December 2015 Net Worth Review

It's 2016 Baby!!

Cash - $30,526 ($5,023)
Investments - $187,290 ($3,745)
Home Value - $405,000 ($39,000)
Personal Assets - $62,492 ($4,458)
Less: Liabilities - $312,647 (-$2,673)

Assets -

Cash - This seems a bit misleading.  The increase is primarily related to being reimbursed for work-related expenses and not paying off the credit card until early January.  Otherwise, it's just small increases in CSV and our cash accounts as the markets have been very volatile, so I've stopped making investments.

Investments - Overall, the markets are way down since October 2015.  We made over $6,300 in contributions to our accounts, but our accounts fell due to choppy markets.  For the year, the stock market was slightly DOWN.

Personal Assets - 

Home Value - So, our neighbors moved in and besides being great people with young kids, they gave us a little more insight to what our home is worth.  We have the exact same lay-out as our neighbor and it just sold for over $430k.  It has an updated kitchen, so I'm keeping our value down, but the market remains active and $400k seems reasonable in our area.

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $285,675 - Steady, plus we made our annual Dec 31 payment for tax purposes.

Student Loans - $1,946 - Just making our usual $100/month payments.  At 1.26%, I have no concern with paying them off early.

Acura Loan - $11,145 - 0.9% interest.
Sonata Hybrid - $13,881 - 3.99% interest.
 

Total Joint Net Worth - $372,660!  A 25% increase since Year-End!  Whoa!! Mostly, its due to Home Value, but without that it still would have been 12.3%

It's amazing to see how far we've come since we took our finances seriously!!

Dec-15	372,660	0.0%
Dec-14	297,211	25.4%
Dec-13	240,526	54.9%
Dec-12	178,004	109.4%
Mar-12	$               127,797	191.6%

 

October 2015 Net Worth Review

Wow - I didn't realize its been 5 months since my last review.  Time to get back on track....

Here's to the Numbers (since May2015)!!

Cash - $25,503 (-$3,600)
Investments - $183,545 ($13,076)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $66,950 ($19,250)
Less: Liabilities - $315,320 ($10,236)

Assets -

Cash - So the wife has not been working for 6 months and we've been consciously allocating more savings into mutual funds than our checking accounts.  I expect this to go up slightly as the Prof returns to work today but we'll still be pushing for more stock market returns in the future.

Investments - The market has been crazy since May.  It was down 12% in August but then had its best month in 4 years in October.  However, the selling of vehicles attributed to a $8,750 contribution to our investing account.

Personal Assets - 

We said goodbye to the 2006 Sonata and the 2009 Acura MDX!! First, we're taken over the payments on my mother-in-law's 2012 MDX.  The payments were roughly the same and will only extend the life of our loan by 6 months.  As a condition of this arrangement, I needed to get a new car.  My mother-in-law did not like her grandchildren riding around in a 2006 sedan with 110,000 miles on it.  So, I bought a 2013 Sonata Hybrid!  It's been 6 weeks and I've purchased one tank of gas! 

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $287,130 - Steady payments.  Nearly back to our principal pre-refinance.

Student Loans - $2,141 - Just making our usual $100/month payments.  At 1.26%, I have no concern with paying them off early.

Acura Loan - $12,143 - 0.9% interest.
Sonata Hybrid - $14,388 - 3.99% interest.
 

Total Joint Net Worth - $326,193.  A 5.8% increase since May and 9.8% since Year-End! 
 

May 2015 Net Worth Review

Wow - I didn't realize its been 5 months since my last review.  Time to get back on track....

Here's to the Numbers (since January 2015)!!

Cash - $29,103 ($6,104)
Investments - $170,469 ($11,868)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $47,700 (-$1,787)
Less: Liabilities - $305,084 ($157)

Assets -

Cash - Wow.  I'm very happy about our ability to save $6k while buying a bed, hanging a kid (and push present) and home upkeep.  We've set a goal of updating our kitchen in the next 24 months, so we've made a big push to allocate money to savings more in 2015.

Investments - Great example of how steady contributions can grow over time.  The markets have performed well and we've made our usual 401k and several 529 investments.

Personal Assets - 

Nothing to see here.  Just depreciation of my Sonata.

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $289,526 - Well, we refinanced at 3.875% and lowered our payments.  We did add some principal back to eliminate all of our closing costs - which was a nice boost to cash.

Student Loans - $2,629 - Just making our usual $100/month payments.  At 1.26%, I have no concern with paying them off early.

Acura Loan - $9,929 - Steady payments!
 

Total Joint Net Worth - $308,187.  A 5.5% increase since January and 3.7% since January! 

Retirement savings Up - Check.
Cash Levels - Check
Lowered Debt Payments - Check

Very happy with 2015 so far!!

