Paid Twice's post about the economic stimulus check reminded me that I should post about what I plan to do with mine.
I've seen lots of articles about how you should spend it to stimulate the economy or how putting it on debt and/or saving it actually does stimulate the economy. Truthfully, I have no idea what to make of all of it, and I really couldn't care. I think the whole idea of the stimulus package is pretty stupid. It's just a political move in the big game that is the election.
That said, I'll gladly take any money that comes my way, and I'll definitely be putting every penny of this check toward debt. I have goals and a plan, and it doesn't matter where the money comes from or what it's "supposed" to be for. Any money that comes into my budget goes straight out to achieve those goals.
Showing posts with label goals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label goals. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Monday, April 14, 2008
April Budget Challenge Update
I've mentioned before that I'm participating in Give Me Back My Five Bucks' April Budget Challenge, and so far, I'm doing really well. My goal was to stick to $20 for blow money.
So far I've only spent $1.08 for a Redbox rental a couple weeks ago. I went to get a movie and none of the codes I had worked, so I paid for the rental. I should have walked out without the movie cause it really wasn't that important to rent a movie right then and there, but it was only a dollar, so it was an inexpensive lesson learned.
We're halfway through the month, so if I can keep this up, I'll have some money left over to add to next month's blow money. With almost $40 I could buy a TV on DVD set or some comic books I've been missing out on. I'd probably buy Prison Break Season Two or a few issues of Buffy Season Eight. Hmm... choices, choices.
So far I've only spent $1.08 for a Redbox rental a couple weeks ago. I went to get a movie and none of the codes I had worked, so I paid for the rental. I should have walked out without the movie cause it really wasn't that important to rent a movie right then and there, but it was only a dollar, so it was an inexpensive lesson learned.
We're halfway through the month, so if I can keep this up, I'll have some money left over to add to next month's blow money. With almost $40 I could buy a TV on DVD set or some comic books I've been missing out on. I'd probably buy Prison Break Season Two or a few issues of Buffy Season Eight. Hmm... choices, choices.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
April Budget Challenge
I've decided to join Krystal and her readers at Give Me Back My Five Bucks for the April Budget Challenge. My goal is to not go over my $20 blow money budget. I added that category in January to give myself a little room to wiggle, mostly for entertainment expenses, but I've gone over budget every month since.
$40 TV on DVD sets are my enemy disguised as my friend. Oh, how I love them. Especially after depriving myself of them from August through December. I still don't own Prison Break Season Two or Heroes Season One. Tragic, I know.
From now on, though, I'm going to have to save up for two months to get them! I'll keep you in the loop as the month goes on, and let you know how I'm doing on this.
$40 TV on DVD sets are my enemy disguised as my friend. Oh, how I love them. Especially after depriving myself of them from August through December. I still don't own Prison Break Season Two or Heroes Season One. Tragic, I know.
From now on, though, I'm going to have to save up for two months to get them! I'll keep you in the loop as the month goes on, and let you know how I'm doing on this.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Apologies and Updates
Apologies for the lack of posts the last couple of days. I've felt like I don't really have anything to say, although that's not completely true. I guess I just don't have anything topical to say, i.e. I've been lacking specific topics or overarching ideas for posts. This blog, however, was never meant to contain great philosophical or financial material, so that's really not an excuse. This blog was meant to chronicle my journey toward debt freedom and beyond, and certainly I can find something to say about that.
On that note, I'd like to share some exciting news. As of Friday, I completed one of my goal progress bars! After receiving a lot of the money I've made from my December Alternative Income goal (which is also nearly complete - see next paragraph), I sent a final payment of $488.67 to AES and they are now out of my life forever! That company has been particularly irritating to work with; they have terrible customer service, and they were very unaccommodating when I tried to get a forbearance or deferment during a financial hardship a couple years ago, so it's nice to be rid of them. Best of all, I have $190 to add to my debt snowball!
On the December Alternative Income side of things, the progress bar only reflects what has actually been deposited into my bank account thus far, but the real total is closer to $1200! My parents sold some of my furniture that was still at their place from when I moved, which was $150. I sold a couple things on eBay for over $300, and that money should be arriving in my account from PayPal today or tomorrow. Last but not least, I have over $600 in payments from Amazon that will be deposited next Monday! I'll keep updating the progress bar as things come in, but it should reach 100% in the next 24 hours.
That's all the updates I have for now. Keep the encouragement coming! I love reading your comments!
On that note, I'd like to share some exciting news. As of Friday, I completed one of my goal progress bars! After receiving a lot of the money I've made from my December Alternative Income goal (which is also nearly complete - see next paragraph), I sent a final payment of $488.67 to AES and they are now out of my life forever! That company has been particularly irritating to work with; they have terrible customer service, and they were very unaccommodating when I tried to get a forbearance or deferment during a financial hardship a couple years ago, so it's nice to be rid of them. Best of all, I have $190 to add to my debt snowball!
