Starting to think about 2016 savings and financial goals.
Definite goals:
(1) Max out 401k for each of us, the limits have not changes for 2016 so that is $18,000 for each of us for a total of $36,000. Automatic payroll debits are in place, I will just need to check them in January
(2) Finish funding our 2015 IRAs - $8900, The 2015 IRAs must be funded by 4/15/16. As such, we will have some heavy upfront savings of about $1110 per pay period between 1/1/16 and 4/15/16.
(3) Fund 2016 IRAs $11,000 for the both of us, this number also is unchanged from 2015.
(4) Baby Sam'college fund, add another $5000 this year.
Tentative goals:
(5) Add to emergency fund, reducing this annual goal to $5000 (this year we saved $10,000)
(6) Save for a nused car for me $10,000. My car will be 10 years old next year and its got some expensive repairs that I've been holding off on. I replaced my last car after 9 years of life so I'm thinking this car will need replacing soon.
The above savings goals total $75,900. The highest savings number we have ever hit with our savings efforts is @$64,000 (back in 2013). So, this would be a big stretch for us, especially with our child care expenses for Baby Sam.
Debt killing goals:
(1) Pay off lingering credit card debt in the amount of $6500.
(2) Pay off Mr. Sam's new car, remaining debt $2500.
Above debt totals at $9000.
Also, I'd like to reduce our total debt to under $450,000 total. At present our debt total is at $484,848 which would require killing the above credit and car debt and also killing another almost $26,000 in debt. I think that is this is a reachable goal since we paid off @$34,000 in debt this year.
Showing posts with label 2015 Plan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2015 Plan. Show all posts
Thursday, December 3, 2015
Tuesday, December 1, 2015
End of the Year Updates
Well it is December 1, 2015 and I still never got my 2015 savings/debt killing Excel spreadsheet chart from Mr. Sam. It has been that kind of year, new baby, maternity leave, new baby expenses, balancing work with new baby, child care expenses, etc. We also converted a rental property to a family property which brought along a ton of expenses as well.
These were my goals from May of this year, posted on one of the other personal finance sites:
(1) Max out 401ks: Goal $36,000
(2) Max out IRAs: Goal $11,000
(3) College fund for Baby Sam: Goal $5,000
(4) Add to emergency fund: Goal $10,000
(4) Pay off baby debt: Goal $0, started with $7000
(5) Pay off Mr. Sam's truck loan: Goal $0. started with $7500
(6) Save for nused car for me: Goal is $20,000. This is two year goal, so this year's goal is $10,000)
(7) Get total debt under $500,000: $519,000 was thestart of the year number, goal is $499,000, difference of $20,000
Savings goal of $72,000 and
Debt killing goal of $34,500.
So let's start with the bad news. We only put away $2100 for our 2015 IRAs, we can continue to invest for 2015 until April 15, 2016 so we have some time next year to finish this goal.
Baby debt, well it really morphed into debt, we have rental property conversion debt, some baby debt and just other cr_p debt that popped up this year since our finances were pretty crazy this year. At present, the misc. credit card debt is $6275. Can we kill it by year end? Maybe, but doubtful. But, I am working on it with renewed focus.
Nused car for me, didn't really happen at all this year, I put away $400 and that is it. I did spend some money on the car this year, about $1500 in repairs and the mechanic says I have about $4000 in repairs that could be done but were not necessary at the time. Need to work on this goal in 2016 as the time is coming, car will be 10 years old as of next year.
The good news, we are on track to max out our 401ks by the end of the year. At present we are at $33,009 and we will complete the $36,000 goal.
College fund for Baby Sam, we hit this goal as well and we have $5,781 in the 529 plan. About half of that was from us and the other half from family as we have asked for 529 contributions in lieu of gifts for birthdays, Christmas, etc.
Emergency fund, we are also on track for hitting this goal. We will have an additional $10,000 into the e/r fund by end of year. At present we have $19,215 in our e/r fund which sounds like a lot, but it really isn't when you take into account our investment properties. We have been working on rebuilding our fund after buying Mr. Sam's truck (we paid half in cash) and our IVF, pregnancy and birth expenses. I've never really figured out how much I want in the e/r fund, but I'd be more comfortable closer to $30,000. We do have $20,000 in other short term, liquid savings, for things like insurance, taxes, vacations, etc. So that money is also available if we really got in a jam.
Mr. Sam's truck, we are paying $500 a month, 0% loan and at present we have a $2500 balance. No current plan to pay ahead, but will be paid off early next year.
