Updates like today’s are exactly why tracking net worth can be exciting – we’re up $15Gs!
And I would have had no idea too had we not been tracking all this stuff ;) Granted, we’re heavily invested into the stock market so it fluctuates quite a bit, but the point is we have a solid number to compare to every month. This way we know if our game plan is working or not.
In a nutshell, my evil plan to max out my 401(k) early this year is well on its way :) What you see here is only a portion of the 90% paycheck contributions (& matches) hitting my account – the rest of the deposits should start dropping in anytime. And I must admit, it feels GREAT seeing these numbers rise this month! The last couple of net worth updates blew.
Net Worth break down: March, 2010
CASH SAVINGS (+$6.45): This was actually a little mistake here on my part – we should be down about $1,500 but I was fooling with our company’s 401(k) site and forgot to change my % back to 90%, thus resulting in a full payment of one of my checks for the month :) But I guess it’s not that bad of a problem, eh? Just extends my evil plan by 2 weeks…
EMERGENCY FUND ($0.00): Same $10,000 this month as it was last month, and the month before, and the month before that. The good thing about reaching your goal here is that you can then concentrate on all the others you’ve got brewing!
ROTH & TRADITIONAL IRAs ($1,348.98): Still haven’t put in a dollar to either of our IRAs this year. As soon as my 401(k) is matched we’ll be on to these guys…
401(k)s ($13,231.87): Bow chicka wha wha!! Most of this is due to the market rallying, but a good portion also comes from my paycheck contributions hitting. Here’s how it breaks down:
- Contributed: +$2,812.50
- Company match: +$2,812.50
- Market fluctuation: +$7,606.87
AUTOS WORTH (kbb) (-$100.00): Another expected drop in value. Would be awesome if we only lose $100 every month! :) It’s usually the Toyota that gets the hit too – my caddy has stayed in value for a while now, pretty awesome. Here’s how they break down:
- Pimp Daddy Caddy: $2,995.00
- Gas Ticklin’ Toyota: $8,785.00
HOME VALUE (Realtor) ($0.00): This will remain @ $300k (the price our realtor set it at) until I hit him up later for another review. He’s the master in our particular neighborhood, and has been selling (and living) in this area for 20+ years. I’ve given up on Zillow, and I always forget about Redfin.com.
CREDIT CARDS (-$371.29): As I mentioned last month, we now have credit card debt! Wahooo! Haha….I’m actually excited because we finally went through with booking our 10-day Eurotrip. I know it’s fiscally irresponsible to hold debt when you’ve got the cash to wipe it away, but I’m doing this on purpose to MOTIVATE me to pay it off quicker so you guys don’t see it anymore ;) It’s all about knowing yourself, baby!
MORTGAGES (-$0.43): Because we bought this vacation above, we’ve now stopped paying off more of our mortgages. It’s not the worst thing in the world, but I’ll def. miss seeing these #’s go down for a bit. Well be back in no time, though. Here’s how they break down:
- Mortgage #1: $286,818.64 – 30 year fixed, interest-only @ 6.875%.
- Mortgage #2: $62,554.19 – Maxed out HELOC w/ 2.8% interest.
That about covers it. Not too shabby a month if you ask me! It’s always nice to see your hard work and saving skills come to fruition over time. No getting-rich-quick here, that’s for sure. We just do what we can do every day, week, month, and year until one day we’re sitting on that beach smiling! It’s all a work in progress my friends, and I hope your numbers are looking equally as exciting :) Drop us a note and let us know.
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*My budget has now been updated.
**And so have my sidebars. And my excitement for Kal Pen (Kumar) leaving Obama to go work on White Castle III! W00t.
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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J! Congrats on that growth. You’ll hit $200K in no time!
Also, I thought mine eyes had deceived me, but I just wanted to let you know your Mortgage 1 value looks a bit funky! Quick look makes it look like 28K… But I think its supposed to be 286…Unless you won the lotto and want to tell us something? Or give me a cut?
Oops! Changed now, good catch :) No major lottery wins yet, but you better believe I still play every now and then!
Not too shabby at all J!
I’ve started tracking ours again, although our pensions are a little different in the UK; we don’t have a progress figure, just an amount it’s worth at retirement{at 65} ; which is ok but I’d love to track it in my NW
Your 401k match makes me green with jealously. I remember you said that you work for a startup-do you think they fully understand that they are matching you dollar for dollar up to 100%??
Nicely done, J. Money. I have a post written with you & your millionaire list coming out on Thursday with regards to retirement accounts.
Keep up the great work! Hey, I made a $2K + move towards a net worth of $0. LOL.
@laura@nms – Very interesting, so you just get one set amount once you hit 65? Does everyone get the same # or are there a lot of variables that come into play? Or am I just a big moron for not knowing? ;)
@duddes02 – haha…2 things:
1) Oh yeah, they def. know! In fact, it was set up so the big dawgs could max out easier and as crazy AWESOME as our matches are, hardly anyone else takes advantage!!! So crazy man, that’s FREE money right there on the table…$hit, even if you can’t afford to max out, at least contribute *something* to the post, you know? Put in 5% and get 5% back, put in 10% or just put in 1% – something! man…getting all fired up now just thinking about it, sorry ;)
2) It’s an excellent perk, but the trade off is I don’t have job security. I could literally walk into work tomorrow and be told we’ve sold or are shutting down. I’m going on 4 years now and at this point I feel like I’m on “extra time” – every day i’m here is a day i’m not counting on ;) But you better believe I’ll be riding it out until it ends!
@Money Funk – Hell yeah girl! Keep it up!!! Looking forward to the post too, I’ll keep my eyes open for it.
Cool J.Money!
You sometimes make me think that you are a rapper. LOL
Your language is so cool and swagger—-Pimp Daddy Caddy: <—funny
Funny you should mention that…. check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTDUJc8AM0Y
Who knew there was an actual rapper who GOES BY J. Money?! Haha…Didn’t know this till after I got started….only one of us is more swagger-ish though ;)
@J no it’s all different. I pay {paid} into a work pension fund which is managed and invested for me; giving a final pension at retirement. Loads of variables :-)
Yeah, I totally get why you think your coworkers are nuts not to contribute! I have never heard of a company that has that sort of plan, it’s amazing. of course, job secruity is nice but you are certainly taking advantage of your situation.
You’ve got a good head on your shoulders!
Borat: Veerry Niiice!
OoOoOo!!!! You definitely left off an asset. This website is worth some green. We’re all interested in how much this thing is worth also. :)
haha, indeed I did…would be interesting to put a price-tag on this site, but I’m not going to jinx myself anytime soon ;) all the money this site makes is factored into these numbers though, just not the asset of this blog.
Way to go on the increase! We are one month away from our 10K emergency fund. Never in my life thought I would see the day. Up next: Investing {again}. Can’t wait!
I’ve been doing a similar networth calculation as well. One thing that I’ve been meaning to revise is how I account for 401K earnings (since there’s tax).