January 2015 Net Worth Review

I can't believe I never wrote a review for YE.  Our December Net Worth was $297,211!  So close to $300k

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $22,999 (-$2,699)
Investments - $158,601 (-$790)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $49,487 ($0)
Less: Liabilities - $304.927 (-$1,713)

Assets -

Cash - Tough couple months as we've taken on some major changes within our house.  I actually started a new job and because of our new pay cycle, missed a paycheck in January.  Also, we completely furnished Baby #1's big boy room through Pottery Barn.  So, he's all ready to move once his lil sister comes!!  In addition, in January, we renovated our family room.  We covered the wood paneling and painted the walls and bricks a toupe/white to brighten up the room!  It looks great these items took their tool on the bank account.

To offset some of this stuff, the Prof has been side hustling like crazy through ebay and craigslist.  We've sold nearly $1,300 of old stuff in the last two months!  One man's junk is another man's treasure.

Investments - A rough few months in the market.  No major contributions on our end, but the markets have been up and then down in December and January.

Personal Assets - 

Nothing to see here.

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $287,084 - Slow and steady.  We are actually investigating refinancing this bad boy in order to lower our interest rate 0.5%.  It'll lower our monthly payment by about $100 but allow us to do with very minimal closing cost - win/win.

Student Loans - $3,017 (-$405) - Another one bites the dust!  I paid off my third and last graduate student loan this month!  All that is left are my undergrad loans at 1.26% - which means I pay $100/month and only $4 in interest.  I'm in no hurry to kill these right now.

Acura Loan - $11,826   Getting back on the car payment horse.  I need to get rid of this in order to start thinking about my new car!

Total Joint Net Worth - $292,160.  A -1.7% drop since December!  We were so close to $300k - soon enough.

That being said - my goal for 2015 is to increase my liquidity.  I've got a hefty retirement fund and stable earnings.  I'd like to increase my emergency fund and cash accounts.  With a new baby on the way, I'm more concerned about handling the month to month stuff than my retirement right now.  I'll still contribute 7% of my paycheck, but need to build up savings for future projects/cars.

November 2014 Net Worth Review

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $25,698 ($127)
Investments - $159,391 ($10,449)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $49,487 (-$1,113)
Less: Liabilities - $306,640 (-$4,302)

Assets -

Cash - A couple large car repairs led to us holding steady in cash.  The Acura needed four (4) new tires and my car needed tires and brakes/rotors within a 6 week period.  So, in addition to paying down debt in September, October was about managing our cash while maintaining out savings.

Investments - Amazing to see how this area has grown!  Over $125k in retirement assets, nearly $18k towards Baby #1's college savings.  Steady growth is what I hope for and love seeing the markets help out!

Personal Assets - 

Just lowering the value of cars....

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $287,971 - I STILL hate this beast.  Slow and steady.

Student Loans - $3,426 (-$2,028) - We've made significant progress in this area and the 6.55% grad loans are a $215?  I'll be paying this off and just haven't due to laziness and desire to build cash.  Undergrad loans are at 1.26% - so the $4/month interest paid is worth waiting to pay it down.

Acura Loan - $12,244   Made some strides in this area and will be continuing this moving forward now that Student Loans have been reduced.
 

Total Joint Net Worth - $293,935.  A 4.9% improvement in three months!  One month to go in 2014 and $300k looks achievable - although tough.

August 2014 New Worth Review

Wow, its actually been 3 months since our last review.  This should make for some interesting fluctuations....

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $25,571 (-$3,410) 
Investments - $148,942 ($9,134)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $50,600 (-$925)
Less: Liabilities - $310,942 (-$8,197)

Assets -

Cash - We really need to monitor our cash as the Prof has started her new Part-Time position and our monthly income has decreased by 15%.  We've made significant debt progress, so the need to get crazy there is gone, but maintaining our diligence is as important as ever.

Investments - Markets continue to market!  Plus, I've finally qualified for my company 401k match, so our monthly contributions just doubled!  I love it!

Personal Assets - 

Just lowering the value of cars....

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $289,198 - I hate this beast.  Slow and steady.

Student Loans - $5,454 (-$3,703) - Continue to get loco with the graduate student loans in preparation for job change.  My 6.55% (set up monthly direct debits to lower the rate) graduate student loans are at $1,954!!  Should be gone by end of September!

Acura Loan - $13,290   Very slow progress here as I had to dial it back due to some unexpected expenses during the summer.  We had a home improvement project take over our basement in June and we created an awesome living space for the family.  I love it, but not the check book impact.

PNC (Screw You) Loan - $0 - Eff You.

Total Joint Net Worth - $280,171.  A 11% improvement in three months!  WOW!  That is awesome and its a nice kick in the pants as I was feeling worried about the part-time change and other things.  THat's incredible and I think $300,000 is totally achievable by the end of the year if the market continue to rock out!  Even still, our debt progress is encouraging and really gets me excited.

May 2014 Net Worth Review

I just realized now that I did not post last month.  Spring has come and gone and Summer will soon be upon us.

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $28,981 (-$3,338) 
Investments - $139,808 ($2,498)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $51,525 (-$842)
Less: Liabilities - $319,139 (-$8,410)

Assets -

Cash - Our cash balance took a bite but its been for good reason.  As I mentioned previously, we decided that we have a solid emergency fund and that we should be knocking out our debts faster.  So, I'm okay with the cash balance, although we had a bad spend month, the overall progress was very good.