On the December Alternative Income side of things, the progress bar only reflects what has actually been deposited into my bank account thus far, but the real total is closer to $1200! My parents sold some of my furniture that was still at their place from when I moved, which was $150. I sold a couple things on eBay for over $300, and that money should be arriving in my account from PayPal today or tomorrow. Last but not least, I have over $600 in payments from Amazon that will be deposited next Monday! I'll keep updating the progress bar as things come in, but it should reach 100% in the next 24 hours.
That's all the updates I have for now. Keep the encouragement coming! I love reading your comments!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
December Alternative Income Update
My $600 December alternative income goal is going EXTREMELY well. As you can see from the side bar, I've made about $240 so far, but that doesn't include a couple things I'm expecting soon. Here's the breakdown:
And it could still climb higher. I've got another eBay auction with no bids yet, but similar auctions have sold for around $100 and there's still four days left. I've also got a few more things waiting for the right buyer on Amazon.com, as well as my skis that are up for sale on Craig's List. The total could potentially get above $1000!
Where's all that money going? The first chunk is going to AES. That company has been particularly irritating to work with, so when I send the final payment in the next few days I'll feel a huge sense of satisfaction. The rest of the money will be used to beef up my emergency fund. It's not at full capacity yet, and after fixing my computer I'll really want to get it back up to a comfortable level.
Onward with the money-making!
- Half Price Books - $58
- DVDs sold on Amazon.com - $182 (after fees and shipping)
- Christmas bonus from work - $200
- eBay auction - currently at $264 with four days left (before fees and shipping)
And it could still climb higher. I've got another eBay auction with no bids yet, but similar auctions have sold for around $100 and there's still four days left. I've also got a few more things waiting for the right buyer on Amazon.com, as well as my skis that are up for sale on Craig's List. The total could potentially get above $1000!
Where's all that money going? The first chunk is going to AES. That company has been particularly irritating to work with, so when I send the final payment in the next few days I'll feel a huge sense of satisfaction. The rest of the money will be used to beef up my emergency fund. It's not at full capacity yet, and after fixing my computer I'll really want to get it back up to a comfortable level.
Onward with the money-making!
Monday, December 3, 2007
Parents and Finances: What Do I Say?
I mentioned last week that I had a frustrating financial conversation with my mom over the holiday weekend.
A little background:
My parents have always been okay with money. They make about $75k a year between them, they have no car payments, their mortgage is only about $850 a month (with 8ish years left), and they have enough saved for retirement, but they have $35k on a HELOC. After listening to me ramble about personal finance like it was going out of style, a couple months ago my mom asked me to show her how my budget worked and how to set one up for herself. The first thing I did was ask her to think about what was important to her and what goals she wanted to set, but she sort of dismissed the idea and just wanted to do the budget. I walked her through the rest of the process and I've been giving her advice little by little (when asked) ever since.
Then this weekend she asked me about her savings accounts at credit unions. She has two savings accounts at two different credit unions, but doesn't use or need them for anything specific. She puts $25 a month in each of them to keep them active so that if they have an emergency and need to buy a new car, they can get a good rate from the credit union.
Basically she wanted to know if $25 was a good number to put in there, but there were so many things wrong with the whole scenario, I hardly knew where to start. All I could think was, EMERGENCY THAT WOULD FORCE YOU TO BUY A BRAND NEW CAR ON SHORT NOTICE????? Are you kidding me??
Of course I didn't say that. I tried to be polite and tactful about pointing out that she not only didn't need to buy a brand new car, but that she also didn't need to get a loan for one, and that there was no emergency that would FORCE her to do this, but the conversation quickly devolved into pointless arguing. Mom said that "at their age" they would never buy a used car again, and I said that the entire point of any of this was to not go into debt. I told her I couldn't understand what kind of emergency she was even talking about. She said a car accident. I said that's what insurance is for. She said they won't pay enough to cover a new car. I said they don't need a new car, and the argument went in circles from there.
I don't know if I'm not explaining things right or if she's not listening to me, but somehow the message is not getting across. I kept obsessing about this conversation for the next few days, trying to figure out what to say to her.
In the end I think the root of the problem is priorities. She and my dad have not sat down and figured out what their financial priorities are. They say they want to retire early, remodel their house, and buy a new car or two, but they already have $35k in debt. At the rate they're paying it off, they'll finish the same year they want to retire, and that's without buying any new cars or remodeling the house. If they do everything they're talking about but don't give up anything else to do it, they're on pace to be in debt when they retire, and I can't figure out how to get them to see that.