And as for getting our debt under $500,000, we easily hit that goal with $34,152 in debt paid off (even including the debts we added during the year). Our present debt number is $484,848.
So grand, estimated, total for 2015 savings will be: $53,881 (falling short by $18,119 of our 2015 goals).
And, grand, estimated, debt killing total for 2015 will be: $34,152 (which does not include additional debt payments that I plan to make) so we basically hit that goal.
Thoughts, how did your 2015 financial year go? What are you planning for 2016?
These were my goals from May of this year, posted on one of the other personal finance sites:
(1) Max out 401ks: Goal $36,000
(2) Max out IRAs: Goal $11,000
(3) College fund for Baby Sam: Goal $5,000
(4) Add to emergency fund: Goal $10,000
(4) Pay off baby debt: Goal $0, started with $7000
(5) Pay off Mr. Sam's truck loan: Goal $0. started with $7500
(6) Save for nused car for me: Goal is $20,000. This is two year goal, so this year's goal is $10,000)
(7) Get total debt under $500,000: $519,000 was thestart of the year number, goal is $499,000, difference of $20,000
Savings goal of $72,000 and
Debt killing goal of $34,500.
So let's start with the bad news. We only put away $2100 for our 2015 IRAs, we can continue to invest for 2015 until April 15, 2016 so we have some time next year to finish this goal.
Baby debt, well it really morphed into debt, we have rental property conversion debt, some baby debt and just other cr_p debt that popped up this year since our finances were pretty crazy this year. At present, the misc. credit card debt is $6275. Can we kill it by year end? Maybe, but doubtful. But, I am working on it with renewed focus.
Nused car for me, didn't really happen at all this year, I put away $400 and that is it. I did spend some money on the car this year, about $1500 in repairs and the mechanic says I have about $4000 in repairs that could be done but were not necessary at the time. Need to work on this goal in 2016 as the time is coming, car will be 10 years old as of next year.
The good news, we are on track to max out our 401ks by the end of the year. At present we are at $33,009 and we will complete the $36,000 goal.
College fund for Baby Sam, we hit this goal as well and we have $5,781 in the 529 plan. About half of that was from us and the other half from family as we have asked for 529 contributions in lieu of gifts for birthdays, Christmas, etc.
Emergency fund, we are also on track for hitting this goal. We will have an additional $10,000 into the e/r fund by end of year. At present we have $19,215 in our e/r fund which sounds like a lot, but it really isn't when you take into account our investment properties. We have been working on rebuilding our fund after buying Mr. Sam's truck (we paid half in cash) and our IVF, pregnancy and birth expenses. I've never really figured out how much I want in the e/r fund, but I'd be more comfortable closer to $30,000. We do have $20,000 in other short term, liquid savings, for things like insurance, taxes, vacations, etc. So that money is also available if we really got in a jam.
Mr. Sam's truck, we are paying $500 a month, 0% loan and at present we have a $2500 balance. No current plan to pay ahead, but will be paid off early next year.
And as for getting our debt under $500,000, we easily hit that goal with $34,152 in debt paid off (even including the debts we added during the year). Our present debt number is $484,848.
So grand, estimated, total for 2015 savings will be: $53,881 (falling short by $18,119 of our 2015 goals).
And, grand, estimated, debt killing total for 2015 will be: $34,152 (which does not include additional debt payments that I plan to make) so we basically hit that goal.
Thoughts, how did your 2015 financial year go? What are you planning for 2016?
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
Updates on Debt
I've recently, as of today, updated our networth debt numbers. One of our goals for 2015 was to get our total debt load under $500,000 and I'm pleased to report that our debt is now at $489,000. Since, January 2007, our debt load has gone from $735,054 down to $489,000. That means, on average we have killed about $30,000 in debt per year since 2007.
On our primary home, purchased in 2004, we have paid off $105,546 in principal. Since we refinanced our mortgage a couple years ago to 2.75% our payments have accelerated. We also refinanced from a 25 year loan to a 15 year loan and cut off 7 years from our overall term. On our three investment property mortgages, as of next month, all three mortgages should be below $100,000.
As for our other debt, I've struggled with credit card debt, pay it down, run it up, pay it down, etc. I really need to kill it once and for all as its now been hanging around since the baby arrived. We also have a new debt that is not yet listed, 0% financing on floor tile that we bought for one of our investment properties. That debt is a couple of thousand dollars.