Investments - We've made normal 401k contributions during the month, but otherwise, its the markets doing their thing!  I'm very proud of our retirement situation and am actually considering dialing back a little bit as the Prof and I consider some family/career goals and how we can gain financial freedom.  Her monthly contributions are around $160, which is always good, but would the extra $125 be utilized more as extra debt payment and allow her to stop working faster.  It's a personal finance no-no to stop contributing to retirement, but sometimes we need to reevaluate priorities.

Personal Assets - 

Just lowering the value of cars....

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $290,412 - I hate this beast.  Slow and steady.

Student Loans - $9,184 (-$5,036) - BAM! BAM!  One of my two graduate loans is GONE!  We had a balance of $18k in June of last year and $14k in December.  Now- GONE!  That feels so good!

Acura Loan - $13,485   Nothing crazy.  Just the usual payments being made.

PNC (Screw You) Loan - $3,058- I hate writing these checks and will be glad when all my PNC accounts are closed.

Total Joint Net Worth - $252,213.  A 5.9% improvement in two months.  I'm pleasantly surprised!  We had an unpleasant family event this past month and performed some home improvement projects to appease our mental state.  It helped, but did put a dent in our credit card.  Not proud of that, but we'll continue our steady upward climb to major financial freedom.

March 2014 Net Worth Review

Spring is here!  Baseball is back!  It's March Net Worth Time!!!

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $32,319 (-$2) 
Investments - $137,310 ($1,520)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $52,367 (-$1,767)
Less: Liabilities - $327,549 (-$6,715)

Assets -

Cash - Our best cash flow month yet!  That's crazy to see a change of $2 considering everything that happened.  First, we finalized our taxes to the tune of a $4,500 Refund!!! Easily the highest refund I have ever received and something that definitely helped eliminate our debts this month.  I've written before about why I like getting a refund and don't treat it like an "interest free loan to the government".  However, this year's refund is probably little higher than I'd like, it's also out of the ordinary considering everything that went into it.  3 years of grad school, Baby Boy and some capital losses (caused by moving) caused the spike in return - I'm not complaining, but I'm also not going to change my W-2 because not all those things will happen again.

Investments - Considering I invested $1,500 into my IRA and I made $980 weekly contributions into my 401(k), this month was not a great month for the market, but also not a terrible month.  Markets be crazy!!

Personal Assets - 

Just lowering the value of cars....

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $291,214 -   Ho Hum.  I've seen other places that quote this at Home Equity (Home Value less Mortgage), and it's six-and-half-one-dozen-the-other in my mind.  I like looking at it as debt because then I can have a goal = $0.  With equity, my goal would be $1,000,000; which is unattainable.

Student Loans - $14,220 (-$4,220) - BAM!  We beat this up in March.  The prof and I are on the same page about lowering this to $0 before Baby #2 and we are okay with less emergency fund, we'd like around $10k available.  So, I used the refund this month to spear the b*tch, but we'll utilize some E-Funds (mostly cash flow though) to knock this out by Sept.

Acura Loan - $14,622   We'll continue to make larger than needed payments to the Acura, but won't get ultra aggressive until the 6.8% student loans are gone.  Just math.  This should still be gone by mid-year 2015.

PNC (Screw You) Loan - $7,859 - I hate writing these checks and will be glad when all my PNC accounts are closed.

Total Joint Net Worth - $252,213.  A 1.2% improvement in one month.  Nothing to go crazy about, but I feel better about our position and our strategy going forward!

February 2014 Net Worth Review

It's March 2nd and we're expecting 6" to 10" of snow today.  Not cool.  It's been a wild two months of 2014 and as such, I missed the boat on my January Net Worth Review.  Little Guy turned 1 on February 7th and the Prof turned 30 on the 22nd!!  It's been a great month (among the snow and ice) and we are excited for the rest of the year.

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $32,321 (-$839) 
Investments - $135,790 ($10,210)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $52,367 ($3,968)
Less: Liabilities - $334,264 ($1,960)

Assets -

Cash - January & February were pretty boring months in terms of cash flow.  We've been very aggressive with my student loan payments as you will see below, so our cash levels haven't increased that much.  We're actually happy with our level of cash at this point and would like to use some of the excess to pay down Debt and build investments.  Having an emergency fund is important, but with the new house - our next big purchase need will be construction projects or my new car, which won't be for at least 18 months.  So, eliminating debt is high priority right now.  

Investments - Wow.  January was a sour month for the market place, but February roared back strong.  I've done some consolidating to my accounts this year and transferred my PNC IRA to a Vanguard IRA and then rolled over my 401k as well.  Now, I have fewer accounts and achieved a lower expense ratio as a result of increased holdings!  BAM and BAM!

Personal Assets - 

We got some jewelry appraised as part of our new insurance policy.  The value of our wedding rings and other items increased significantly than my original estimates.  Although we wouldn't sell these items unless absolutely necessary, its also nice knowing that its there.

