 5–10 years sounded appealing.
However, I’m now wondering whether the tax advantage genuinely compensates for the ULIP’s charges and whether I would be better off investing the same amount in direct index funds or equity mutual funds.

I’d really appreciate advice on the following:
1. Should I cancel the Kotak T.U.L.I.P. policy within the 30-day free-look period? Has anyone compared its actual charges and benefits with other investment options?
2. Is the tax-free maturity benefit under Section 10(10D) significant enough to justify choosing a ULIP over direct equity mutual funds?
3. If I invest ₹1.2 lakh annually for 5 years and leave the money invested for another 5–10 years, what would be the better alternative for maximising my after-tax corpus?
4. Since I’ve already started NPS Vatsalya at ₹2,500/month, should I simply invest the additional money in index funds instead?
5. Are there any disadvantages to cancelling during the free-look period, and what should I check before making the decision?
I’m not looking for a blanket “ULIPs are bad” response. I’d like to understand the numbers, charges, tax implications, liquidity and realistic long-term returns.
If you were in my position, would you revoke the policy now and invest differently? What would you do instead?
Thanks!

Hi, need advice on investing 10k and 10k for 2 kids at 1 yr & 4.5 yr such that the kids get lump sum when they turn 18+

How to invest to maximise the returns ?

The Supreme Court has observed that it would be “highly unfair” to make investors bear the consequences of administrative lapses, after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) allegedly allowed YES Bank's Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio to fall to 0.6% despite earlier irregularities in the bank's functioning.

“The RBI was a mere bystander, allowing the CET1 ratio of YES BANK to drop to an astonishing low of 0.6% while the business of YES BANK was being carried out in a clandestine manner. It cannot be denied that material irregularities in functioning of YES BANK were noticed much prior; criminal prosecution has also been initiated against the personnel of YES BANK. However, to have the investors at the receiving end of the administrative lapses would be highly unfair.”, a bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Augustine George Masih observed while setting aside the write-down of ₹8,415 crore worth of Additional Tier 1 (AT-1) bonds.

I’m 20 and want to take some financial responsibility off my mom’s shoulders. How can I do that while studying?

I’m 20F, and my mom is the sole earner in our family of 2. We have almost no savings left after my dad’s cancer treatment, and I’m still pursuing my education, which I expect to complete around the age of 27.

I can see how hard my mom works, and I don’t want to add to her workload by asking her to expand her tutoring business or do more. I just want to start taking on some financial responsibilities myself so she can finally relax a little and have some time for herself and take off some stress off her shoulders.

I know I can’t support the entire household right now, but I’d like to start somewhere.

What can I realistically do at 20 to contribute financially while continuing my education? I’m looking for practical ways to earn, become financially independent, and gradually reduce her burden without compromising my studies.

I’d appreciate advice from anyone who’s been in a similar situation.

We have a outskirts land currently worth 50L nearby 1km of Warangal ring road on expanding side

We are building a house with 50L

my father got 10L at 24% interest from friends

I took an 18L personal loan 40k EMI 5 years

10L gold loan

rest savings

My brother is about to get married and need 10L for it

I say sell the land payoff all the debts 38L and use 10L for marriage rest fd

Have a happy wedding instead of wedding with all these loan emi tensions

My Dad says need not worry he can get 10L at 24% interest from friends

Sell land after 4 years at 1cr+

What do guys say

sell and have relief of financial tensions or have confidence in the asset and sell after appreciation but I doubt whether it will appreciate that much??

Would u rather skip an SIP or force urself to sacrifice few things and make the payment?

Hi everyone, I really need some advice and help.

I'm 28M and have taken loans from NBFCs to deal with some emergencies. Unfortunately, these loans have very high interest rates, and my total outstanding debt is around ₹5 lakh.

My monthly EMI is ₹40,000, and I earn around ₹60,000 a month. After paying my EMIs, covering travel expenses, and contributing money towards household expenses, I'm barely left with anything.

Right now, I'm just moving money around and juggling payments to survive each month. I genuinely want to get out of this cycle and live a debt-free life, but I'm struggling to figure out the best way forward.

I applied for a ₹5 lakh personal loan from a bank so I could pay off all these high-interest loans in one go and consolidate everything into a single EMI at a lower interest rate. That would make things much more manageable.

