<prompt> Human: As the title says I just received a new job offer and will be making roughly over double what I was making before. Its not Mr. Moneybanks money by any means just 3500 a month after taxes but its quite a bit more than I was making at my last position part time dead end job and I need advice on how best to take advantage of the increase. Quick history on my current situation is Im expecting my first child in about 5 months, live in a 1 bedroom apartment in Texas at 575 a month with zero savings. I also have a 12 year old vehicle with increasing mechanical issues that arent too serious but definitely concerning. No debt and my lease ends in 4 months so Im looking to upgrade of course. Any advice is appreciated.  <response>: What you are describing is known as lifestyle inflation - a very common action where, upon receiving an increase in pay, a person thinks they now deserve a better lifestyle, and so they increase their expenses to match the increased income.This is NOT how you want to operate. If youre asset-poor now and want to stop being that way, then you should maintain your current life in your apartment and with the vehicle that you have until you build up some assets and can comfortably budget everything out. My recommendation is to hold on to the vehicle, stay in the apartment until baby needs its own room, and use that increased income to start a retirement account and build an emergency fund. 