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $291,612 -   More small gains.  We may attack this harder in the future, but for now, I'm okay with interest rate and a roof over my head.

Student Loans - $18,344 - We've paid down this by $5,732 in only two months!  I'm really excited to watch this go down and we should make another large payment in March when our Tax Refund comes in.  As I said before, we're comfortable with our current savings and using some of that to lower our debt to $0 in 2014 is goal.

Acura Loan - $15,188   We'll continue to make larger than needed payments to the Acura, but won't get ultra aggressive until the 6.8% student loans are gone.  Just math.  This should still be gone by mid-year 2015.
 
PNC (Screw You) Loan - $9,120 - So, the Education Assistance that PNC provided was bogus.  They changed their policy and are forcing me to pay back over $9k of the $15k that was provided.  This is why I will be closing all my PNC accounts in March.

Total Joint Net Worth - $252,213.  A 4.9% improvement since December.  Steady growth even with the unexpected liability (still bitter).  I expect our Net Worth to continue to grow as debt goes down and investments go up!  It's an exciting time for our household!!

December 2013 Net Worth Review

I'm really late on the New Year's review!  I'm sorry but it's been a crazy few weeks with finishing grad school, turning 30!!, and starting a new job!!  Did I mention that was all in the same week!

Regardless, the review should have been done and there are no excuses - so let's review and I'll fill you in on the details later!!

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $33,160 ($6,034) 
Investments - $125,580 ($3,830)
Home Value - $366,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $48,399 ($0)
Less: Liabilities - $332,304 (-$3,441)

Assets -

Cash - We saw a crazy influx of cash during the month and the major contributor to that was a $5,000 bonus for starting my job, a $3,000 birthday gift from my parents and a $1,000 christmas gift.  The other question is where did it all go - well, we stepped up our graduate school loan payback and will do additional paybacks next month.  So, I'm very happy with our cash position, but will not maintain such a high balance.  

Investments - A good month for the market place.  This was almost solely due to the markets as I have not started my 401(k) at my new work yet, so our contributions were limited.  Little Guy got a nice boost in his college fund from his godfather though!!!

Personal Assets - 

No change here.  Just lazy.

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $292,010 -   Small gains but still loving the house!

Student Loans - $24,076 - We made a big payment in December and have another ready in January.  Our high-interest loans should be around $16k by the end of January.  I'm proud of that considering they were once at $32k!!

Acura Loan - $16,218   Nothing unusual here.  Lower on the priority list but still making monthly progress.  The loan is actually structured so that we don't have to make another payment until August since we've "prepaid" so much already.
  

Total Joint Net Worth - $240,835.  A beautiful 10.3% improvement in December.  I'm pumped how well we are doing and our ability to progress going forward.  I can't expect the market to continue its crazy upward trend, but the debt reduction will definitely continue.  I just have to remember the immortal words of Ferris Buellers - "Life moves pretty fast.  If you don't stop to look around every once in a while, you might miss it."

November 2013 Net Worth Review

No time for chit-chat.  November (and Thanksgiving) was great.  The Prof and I have so much to be thankful for!  We love our little boy and have already got the Christmas decorations up and ready for the 1st Christmas with the Little Guy.

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $27,126 ($1,334) 
Investments - $121,750 ($6,157)
Home Value - $336,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $48,399 ($0)
Less: Liabilities - $335,745 (-$1,601)

Assets -

 

Cash - I love 3 paycheck months!  We were able to make larger than normal student loan and car payments this month while building cash!  

Investments - Great month for the markets.  Other than usual retirement building, these gains are solely attributable to the equity markets.  and I LOVE IT!!!  Keep it coming!

Personal Assets - 

No change here.  We'll check the car values next month and the home price will stay at sale value for some time.

Liabilities -

Mortgage - $292,391 -   This is going to be fun...Small gains here now and in the future.

Student Loans - $26,627 - Still making payments here and Prof and I have talked about eliminating the Grad School Debts in 2014 as priority #1.  Those loans are at 6.8% as opposed to my undergrad loans of 1.26%.

Acura Loan - $16,727   A larger than normal payment of $750 led to slightly higher gains here.
  

Total Joint Net Worth - $227,529.  A very nice 4.2% improvement in November.  We met our goal of $224k and appear poised for more!  Real excited for the future!

Mud on the Mountain was Great!  I finished in around 2 hours and 15 minutes.  It was definitely rough and I was not a fun of my injured thumb for the next two weeks.  I would definitely do another Mud Run in the future if I can find teammates to run it with me.  I enjoyed the thrill of the run, but would have liked to have run with others.

October 2013 Net Worth Review

Wow.  That just happened!  Somehow it's been two months since I did a review and the whole Coach World went crazy!  Here's a quick recap of the last two months:
1.  We bought and sold a house!  NBD!  We moved to USC two weeks ago after six intense weeks of negotiating, estimating, planning and waiting.  It was a long road, but we made it through unscathed.
2.  I completed a whole High School Football Season.  The Prof hasn't killed me for not being around 8 days out of the week.
3.  Our Baby Boy has grown like a weed!  He's almost 9 months old, 23 lbs and fun as heck.