However, I work for a celebrity, and we don't have the usual salary slips or standard employment documentation, but I have bank statements which shows regular credit. Because of this, getting a personal loan approved by a bank has been difficult.

I'd really appreciate advice from anyone who has been in a similar situation.

• Is there a way to get a personal loan approved without conventional salary slips?
• Are there any legitimate alternatives for consolidating high-interest NBFC loans?
• What would be the best strategy to pay off this ₹5 lakh debt on a ₹60K monthly income without falling deeper into debt?

I'm willing to make lifestyle changes and follow a strict repayment plan. I just need a practical way to get started.

Thank you so much for your help. 🙏

Hi everyone,

My father passed away earlier this year due to cancer. He was a state government employee and was nearing retirement. After receiving his service-related benefits (GPF, GIS, gratuity, insurance, etc.) and accounting for existing mutual fund investments, our family has approximately ₹1.2 crore as a lump sum.

I'm trying to make a sensible, long-term investment plan for our family and would appreciate advice from people who have experience managing a similar corpus.

Our family situation:

• My mother receives a family pension of approximately ₹74,000 per month,which is mostly saved . Her pension is expected to be elevated for the next few years, and she plans to save most of it.
• I am M26 and earn around ₹1 lakh per month.
• My brother is expected to join a job in the coming months.
• My grandfather also receives a pension of 55k. He is in his 90s and has created a will for his assets on me and my brother's names.
• We own our house and have a few additional plots/land parcels, so we already have considerable exposure to real estate.
• My upcoming marriage is the main foreseeable expense.
• Most of the ₹1.2 crore belongs to my mother. Around ₹25 lakh of gratuity is shared equally between my mother, brother, and me (approximately ₹8.33 lakh each), although that amount is currently still in my mother's bank account.

I'm the one taking the lead on managing our family's finances. Ideally, I'd like to follow one coordinated family investment strategy while keeping everyone's ownership and tax records clear.

My investment preferences:

• Long-term wealth creation, while protecting my mother's financial security.
• Moderate risk tolerance.
• Different time horizons: some money may be needed over the next 3–5 years, while the rest can potentially remain invested for 10+ years.
• We don't want to take unnecessary risks or put everything into real estate.

My current rough allocation idea for the ₹1.2 crore:

• ₹15 lakh — wedding fund, emergency reserves and other near-term needs in liquid funds.
• ₹50 lakh — fixed income, such as bank FDs and/or government securities
• ₹50 lakh — diversified equity mutual funds/index funds for long-term growth
• ₹6 lakh — gold/silver for diversification

This is only a preliminary idea, not something I've committed to. I'm open to changing the allocation based on what makes sense for our circumstances.

I'd appreciate advice on the following:

1. Is a 40% equity allocation reasonable, given that most of the corpus belongs to my mother and she already has pension income?
2. How would you structure the fixed-income portion? Would an FD , government securities, or a combination make sense?
3. For the equity portion, would a simple Nifty 50/Nifty 500 index fund portfolio be sufficient
4. Should we invest the equity allocation immediately or SIP?
5. How much should we retain as an emergency fund when my mother and grandfather have pension income and my brother will soon start working?

I'm not looking for a quick way to double the money. My priority is to preserve the family's financial security while allowing the corpus to grow over the next 10–20 years.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions. I'd especially appreciate practical advice relevant to Indian taxation, mutual funds, FDs, government securities, and family financial planning.

I have used AI for formatting my thoughts.

I am 31. I spent the last four years fixating on reaching ₹5 Crore to retire at 38. My Excel sheet became my grail tracking every SIP and calculating inflation‑adjusted returns while I worked twelve‑hour days.

Then month dad retired from his bank job. After the celebrations faded I watched dad become restless. By eleven o’clock every day after dad’s walk and reading the newspaper dad simply sits in the living room looking completely lost. When I asked dad about it dad said he spent decades planning retirement financially. He forgot to build an actual life to retire into.

That struck me hard. I realized my current life is work checking Zerodha ordering Swiggy and sleeping. I have lost touch with friends. Dropped all hobbies just to hit a number. Even if I reach FIRE at 38 I will end up staring at walls with no structure or purpose.

