Got rid of a heap of debt, and almost ready to combine finance forces now.
I wanted to do it last month, but it just wasn’t happening. At least we have a game plan now though :) I’ll post about it soon, but we’ll basically be using a checking and savings for our most of our combined finances, and then keeping our seperate accounts for whatever else our heart desires.
In other fantastic news, i FINALLY sold my SUV this month and am now working on paying off the difference from that (i was upside down on my loan), and the $3,100 i paid for my now daily driver – the Caddy. I’ll be using the same money for my old car payments, only i’ll be applying it to the credit card every month, thus staying in budget and knocking it away piece by piece.
I estimate it’ll be paid off in full within 6 months to a year, all depending on bonus’ and any extra money that may or may not come in. And then i’ll be 100% debt free with the only exception of our house! Woohoo!
Here’s how it breaks down this month:
CASH SAVINGS: This was quite a nice surprise as i really don’t know what i’ve been doing differently. I know i’ve been budgeting pretty well, so maybe the differences have been adding up? i REALLY wanted to post our “paid forwarded” money we received, but unfort. i still have to keep shut on it…i almost slipped and added it though!
ROTH IRA: A whole Still left up to the market as usual…haven’t put anything extra in it for months. Once i max out my 401k, I’ll think about adding to it again.
401(k): Not too shabby, especially in today’s market. I put in $593.75 myself, got matched $593.75, and then earned a little over $70 buckaroos on market fluctuations. I f’ing LOVE our 401k plan at work.
SAVINGS BONDS: A few dollars more to sock away. You can check the breakdown of all my bonds and details here. Some go back from when i was born! haha…
CONDO INVESTMENT: I stopped lending money to my brother last month, so now it’ll only go up 5% for the interest each month…until he pays it back (which he says should be by the end of ’08). Me likey long time!
HOME EQUITY: Steady Freddy…since we paid off a good $10k by accident back in January, we’re in no rush to pay any more off right now. Savings a much better option for us these days.
AUTO WORTH (kbb): It dropped significantly, but for good measure – I sold my Toyota Highlander!!! Thank you, thank you, yes i feel like a bad $$ right now ;) Sure only 1 person emailed about it, but that’s all it takes baby! This new amount is now ONLY for what my Caddy would probably go for these days. And it rocks. a lot.
CREDIT CARDS: I paid off a good $600+ already on my credit card (my old car payment amount plus some extra i saved from good budgeting), but since i was upside down on my Highlander, I had to slap $4,000 on it. OUCH, right?! Not my favorite thing to do, but the c/c rate is locked in at 3.4% and i’m waiting to get back $1500ish from cancelling all my extended warranties on it. So while i technically have no car payments per se, i’ll be still applying the monthly amount of $443 towards it until it’s paid off. Gotta keep in the habit!
AUTO LOAN: Zeroooooooooooooo! Hot diggity! But don’t forget to read the above paragraph if you haven’t already….it’s not *as nice* as it may sound ;)
That’s it for this month. I hope all your net worth‘s increased as well, and keep on budgeting! It all pays off baby, it’s just a matter of time.
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*I have updated my sweet & sassy side bars as always.
*And here are the past Net Worth updates.
PS: If you’re just getting started in your journey, here are a few good resources to help track your money. Doesn’t matter which route you go, just that it ends up sticking!
- The "Budget/Net Worth" spreadsheet - the colorful Excel template I personally use.
- The "Money Snapshot" spreadsheet - a simple Excel template I created for my former $$$ clients
If you're not a spreadsheet guy like me and prefer something more automated (which is fine, whatever gets you to take action!), you can try your hand with a free Empower account instead (formerly Personal Capital)
Empower is a cool tool that connects with your bank & investment accounts to give you an automated way to track your net worth. You'll get a crystal clear picture of how your spending and investments affect your financial goals (early retirement?), and it's super easy to use.
It only takes a couple minutes to set up and you can grab your free account here. They also do a lot of other cool stuff as well which my early retired friend Justin covers in our full review of Empower - check it out here: Why I Use Empower Almost Every Single Day.
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