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $25,795 ($8,523) 
Investments - $115,593 ($1,302)
Home Value - $336,000 ($169,000)
Personal Assets - $48,399 ($-3,462)
Less: Liabilities - $337,346 ($160,229)

Assets -

Cash - Obviously, with the sale and close of houses, we saw significant cash movement the past two months.  The total cash received from the sale of our old house was $76,055.81 after all costs considered.  We paid $87,319.54 for our new house.  So, for the exchange of homes we paid $11,263.73 out of cash.  In October, we've also received $959.75 related to the closing reimbursements and insurance exchange (we changed insurance companies).  In Sept., we closed an investment for $5,534 - also being an increase to cash.

Investments -As noted above, we closed one investment for the home buying process.  Otherwise, the markets were able to grow and make up that outflow (I know I lose opportunity for growth).  We also received a nice 529 increase for our Baby Boy.

Personal Assets - 

Obviously, the value of our home went up significantly.  I'm using the sale price of the home vs. Zillow estimate because Zillow was very wrong on our house.  The car value went down more than expected, but I can't complain about that ever.

Liabilities -
Mortgage - $292,800 -   Well, the old number is gone and it has been replaced by a monster!  I'm not thrilled by this new value....not one bit.  However, (allow me to rationalize real quick) we got a deal on the home and our interest rate is still decent with no points or anything.

Student Loans - $27,102- We made good progress here.  After the close, I used some excess cash to double up one a payment.  Prof and I have made this a priority the next two years as we don't want multiple kids with these hanging around our necks.

Acura Loan - $17,438.  Same as above.  Going to get aggressive.
  

Total Joint Net Worth - $218,441.  I should wait two months all the time!  A $15k (or 7%) jump since August 2013.  Close to our year-end goal of $224k!  The whole process of buying/selling a home was a whirlwind and something that I do not want to do again!  My stress levels were through the roof!  Right now, its time to concentrate on my family, friends and career.

Before I do - I'm going to one last stupid thing before turning 30.  Mud On the Mountain at Seven Springs tomorrow!  7.5 mile run with 24 obstacles scattered throughout the mountain.  It will be muddy, it will be exhausting and the Prof will be right that I am stupid.  And I CAN'T WAIT.  I don't get to push myself athletically or physically too often (or ever) anymore.  Work piles up and my football days are long gone.  Before I turn 30 and the best (physically) days are behind me - I figured I would this challenge.  Nervous but exciting.

July 2013 Net Worth Review

I'm still working out the kinks in the system, but I think we are all ready for a little look-back into the month that was!!! July was crazy. We completed our central air installation and wrote a few hefty checks. In addition, our property tax bills came due and some money went out the door. Lastly, my Speed Hustle was not as fruitful as I had hoped due to vacations and cancellations. All is not lost though - Little Guy continues to be amazing!!!

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $17,272 $(4,323) ($0)
Investments - 114,291 (5,850)
Home Value - $197,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $51,861 ($0)
Less: Liabilities - $177,117 ($1,331)

Assets -

Cash - Most of that decrease is for paying the last portion of Central Air. Otherwise, we actually saw an increase of cash of $500. That's not ideal considering we should see an increase of $1,500 to $2,000 based upon Prof salary, but I'll take increases.

Investments -Nicely done markets! No contributions other than retirement 401k and 403b, so I'm very happy to see the market doing work!
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Personal Assets - 

No change to house or assets. Still looking for the next house, but until we actually sell it, I'm going to let the valuation stay where it is. Also, I need to update the car values, but I got lazy, sue me.div>

Liabilities -
Mortgage - $129,603 -   Ho-hum. Just paying it down and earnign more back when we sell.

Student Loans - $28,402- Depressing to think I paid $96 in interest in July. That motivates me to stay the course and try to get rid of these darn graduate student loans FAST.

Acura Loan - $18,970.  Another $1k milestone achieved. Celebrate a little.
  

Total Joint Net Worth - $203,307.  A small $2,858 increase is awesome considering all these extraneous things that we did in July. Obviously, the markets have a profound impact on our overall movement, but every little payment helps and I love it. It's definitely been tough the past few weeks staying the course while also dreaming of what it will be like when there are no more payments. I'm tired of the rat race or feeling like I'm running up a mountain; I want freedom..

Summer Rants

New mid-month blog post everyone!  I'm going to try and new bulleted-style and see how I like it.  Here goes nothing! 

