January 2009 Networth Statement--a little late

Credit Score	655	?
Assets	December	January	Difference
Cash Accts.	$6,665.00	$6,000.00	-$665.00
Home	$132,500.00	$133,500.00	$1,000.00
Rental	$72,348.00	$72,348.00	$0.00
401k	$3,098.61	$3,487.43	$388.82
529	$303.00	$317.00	$14.00
Roth	$1,058.00	$1,058.00	$0.00
Misc (Car, etc)	$7,000.00	$7,000.00	$0.00
Total Assets	$222,972.61	$223,710.43	$737.82
Liabilities	December	January	Difference
CC	$500.00	$275.00	$225.00
Home	$97,200.00	$97,010.00	$190.00
Rental	$66,379.00	$66,324.00	$55.00
HELOC	$8,978.00	$8,918.00	$60.00
Student Loans	$53,875.54	$53,784.54	$91.00
Total Liabilities	$226,932.54	$226,311.54	$621.00
Net Worth	-$3,959.93	-$2,601.11	$1,358.82

 

 

My net worth increased by $1,358 dollars due to my house increasing in value and my 401k looking a little better.

Cash Accounts:  Despite not having to buy too many Christmas presents, I still spent a lot of money last month.  I’m ashamed, but atleast I did not carry over any credit card debt. I also had to pay for my yearly home security fee of $270.  I don’t think I’m going to renew it next year.

Credit Cards: A small balance because I’m posting late. 

Home: Home value increased by $1,000. It had dropped by $500 last month.  

Roth:  I’ve cut back on my Roth to focus on the more liquid part of my Emergency Fund.

Efund: is at $3,600 I reached my savings goal for 2008!  Just barely.

401k: It’s rebounding a little bit.  

Summary:  Slow and steady wins the race.  I should be at a positive networth by March or April!

 

Mid Year Review

I received my midyear review today from supervisor (I work for the state which is on a fiscal year calendar).  I got an exceeds standard.  YEAH! But……..  December I slacked and this month is turning out to be the same.  I can’t really blame it on my bro. He wasn’t in the hospital until the end of the month.  I can blame it on the holidays but they’re over now and I need to kick it up and get back on track.  On the count of five I will get to work: 1, 2, 3, 4…..

Addicted to Saving

My money is funny.  I have to pay my school tuition this month so I won’t be able to contribute anything towards my savings accounts.  Between my efund and my other account I usually save around $800.  I can’t save anything this month and it feels so weird.  I feel broke and poor.  On the positive side, it does feels good to know that I’ve become addicted to saving. 

2008 is gone... How did I do?

2008 Financial Goals
1. credit card debt free by July 2008
2. $2,500 Cash Emergency Fund by March 2008
3. Start 529 plan for my kids
4. $2,500 into Roth IRA by December 2008
5. Debt to Income Ratio of 3.1 by December 2008
6. Increase net worth by $16,000

Plan
Can't have goals without a plan on how to achieve them, right? So here is the plan.

1. credit card debt-DONE. On February 5, I become credit card debt free. It's marked on my calendar and I plan on celebrating every year!
I currently have ~$6,000 in cc debt. Believe it or not, 8 months ago I had no cc debt but then I stopped paying attention to my budget and now look!
I'm paying $1,000 towards the debt this month and $3,000 next month (I'm expecting a lump some of money (fingers crossed)). So I'll be entering 2008 with $2,000 in cc debt.
In order to achieve this goal I must pay $330/month. (Doable).
-Contigency..what if I don't get the $3,000 lump sum, making total cc debt for 2008 $5,000. --- Then I'll have to increase payments to $420 and extend payoff deadline to Dec. 1. (Hard but doable)

2. Cash Emergency Fund-DONE I decided to increase the efund goal from $2500 to $3600. I have two kids and I own two houses. I need the extra cushion. In fact my goal will be to save $18,000 before all is said and done.
$2,500 is weak emergency fund for a single mother of two, but I am compromising a bit until I get cc's paid off and more debt paid down.