It's very frustrating to have them ask for my advice and then not take it. I know that I can't make them change their behavior, and that they're predisposed not to listen to financial advice from their daughter, but I don't want to give up trying to help them. I'm going to visit again for Christmas in a couple weeks, and I'm sure personal finance will come up in a conversation at some point. I want to say something that will spark a realization, but I don't know what that is. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
A little background:
My parents have always been okay with money. They make about $75k a year between them, they have no car payments, their mortgage is only about $850 a month (with 8ish years left), and they have enough saved for retirement, but they have $35k on a HELOC. After listening to me ramble about personal finance like it was going out of style, a couple months ago my mom asked me to show her how my budget worked and how to set one up for herself. The first thing I did was ask her to think about what was important to her and what goals she wanted to set, but she sort of dismissed the idea and just wanted to do the budget. I walked her through the rest of the process and I've been giving her advice little by little (when asked) ever since.
Then this weekend she asked me about her savings accounts at credit unions. She has two savings accounts at two different credit unions, but doesn't use or need them for anything specific. She puts $25 a month in each of them to keep them active so that if they have an emergency and need to buy a new car, they can get a good rate from the credit union.
Basically she wanted to know if $25 was a good number to put in there, but there were so many things wrong with the whole scenario, I hardly knew where to start. All I could think was, EMERGENCY THAT WOULD FORCE YOU TO BUY A BRAND NEW CAR ON SHORT NOTICE????? Are you kidding me??
Of course I didn't say that. I tried to be polite and tactful about pointing out that she not only didn't need to buy a brand new car, but that she also didn't need to get a loan for one, and that there was no emergency that would FORCE her to do this, but the conversation quickly devolved into pointless arguing. Mom said that "at their age" they would never buy a used car again, and I said that the entire point of any of this was to not go into debt. I told her I couldn't understand what kind of emergency she was even talking about. She said a car accident. I said that's what insurance is for. She said they won't pay enough to cover a new car. I said they don't need a new car, and the argument went in circles from there.
I don't know if I'm not explaining things right or if she's not listening to me, but somehow the message is not getting across. I kept obsessing about this conversation for the next few days, trying to figure out what to say to her.
In the end I think the root of the problem is priorities. She and my dad have not sat down and figured out what their financial priorities are. They say they want to retire early, remodel their house, and buy a new car or two, but they already have $35k in debt. At the rate they're paying it off, they'll finish the same year they want to retire, and that's without buying any new cars or remodeling the house. If they do everything they're talking about but don't give up anything else to do it, they're on pace to be in debt when they retire, and I can't figure out how to get them to see that.
It's very frustrating to have them ask for my advice and then not take it. I know that I can't make them change their behavior, and that they're predisposed not to listen to financial advice from their daughter, but I don't want to give up trying to help them. I'm going to visit again for Christmas in a couple weeks, and I'm sure personal finance will come up in a conversation at some point. I want to say something that will spark a realization, but I don't know what that is. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Spread Thin? Spend Less and Earn More (and Get a Bonus)
I’m feeling a little spread thin this month, and it’s making it hard to have patience. I really want to be throwing all of my money at my debt snowball, but unfortunately that’s just not possible right now.
A big reason for this is that I bought two plane tickets for much more than I budgeted for in the past two months. I had budgeted to spend about $300 on each, but I ended up spending about $400, and my plane ticket fund is now in the hole. I have enough in savings for other categories to float the difference so I haven’t overdrawn my bank account, but I do need to remedy the situation.
I know the smartest thing to do is to not only replenish my plane ticket fund, but also rebuild it enough to buy the next plane ticket very soon. Part of the reason I spent more than I budgeted for the previous two was that I waited too long to buy. If I throw a lot of money at that fund right now, I can buy my ticket for spring for about $250. That would save me money overall, so that’s what I’m going to do.
Still, it’s hard to have less to throw at the debt snowball than I’ve had in past months. I really want to keep making significant progress, so I need to find more money somewhere. As anyone who’s been around the PF blogosphere for long knows, there’s only two ways to get more money: spend less and earn more.
My lessened spending has come mostly from my Christmas budget. Not buying anything for myself on Black Friday gave me $40, and spending under budget on a few gifts for other people brings the total up to about $60 so far.
In the earn more category, I went through some boxes of stuff I’d left at my parents’ place when I moved last July and found some things to sell. I took eight boxes of books and CDs to Half Price Books and made $57, and I brought a few of the nicer books and CDs home and listed them on Amazon, but the big find was a piece of unopened graphics software that will probably net me about $200 on eBay. I’m also contemplating selling a few of my TV on DVD sets that I really like, but don’t rewatch often (or at all).
I’ve also heard from a very reliable source that my company is giving out a $200 bonus at the Christmas party in a couple of weeks. I’m not sure I really qualify that as “earning” more, but money is money and I’ll take it any (legal/moral) way I can get it.