• We have Central AIR!!  (Hallelujah!) and just in time.  They finished the implementation of the system and two days later a crazy heat/humidity wave hit the area!  Although it was brutal outside, we were nice a cozy at 75 degrees inside!  I can't believe we waited three years for this
• However, no housing project on a 95 year home go smoothly.  Although the AC system is in place and working - our electrician informed us that that our electrical panel would need to be upgraded (for $1500) and that our old Knob-and-Tube wiring would need to be removed (at $2,000, but up to $10,000 if we were crazy).  Just what I want to hear after shelling out $8k.
• The Pirates are 19 games over .500 and right on the heels of the Cardinals for the division lead.  I remain skeptical that the current roster can play .600 baseball over 162 games, but I am loving the ride and hoping for the best every night.  My skepticism comes from years of let downs and the fact that the line-up has glaring holes (RF & 1B)
• Friday morning was like every other morning.  I woke up and spent some time with the Boy.  I got dressed for work and prepared to let our dog out so she could do her business.  Then, I noticed - The Water!!   The cold water hose to the washing machine had frayed and water was spraying all over my kitchen.  By spraying, I mean visiously dispensing water and soaking everything in its path - including the garage below it.  I felt like I was in a mad Three Stooges episode as I tried to turn the water off while getting hosed in the face!
• $15 for new hoses (steel this time) and unknown damage to the garage ceiling await. 
• The Summer Semester is coming to a close.  I have a final tonight and tomorrow and then I get 4 weeks off.  Only one semester remains until I consider myself a Master of Business Administration!  Not too shabby!!!  It's been a grind, but I've definitely enjoyed the experience and am happy I did it.  However, I am looking forward to bigger and better.
• When it rains, it pours.  Or leaks.  As in, my basement lets in water EVERY time it rains.  It comes from the cracks in the walls.  It comes from the floor!  (Have I mentioned I hate old homes)  I'm not sure how or why this problem has arisen all the sudden - but it could be an easy fix (waterproof the walls) or ugly fix (dig up foundation). 
• Have I mentioned how miserable homeownership can be?
• I'm signed up for Mud on the Mountain in November!  A 7.7 mile run with 26 obstacles in between.  What could be more exciting! It's going to be tough but I'm happy with the training workouts and the change of pace that it has provided.  Bench press was getting boring.
• My Referee Side Hustle is starting up.  I'm having meetings with my crew and already have 9 games lined up for the season.  I'm real excited to be working Friday nights this year!  It should be enjoyable and exciting venture this fall!

June 2013 Net Worth Review

This is very late.  We were on vacation in Hilton Head Island, SC over the first week of July and I was having connection issues at the office this past week.  So, I apologize for the tardy post, but the NW Review is here!!  Lots to discuss!!

 

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $21,595 ($906)

Investments - $108,441 (-$5,838)
Home Value - $197,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $51,861 ($0)
Less: Liabilities - $178,448 ($1,323)

Assets -

Cash - This is a little misleading.  The cash is inflated as the work done on the house was not completed yet and the money to pay the contractor sits in my checking account.  Also, our credit card bills have been higher than normal this summer - which I'm hopeful is just the Summer Blues!

Investments - The big change here is that traded $4,700 from our savings account in order to pay for home repairs.  What home repairs you ask?  CENTRAL AIR!  That's right.  Our home is now fully equipped with central air and the greatness and cool-ness that it provides.  Yes, it forced us to tap into our savings a little bit, but it cemented the return that we will be able to get when we sell it.

Also, June was a very up and down month in the market.  Just more worry that BBB (Big Bad Bernanke) will stop printing money and everything will slow down.  I'm not concerned.

Personal Assets - 

No change posted here.  We had a second realtor come through the house and confirm the $225k valuation.  However, for consistency, I'd rather keep the home value as is and just reap the rewards when we sell it.

Liabilities -
Mortgage - $129,985 - Below $130k!  Celebrate a little.

Student Loans - $28,771- A boring month compared to May.  I did get the Fed to recognize that I am a Part-Time Student again, which means that I won't be making payments on my 1.51% loans anymore, but I will snowball that payment into my 6.8% grad loan (the unsubsidized one).

Acura Loan - $19,474.  Boring...
  

Total Joint Net Worth - $200,449.  So our overall NW fell this past month, but in actuality, it rose.  Confusing, I know.  The summer spending has me a little worried, if only because Cash is a premium this month as several large bills (Real Estate Taxes and Fall Tuition) have come due.  They are all planned for, but it still creates a large hole in our savings account that will need to be replenished.

I'm still happy with the debt repayment schedule.  As much as I would like to cash in Life Insurance policies and deduct a big chunk, I'm more comfortable waiting until the house situation is resolved.  It's boring in the midst of the process, but necessary to be able to break through.  Stay the course.

May 2013 Net Worth Review

Wow....what a month!  Here's a quick review:

1.  The Professor went back to work.  Still not sure she will stick with teaching full-time but we both enjoyed getting back on a schedule and making some extra income this month.

2.  Logan went to his first full month of Day Care.  His "teachers", Elaine and Heather are very nice and his "friends" Henry, Nathan, Iyla, and Corinne make Logan a very happy boy and also very tired.

3.  We continued the house search.  We even almost put an offer on one.  The markets are kind of out of control and finding that "forever" home has been a challenge.  For the money, we want to get a "fixer-upper" but it's hard because there aren't that many houses with space in our price range.