As for Mr. Sam's new truck, we continue to pay down his truck debt (we paid for his new truck half in cash and half in 0% financing) at $500 a month, so that debt will be gone in seven months. I really need to be saving for a nused car for me, as my car has been acting up. Recently it was out of commission for a few weeks with an electrical problem but the fix ended up only costing $250. There are several other more expensive things wrong with the car, but the dealer says none are pressing to fix as of now. The dealer gave me a print out of things to fix that would likely cost $4000 which is more than the car is worth. It was kinda funny as I had started to research my next car. Since Baby Sam arrived I, of course, want a family car. But, I'm better off trying to make my car last another year or so as I've only got $400 saved in my nused car fund.
On our primary home, purchased in 2004, we have paid off $105,546 in principal. Since we refinanced our mortgage a couple years ago to 2.75% our payments have accelerated. We also refinanced from a 25 year loan to a 15 year loan and cut off 7 years from our overall term. On our three investment property mortgages, as of next month, all three mortgages should be below $100,000.
As for our other debt, I've struggled with credit card debt, pay it down, run it up, pay it down, etc. I really need to kill it once and for all as its now been hanging around since the baby arrived. We also have a new debt that is not yet listed, 0% financing on floor tile that we bought for one of our investment properties. That debt is a couple of thousand dollars.
As for Mr. Sam's new truck, we continue to pay down his truck debt (we paid for his new truck half in cash and half in 0% financing) at $500 a month, so that debt will be gone in seven months. I really need to be saving for a nused car for me, as my car has been acting up. Recently it was out of commission for a few weeks with an electrical problem but the fix ended up only costing $250. There are several other more expensive things wrong with the car, but the dealer says none are pressing to fix as of now. The dealer gave me a print out of things to fix that would likely cost $4000 which is more than the car is worth. It was kinda funny as I had started to research my next car. Since Baby Sam arrived I, of course, want a family car. But, I'm better off trying to make my car last another year or so as I've only got $400 saved in my nused car fund.
Thursday, August 20, 2015
NetWorth Update
I have updated out networth numbers over on NetworthIQ.com. That site remains wonky and spotty, but I know how to use it and I can do a quick update when it works.
Angie (a reader here) had told me about NetworthShare.com, and I did create an account and had them port over data, but not all of my data came over. So I need to spend some time, which I'm perpetually short on these days, bringing the rest of my data over and getting used to the site, etc.
Our expenses have gone way up with Baby Sam which is mostly due to child care costs. We have also had some cash flow issues since we are converting a rental property. As a result, we've been relying on our credit card to fill some holes in our monthly budget which I hate to do.
We do have plenty of cash in our savings so its not necessary to do this, but I don't want to take cash from savings. Its been somewhat circular this summer. I really, really need to kill the credit card debt once and for all and then cut the card to get us out of this habit.
The positive is that we should be under the $500,000 debt number by end of year (one of our goals). If I killed the credit card debt we would be below the $500,000 number in a month. Another positive is that we have stayed above the $2 Million mark (in assets) for a year now.
Otherwise, we continue to struggle with putting money into our IRA 2015 fund, and we will need to work hard on that goal this fall.
Angie (a reader here) had told me about NetworthShare.com, and I did create an account and had them port over data, but not all of my data came over. So I need to spend some time, which I'm perpetually short on these days, bringing the rest of my data over and getting used to the site, etc.
Our expenses have gone way up with Baby Sam which is mostly due to child care costs. We have also had some cash flow issues since we are converting a rental property. As a result, we've been relying on our credit card to fill some holes in our monthly budget which I hate to do.
We do have plenty of cash in our savings so its not necessary to do this, but I don't want to take cash from savings. Its been somewhat circular this summer. I really, really need to kill the credit card debt once and for all and then cut the card to get us out of this habit.
The positive is that we should be under the $500,000 debt number by end of year (one of our goals). If I killed the credit card debt we would be below the $500,000 number in a month. Another positive is that we have stayed above the $2 Million mark (in assets) for a year now.
Otherwise, we continue to struggle with putting money into our IRA 2015 fund, and we will need to work hard on that goal this fall.
Friday, May 8, 2015
A Windfall is Coming
As you can tell from the title of this post, clearly I'm a Game of Thrones fan.
So, I received news that I'm getting a bonus this year. This bonus was unexpected for a couple of reasons. First, I was on maternity leave for more than three months. Second, I did not believe I was eligible for this type of bonus.
So money is coming our way and it is a decent size chunk of cash. Of course, after Uncle Sam takes his bite and after the deduction for my 401k, the number shrinks. But, I won't complain one bit.