3. College Savings-DONE $100 down and $25 per month. Isn't much but it's there and it's steadily growing. My daughter is excited and asks me about it monthly.
I have yet to start my kids' college savings plan. I suck. I've been talking about starting it for nine years. Tsk, tsk. Once I pass my P.E. the amount will increase but something is better than nothing.

4. $2,500 into Roth IRA for 2008 ($209/month) -NOT QUITE I decided to focus more on the liquid part of my efund, but I did get this sucker up to $1,000 from $0.
This account will back up as my Emergency fund. It's not the maximum contribution but it's a good start.

5. Debt to Income Ratio of 1.7 (my goal would be from 3.5 to 3.1) by the end of 2008 Done I'm currently at 2.66. But that's because I changed how I calculated the amount. I'm still on my way though!
I recently read an article which said the debt to income ratio for a thirty year old should only be 1.7 times her income. My debt to income ratio is 3.5. Thus, I owe 3 and half times my yearly salary. That is scary. I worked on a few numbers and if things go as planned I should decrease that number to 3.1 by the end of December. It's still pretty high but it'll be better than it was.

6. Increase net worth by $16,000 by the end of December Done. My net worth is ----Drum rollllll--- is -$1,295.54. Wow! My net worth increased by $30,000 due to my home increasing by$12,000 and decreasing my debt by $10,000 among other things!

My current net worth is -32,000 (includes home equity of $25,000), largely due to a student loan debt of $56,000. In order to achieve this goal I will pay off $3,000 of my HELOC since it has a higher interest than my mortgage and student loans.

Planned
Actual
CC payoff
$6,000
$6,000
Roth
$2,500
$1,058
Mortgage will decrease by
$1,200
$1,633
Student Loan will decrease by
$1,500
$969
HELOC
$3,000
$855
401 (k)
$1,021
$-1,015
Savings increases by
$1,500
$2,065
Total
$16,721
$11,565


Conclusion---I"m on my way
I didn't hit all of my targets, but I'm through the most difficult, the most exciting, and the first step to financial freedom. Now all I have to do is stay the course.

When A Good Thing Goes bad

My sister called asking to borrow $500.  For the first time I said no.  I felt bad.  I have it, but a goal I have for the new year is not to loan people money.  She appreciates the money I loan her but it doesn’t really help her control her finances if she knows, or thinks, she can come and borrow money from me.   

How To Keep Your Family Fed Cheaply During a Medical Emergency

My brother is in the hospital and for the past couple of days my family has been living there. I'm cheap and I hate buying (other people) fast food. However, I've been buying fast food for my mom and my brother's wife for the past two days. Unsurprisingly the costs are adding up. So I am going to implement the following in order to save money and ensure my loved ones are getting fed:
1. Now is the time to join the wholesale store in my state (Oklahoma) called Sam's. I've been too cheap to pay the $40 membership fee. Hopefully, I can get someone to split the fee with me.
2. Purchase quick meals like Hamburger Helper; as well as, quick things like burritos, chips, breakfast sandwiches, vegetables and fruit.
3. Purchase a case of bottled water, get a sharpie and put each person's name on them. The kids will still lose the bottles but atleast I tried, right?
4. Purchase plastic silverware and plates.
5. Buy cheap/decent microwavable Tupperware for the home cooked meals and put my name on it. Maybe I can get the dishes back when all is said and done. Most hospitals have plenty of microwaves.
6. Deliver the food as needed in a cooler and restock the essentials (paper plates, water, etc).
7. Keep all receipts so I can deduct it from my emergency fund, if necessary.
Now that I have the plan written down it seems a little expensive, but my brother is going to be in there for a while. My mom is on a limited income and my sister-in-law only gets paid if she works. So yeah It'll be a expensive, but this is why I've been working on my emergency fund. It feels to know that I can take care of my people without worrying about credit card debt or missing out on paying a bill.

Am I missing anything?