I am beginning to feel that sacrificing my thirties for a finish line is a trap if nothing waits on the other side. How do you all balance saving aggressively without turning life into a waiting room? For those who made it how did they handle the loss of routine and figure out what to do next?

I have always been curious how would be the lifestyle of people earning 7-8 lakhs per month? Do you guys go for international trips every month? Invest heavily? Invest in new opportunities? Lavishly spend? Or do you guys still have the feeling that you are not earning enough.

Do your sentiments about money changes after crossing some point? Or is it still the same important.

P.S. - brownie points if you could mention your age and line of work as well.

Hello All

Got a job in June

My in-hand salary per month : ~58k

Rent + electricity: ~ 6.5k

(I have been relocated to a tier 2 city starting this month so got a 2bhk for 5.3k where i currently live alone. Most of the furnishings like fridge and washing machine are being paid for by my company.)

Transport: ~ 2k (i use rapido/uber bike only since my place is only 3 km and no autos go there. Most days i walk bcz the weather is good so the cost goes down to 1.5k)

I have just 1 EMI left of my phone: ~4.5k

Send to home: ~5k+ take on some other expenses like groceries or treats

Miscellaneous: ~5k

I visit hometown twice a week which costs me around 3k per month. I'm thinking of reducing the frequency to once per month.

Current savings + liquid investment:~ 40k

I took loan from my very close relatives for my masters which is about 4.5 lakhs, interest free.

My plan is to clear off the loan within 2 years and to save+invest for my wedding - time horizon - 5 yrs. And long term investment/savings for retirement.

I am the first person to earn this much and my family is lower middle income, my dad passed away 2 yrs back so no other income besides my sister's part time job. My mother expects me to get a few items for the house - AC, a new TV, sofa which I'm happy to provide for.

How should i plan my savings and investment?

Can I take over the home loan from my father to myself ? I don't want to transfer the ownership of the house to me but only the loan payment. Is there a way to do it ? The loan provider is BOB.

I work in a bank and have employee benefits for home loan with lesser interests.

TIA

Hi everyone,

I have been working for a little over two years, and my savings rate is around 35–36%, excluding investment appreciation (even included not much difference). It was closer to 60% last year, so the drop has been quite shocking.

I got married recently, had significant wedding and gold jewellery expenses, and went on an international trip. I also received performance bonuses during this period. I understand these were largely one-off expenses, but I didn't expect such a big hit.

We aren't big spenders, don't go clubbing or party much, and generally don't feel like we've spent extravagantly. I live in Mumbai near my office, where rent is already 15% of my take-home income. Moving to a better locality would push it closer to 20%, which makes me wonder how much I should prioritise savings versus quality of life.

A couple of questions:

1. Is a 35–36% savings rate reasonable for someone in their late 20s living in Mumbai, or should I aim to get back to 50–60%?

2. I want to start tracking every expense because we genuinely didn't feel we'd spent so much, which is why I never tracked it properly. I use credit cards for most transactions. What's the best way to do this? I'm considering Excel but would prefer not to use third-party apps. I've also seen suggestions for Telegram bots that track expenses — are any of these worth trying?

Would love to hear your experiences and suggestions!

PS: Used ChatGPT to frame the post

not being sarcastic, actually curious. every other post here is someone in their mid 20s with a 1cr + portfolio,3 L monthly take home, asking whether to put monney in NPS or max out their ELSS . and I'm sittting here wondring what planet these people live on. People I know in real life, same age group, ldecent jobs , are nowhere vclose to these numbers. Is this sub just heavily skewed toward a very specific slice of the population, IIT, IIM , FAANG , consulting? Or is there actuallly a path I'm completely missing? I'm in a regular privvate sector job, not undeerpaid by market standards, but the gap between what I earn and what people here casually mention feels Labsurd sometimes . Is it college, is it field, is it city, is it luck ? prbobably all of it. bt genuinely curious, for those who did get there before 30, where is that money actually going? equity, real estate , fixed income, just sitting in savings? that part of the convversation feels underrepresented here compared to the income flex posts.

I was thinking in terms of 1-3year bracket.
Kept 1-1.5lakh for trip expenses
1l in usd stocks
2lakhs MF(small/mid)
1l nifty 50
1lakh on self

Since gold is ATH doesn’t make any sense

What’s your suggestion/opinion on this? Sorry for poor English