My tentative plan for the money is as follows (final plan depends a bit on the amount). First, 50% will go to our baby debt (which presently is $5421 at 0%). Second, 25% will go towards our upcoming summer vacation (so, into our travel savings fund). Third, 15% will go towards our 2015 IRA savings account. And, finally, 10% is for me to do what I want with (spa, clothes, dinner out, or some other kind of treat).
How do you spend bonus money?
So, I received news that I'm getting a bonus this year. This bonus was unexpected for a couple of reasons. First, I was on maternity leave for more than three months. Second, I did not believe I was eligible for this type of bonus.
So money is coming our way and it is a decent size chunk of cash. Of course, after Uncle Sam takes his bite and after the deduction for my 401k, the number shrinks. But, I won't complain one bit.
My tentative plan for the money is as follows (final plan depends a bit on the amount). First, 50% will go to our baby debt (which presently is $5421 at 0%). Second, 25% will go towards our upcoming summer vacation (so, into our travel savings fund). Third, 15% will go towards our 2015 IRA savings account. And, finally, 10% is for me to do what I want with (spa, clothes, dinner out, or some other kind of treat).
How do you spend bonus money?
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Cars, cars, cars
Back in 2008, the first year of this blog, we saved up $17,000 and I bought a 2006 nused car. While that feels like a short time ago, its been almost 7 years. That car has served me well, but last year (and the prior year) it cost me a pretty penny in repair costs.
Now that we have Baby Sam, and I have to wiggle and wrangle that baby stroller in and out of my trunk (even though its very large) and as the car approaches the 10 year mark, I've started thinking that I need a new/nused car. I'm thinking about a small SUV or cross over type of car. Something with a larger back storage area (not a trunk) so I can more easily fit the baby stroller and all the stuff that goes along with a baby.
The length of time Americans keep their cars has grown. On average, a new car is kept for 71.4 months (or just under 6 years). On average, a nused car is kept for 49.9 months (a bit over 4 years). In my situation, I've exceeded the average for both data points. since I've been driving my nused car for more than 6 years.
I generally do well with resisting the influence of friends and colleagues, but most everyone I know is driving a newish car. In fact, I recently got together with a good friend and she has a newly leased SUV. In the last 15 years she has had 5 cars and I have had 2. In our family, I was the one with the nice car since Mr. Sam was driving an old 1998 truck. But, that's not true anymore.
While I'm starting to pine for a new car, our financial situation is stretched. We have the expenses of the baby, indeed we still have a little baby debt. We have Mr. Sam's truck debt. And, we've barely made any progress on our 2015 savings goals (indeed we've hardly started). We also have child care costs and a college fund to feed. So, if I can hold off on a new or nused car for a couple of years, we'd be much better off.
As a result, my tentative plan is to start a nused car fund now so I feel like I am working towards a goal. I need to also spend some money to get my car cleaned and tuned up, oil change, tire rotation, etc. If I do that, I'll feel like my car is in better condition and won't be so antsy for a change.
Now that we have Baby Sam, and I have to wiggle and wrangle that baby stroller in and out of my trunk (even though its very large) and as the car approaches the 10 year mark, I've started thinking that I need a new/nused car. I'm thinking about a small SUV or cross over type of car. Something with a larger back storage area (not a trunk) so I can more easily fit the baby stroller and all the stuff that goes along with a baby.
The length of time Americans keep their cars has grown. On average, a new car is kept for 71.4 months (or just under 6 years). On average, a nused car is kept for 49.9 months (a bit over 4 years). In my situation, I've exceeded the average for both data points. since I've been driving my nused car for more than 6 years.
I generally do well with resisting the influence of friends and colleagues, but most everyone I know is driving a newish car. In fact, I recently got together with a good friend and she has a newly leased SUV. In the last 15 years she has had 5 cars and I have had 2. In our family, I was the one with the nice car since Mr. Sam was driving an old 1998 truck. But, that's not true anymore.
While I'm starting to pine for a new car, our financial situation is stretched. We have the expenses of the baby, indeed we still have a little baby debt. We have Mr. Sam's truck debt. And, we've barely made any progress on our 2015 savings goals (indeed we've hardly started). We also have child care costs and a college fund to feed. So, if I can hold off on a new or nused car for a couple of years, we'd be much better off.
As a result, my tentative plan is to start a nused car fund now so I feel like I am working towards a goal. I need to also spend some money to get my car cleaned and tuned up, oil change, tire rotation, etc. If I do that, I'll feel like my car is in better condition and won't be so antsy for a change.