4.  I decided to put my Graduate studies into over-drive.  By taking an extra class in June and one in the Fall, I will be eligible to graduate in December!!  I'm really excited to close out this chapter as it has been a major stressload and it is tough being away with the little guy! 

5.  The Pirates went 18-7 in May!  They are one of the best teams in baseball and continue to be a joy to watch!! Hopefully it can continue!!!

 

Here's to the Numbers!!

Cash - $20,689 ($2,589)

Investments - $114,279 (+$2,587)
Home Value - $197,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $51,861 ($-251)
Less: Liabilities - $179,771 ($-1,221)

Assets -

Cash - We received three additional paychecks this month thanks to The Prof returning back to work!  Also, I reviewed the CSV on our Life Insurance policies and saw some incremental increases!  All in all, it was a good month although we had some larger expenses last month that needed to paid off and I made some extra payments on student loans (one interest only).

 

Investments - The markets were even for May.  Although we had some growth early, the markets fell during the last week as concerns about Bernanke's fiscal policy!  We continued to invest in our retirement accounts and saw growth within various accounts.  Slow and Steady wins the race in this game.

Personal Assets - 

No change here.  We are continuing to search for a new house, but no reason to alter the current valuation.  Also, basic depreciation holds steady for our cars.

 

Liabilities -
Mortgage - $130,354 - Another mortgage payment.....
Student Loans - $29,171- Lots of action, lot of action!!  First, we paid off a Student Loan!  One of our 6.8% graduate loans is paid down!  Boom!  Then, I made payments on the other graduate loans.  So, some payments had no interest attached and one $500 payment was interest only!  I guess that's what I get for waiting to make a payment.  Still on track to pay down all loans by July 2015!

Acura Loan - $19,978.  Below $20,000!!!!  Just another payment....

  

Total Joint Net Worth - $204,508!!  We crossed the $200k threshold!!! I'm so excited that I could do a little jig!!!!   

Property Taxes - Really?

The Prof and I are looking for a house.  We like our current home, but also know that it is not our forever home.  So, the Prof scours the Internet in search of the “dream house”. 

We live in an area that wasn’t crushed by the recent housing bubble.  Property values didn’t increase or decrease to a considerable degree over the past decade or so.  However, the area we live in has several of the top public school districts in the state.  Therefore, the home values can differ greatly depending on whether or not you are in one of these districts.

The schools make realty in certain districts very competitive.  Luckily, we currently live in one of those districts and have seen that home value appreciation in recent years.  However, that makes buying the “dream home” tough.

The biggest hurdle to our home buying process is property taxes.  We’ve found several homes that were very nice and crossed off a majority of key things the Prof and I required.  However, they also come with property taxes at over $12k a year. 

That’s the steep price of quality public education.

That’s so hard to wrap my head around.  For reference, our $170k home has property taxes of $3,500.  We’re mostly searching for $300k to $400k homes.  The mortgage and interest payment associated with homes in that range would be manageable and wouldn’t hinder our current living situation.  ON THE OTHER HAND – those taxes create some difficulties.

In my experience, that is one thing that real estate agents do not discuss enough.  Several of their websites only post monthly mortgage and interest estimates.  That is deceiving to a potential homebuyer.  Unlike a mortgage, you cannot pay down the principle of property taxes.  They are consistent, every year, and likely to go up every so often.

Failure to pay your property taxes is a serious issue and can result in foreclosure.  However, you don’t hear individuals consider the amount of property taxes when purchasing a home.

Be careful in your home search to do your due diligence and ensure that the home value is reasonable, but also that the taxes are management as well

April 2013 Net Worth Review

Logan started his first day of day care today.  It really reminded me how important our personal finances are and that I REALLY want to eliminate debt and grow our net worth.  The sooner I can get the Prof. out of the classroom and home with the man, I will be a happy camper.

Cash - $18,100 ($596)

Investments - $111,692 (+$1,146)
Home Value - $197,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $52,112 ($0)
Less: Liabilities - $180,992 ($-1,645)

Assets -

Cash - Very interesting.  The only month in which the Prof did not receive any funds on her maternity leave, our cash balance increases.  The only additional funds we received was a $400 tax refund from an amendment I processed on my 2010 tax return.  I did sell my golf clubs and win a Masters Pool, so that could explain $200.  Otherwise, we would have broken even.

 

Investments - More growth in the markets!  Also, we did transfer some money around this month though.  I cashed in our investment in Muhlenkamp Fund and made our annual IRA contribution, for the 2012 tax year.  So, $4k has been transferred from Investments to Retirement.  The only negative is the progress of our "wedding present".  Shares of II-VI have plummeted based upon March 31 financial results and the stock continues to be beaten up for its low earnings potential in 2013.  Very frustrating.

Personal Assets - 

No change here.  We are continuing to search for a new house, but no reason to alter the current valuation.  Also, we'll review the cars next month on the bi-monthly cycle.

