This week I'm starting my first big girl job with benefits after years of making maybe 25k doing seasonal work. Current financial situation: I'm 27F, rent a house with my partner, own my car, no debt, unmarried with no kids and a spoiled dog. I have money from my grandparents: close to 100k in an index fund, plus cash gifts the last two years, 25k which is in a CD at my credit union earning 3.75% annual interest and 32k that just landed in my savings account alongside my 6k emergency fund.

At the new job my pre-tax salary is 60k and my employer offers 4% 401(k) contribution matching. Given my other assets, does aggressively saving for retirement for a couple of years while I'm young and don't have other big financial responsibilities make sense? If I save 32% pre-tax I'll be in a lower tax bracket and could then contribute maybe up to 5% to a Roth IRA at the lower tax rate (right up to the total annual contribution limit), with a remaining 38k (pre-tax) coming to me.

I have minimal expenses right now (<2k a month) and think I can manage fine on ~38k for a year or two but would like to buy a house in the next few years and have kids eventually. Also would like to replace my car which is 27 years old, worth less than 5k, runs well but typically needs $500-1000 in maintenance/repairs a year.

Can/should I save hard for retirement this year and also buy a car (<$30k) using the gift money from my grandparents? How about using the CD when it matures and part or all of the index fund to put a down payment on a house in a year or two? Or should I be saving more of my income as cash rather than planning on depleting my nest egg?

Last random question, when banks look at my income history for a home loan, will it look like I only earn 38k if 40% of my salary is going to retirement accounts?