Monday, March 30, 2015
College Savings Plan for Baby Sam
As I work on figuring out our 2015 savings goals, we know that college savings for Baby Sam is on the list.
We have settled on a 529 Plan rather than a prepaid tuition plan.
The next question is how much to contribute. $28,000 is the current annual limit if you file taxes jointly, $14,000 if filing singly status before having to do gift tax analysis.
Mr. Sam is in favor of skimping to front load Baby Sam's college fund now and then once Baby is in school dialing back because there is a good chance we will be paying for private school.
I'm not sure where I stand on the issue, but because I manage the finances I prefer more regular and even contributions because its easier to manage. But, if we contributed $28,000 a year for year one to year five we would end up with $140,000 and that is a huge chunk of money that would then grow over the next 13 years.
Start researching estimated college costs in 2033 and its enough to make your head spin. $57,000 a year for public, in-state university up to $130,000 a year for private university. Multiply that by four - five years and you get total costs from $285,000 to $650,000. Yikes!
However, many experts say that the tuition increases that have occurred in recent years, 5% - 7% increases each year, are simply unsustainable. So, its quite difficult to know what the real costs will be. I guess its better to plan high and then be pleasantly surprised, but I don't want to sacrifice retirement savings or other savings to hit an inflated college savings number.
At present, the 529 plan paperwork is filled out, I've sent off the check for the initial contribution and I have set up bi-monthly electronic contributions at $50. Not much, but a start while we figure out how much we will be contributing going forward.
We have settled on a 529 Plan rather than a prepaid tuition plan.
The next question is how much to contribute. $28,000 is the current annual limit if you file taxes jointly, $14,000 if filing singly status before having to do gift tax analysis.
Mr. Sam is in favor of skimping to front load Baby Sam's college fund now and then once Baby is in school dialing back because there is a good chance we will be paying for private school.
I'm not sure where I stand on the issue, but because I manage the finances I prefer more regular and even contributions because its easier to manage. But, if we contributed $28,000 a year for year one to year five we would end up with $140,000 and that is a huge chunk of money that would then grow over the next 13 years.
Start researching estimated college costs in 2033 and its enough to make your head spin. $57,000 a year for public, in-state university up to $130,000 a year for private university. Multiply that by four - five years and you get total costs from $285,000 to $650,000. Yikes!
However, many experts say that the tuition increases that have occurred in recent years, 5% - 7% increases each year, are simply unsustainable. So, its quite difficult to know what the real costs will be. I guess its better to plan high and then be pleasantly surprised, but I don't want to sacrifice retirement savings or other savings to hit an inflated college savings number.
At present, the 529 plan paperwork is filled out, I've sent off the check for the initial contribution and I have set up bi-monthly electronic contributions at $50. Not much, but a start while we figure out how much we will be contributing going forward.
Friday, March 20, 2015
Updated Net Worth and Housekeeping
I'm continuing to work on getting our finances back under control. I spent some time this morning working on updating our net worth numbers. Our net worth is now above the $1.5 million number.
Net Worth IQ web site continues to be flaky, but when its up I prefer to keep my data there. I've added entries for November 2014 - February 2015 but they are not accurate. I will be working to add the correct data over the next couple of weeks.
Additional good news, our primary mortgage is now below $220,000. I will be super excited when its below $200,000 although prepaying the mortgage is unlikely to be something we will be working on any time soon.
In baby news, I opened a savings account at Wells Fargo for Baby Sam for monies received as gifts. We have been researching college savings plans and at this point we have settled on a 529 plan rather than Florida Prepaid. More about that research later.
Finally, I am almost done with our 2015 Spending Plan which will influence and direct our 2015 Plan. More about that later too.
Net Worth IQ web site continues to be flaky, but when its up I prefer to keep my data there. I've added entries for November 2014 - February 2015 but they are not accurate. I will be working to add the correct data over the next couple of weeks.
Additional good news, our primary mortgage is now below $220,000. I will be super excited when its below $200,000 although prepaying the mortgage is unlikely to be something we will be working on any time soon.
In baby news, I opened a savings account at Wells Fargo for Baby Sam for monies received as gifts. We have been researching college savings plans and at this point we have settled on a 529 plan rather than Florida Prepaid. More about that research later.
Finally, I am almost done with our 2015 Spending Plan which will influence and direct our 2015 Plan. More about that later too.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)