Liabilities -
Mortgage - $130,734 - Another mortgage payment.....
Student Loans - $29,384- Very nice to see this fall below $30k!  Also, I'll be paying off one of the Graduate Loans on May 2nd!  As I said last month, its time to get aggressive with this.

Acura Loan - $20,486.  Back to the usual $550 payment.

 

The Prof and I have set out on becoming debt free.  As we have gotten serious in the house search, we have realized how much farther our money would go without these payments every month.  The minimum pay-off period is set at April 2016.  Three Years from today.  That's the minimum!  I hope to get it done in 2015.  It's going to be hard, but I know we can do it!  I'll break down the amortization some other time.

 

Total Joint Net Worth - $197,983

OHHHH!! Almost at $200k!!  That would be awesome!!!  The wife starts her job again in May - so the extra income will be nice!  We're still on track for our 2013 goal of $225k!

Let's Do This

I am tired.

I am tired of feeling like I have no money.

I am tired of disappointing my life because she thinks we have no money.

I want to enjoy life.

I do not want to stress about making debt payments.

I do not want to cringe every time my wife wants to look at a house.

I do not want to see the look on her face when I say we can’t afford it.

I make $62,700 a year in a job I do not love.  I enjoy it at times.  However, I don’t get any satisfaction from it.  I worry that I won’t find my passion.  I worry that my passion won’t be able to provide for my family.

I have a $20,000 car loan and $30,000 in student loan debt that needs to be paid off.  I have a mortgage for $131,000.

My wife wants to buy a $360,000 house.  It’s a great house.  It has lots of space and the neighborhood is fantastic.

How come all I can think about is “how the heck am I going to afford the mortgage?”  How can I pay those taxes?  How much is insurance going to cost me?

I don’t want to live like that.  I don’t want to live like this.  I need to change.  I need to do something.

I’m going to start blogging again to try and find my passion.  I am going to vent more.  I am going to research things more.  I am going to have fun more.

I’m not going to solely talk about money and finances.  I started this blog to talk about everything.  I’m going to post my weight-lifting goals and achievements.  I’m going to research home-brewing and bourbon.  I’m going to talk about money – because it comes up – but it’s not going to consume me.

I’m not going to settle.  I’m not going to be average.  My little boy upstairs is not going to have a dad who is miserable and can’t provide for him.

I’m going to be better than that.  My son deserves better than that.  My wife deserves better than that.  I deserve better than that.

List of topics I want to blog about by the end of April:

1.     Property Taxes and how they effect the home buying process

2.     The weight lifting program I need to get into beach shape.

3.     The best bourbon for my dollar.

4.     The Pirates

5.     Derivatives.

I am tired.  So, I’m going to go to bed.  April 17, 2013 is the beginning of my journey to make sure my wife can be a stay at home mom.

March Net Worth Review

Here's an updated picture of the reason we are all here:

There he is!!  It's amazing how fast they grow up!  It's true though - all the investment monitoring and budget checking is done for him.  So that he can grow up with the necessities he needs to grow up strong and with the same opportunities that his mother and I had growing up.  I want him to go to college and not be stressed about loans or food money.  I want him to dream big and then work to achieve those dreams!

For the March breakdown:

Cash - $17,504 (-$3,837)

Investments - $110,546 (+$6,715)
Home Value - $197,000 ($0)
Personal Assets - $52,112 ($1,289)
Less: Liabilities - $182,567 ($-2,087)


Assets -

Cash - Lots of greenbacks flying around this month!  So, March is the month my bonus and raises go into effect - so that was a nice bump to offset the loss of the Prof's pay since she's not back working.  The major change is just a re-allocation from cash into RLS's 529 Account!  The original contribution of $3,000 was set aside in Growth, so not a big deal.

Investments - On March 30, 2012, the S&P set an all-time high!  The markets are doing their thing and we are doing ours!  As I said before, we set up RLS's 529 Account.  We have a good mix of growth mutual funds to help him pay for ND in 18 years!  (That's probably a good blog post in the future - the funds I picked and why).  Otherwise, I am still contributing to retirement and I made a small transfer to House Fund.

Personal Assets - 

I have no idea why the cars would go up in value.  The Sonata was only driven 3x, so it shouldn't be depreciating too much - but that's not really how it works.  It's really just odd.

Liabilities -
Mortgage - $131,100 - Another mortgage payment.....
Student Loans - $30,112- I nice decrease here.  An extra $500 payment made this balance decrease sharply.  The Prof and I talked about paying down high interest loans faster and trying to get debt free in 3 years.  So, I'm going to take a more aggressive approach to these bad boys so that I can buy a bigger house and make larger college and retirement savings contributions in the future!

Acura Loan - $20,988.  I paid down an extra $200 in order to get the balance below $21k!  Every little bit helps!!
Total Joint Net Worth - $194,596

Well, well, well!!  Not too bad considering the wife is on maternity leave!  Obviously, our investments are making greater headwinds as the Joy of Compounding Interest takes effect!!  Otherwise, we're going to continue paying down loans and paying less interest!!