My goal is to have an extra $600 from a combination of spending less and earning more (and getting a bonus) to add to my plane ticket fund and debt snowball by the end of December. That’s bigger than my usual snowball amount, so that will make me feel really good about my progress. I’ll update you at the end of the month on how I did, but if I forget to post about it, poke me and ask.
A big reason for this is that I bought two plane tickets for much more than I budgeted for in the past two months. I had budgeted to spend about $300 on each, but I ended up spending about $400, and my plane ticket fund is now in the hole. I have enough in savings for other categories to float the difference so I haven’t overdrawn my bank account, but I do need to remedy the situation.
I know the smartest thing to do is to not only replenish my plane ticket fund, but also rebuild it enough to buy the next plane ticket very soon. Part of the reason I spent more than I budgeted for the previous two was that I waited too long to buy. If I throw a lot of money at that fund right now, I can buy my ticket for spring for about $250. That would save me money overall, so that’s what I’m going to do.
Still, it’s hard to have less to throw at the debt snowball than I’ve had in past months. I really want to keep making significant progress, so I need to find more money somewhere. As anyone who’s been around the PF blogosphere for long knows, there’s only two ways to get more money: spend less and earn more.
My lessened spending has come mostly from my Christmas budget. Not buying anything for myself on Black Friday gave me $40, and spending under budget on a few gifts for other people brings the total up to about $60 so far.
In the earn more category, I went through some boxes of stuff I’d left at my parents’ place when I moved last July and found some things to sell. I took eight boxes of books and CDs to Half Price Books and made $57, and I brought a few of the nicer books and CDs home and listed them on Amazon, but the big find was a piece of unopened graphics software that will probably net me about $200 on eBay. I’m also contemplating selling a few of my TV on DVD sets that I really like, but don’t rewatch often (or at all).
I’ve also heard from a very reliable source that my company is giving out a $200 bonus at the Christmas party in a couple of weeks. I’m not sure I really qualify that as “earning” more, but money is money and I’ll take it any (legal/moral) way I can get it.
My goal is to have an extra $600 from a combination of spending less and earning more (and getting a bonus) to add to my plane ticket fund and debt snowball by the end of December. That’s bigger than my usual snowball amount, so that will make me feel really good about my progress. I’ll update you at the end of the month on how I did, but if I forget to post about it, poke me and ask.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Where Am I Going? – Part II: My Plan of Attack
In my crusade to pay off all of my debt, I’m combining basic strategies I’ve learned from PF blogs, Dave Ramsey, and Suze Orman into a plan that will work for my situation.
I’ve already got a small emergency fund ($400) and I’m contributing $25 a month to it indefinitely. This is a pretty small fund, but I’m very healthy, my car is in good condition, and I rent. Murphy can certainly come knocking on anyone’s door, including mine, but these things make it pretty unlikely I’ll have an emergency that my insurance and a few hundred dollars can’t solve.
My debt snowball is currently at a solid $250 a month, but I’ve been able to get it above $300 most months through alternative income.
First on the endangered debts list is the AES student loan. Of the debts with an interest rate, this one is both the smallest amount and the highest rate. It’s also the company that I despise the most because they’ve been difficult to work with in the past. I’ll be thrilled to rid myself of this one.
Next up is the US Bank credit card. This card is currently at 1.9% interest, but the rate expires in September of 2008, so I want to eliminate it before then.
After that I’ll pay off The Bank of My Friends. This is a small debt that’s technically at 0% interest because I sort of borrowed it from myself. As soon as the credit card debt is gone, I’ll knock this out with my next snowball payment.
At this point my parents’ patience will finally be paid (literally) off. They’ve been incredibly nice about the money they lent me; they aren’t charging interest and they’re letting me stop payments until the credit card is eliminated. This is the debt I’ll feel the most satisfied about paying off.
During the course of paying down the previous three debts, I’ll have been paying the minimums on my car loan and the Chase credit card, which was an eighteen-months-same-as-cash LCD TV purchase. The Chase debt will get eliminated by the time I write my last check to The Bank of Mom & Dad, and the car loan will be gone within a month or two after that.
At this point, which is about a year and a half away, my debt snowball will be at least $600 a month and the only thing left will be my two monstrous student loans. The private loan has a higher variable interest rate, so I’ll attack it first and have it gone in about three or three and a half years (five years from now).
Depending on what my job/salary situation is at that time, I’ll probably back off on the debt repayment slightly so that I can split my focus a little. I’ll use half of the snowball, which will be upwards of $1000 at this point, to pay down the federal student loan. I’ll use the other half to save a larger emergency fund, contribute to my 401(k), save for a car, and save for a down payment on a home (in that order). There’s a long road ahead before I get to that point, however, so for right now I’m taking it one step at a time.
I’m planning on being debt free except for the federal student loan in five years, and debt free except for the mortgage in twelve years. I can practically feel the weight lifting off me already, and I know it will feel even better when I actually (finally!) get there.
This post is part of my Financial Revolution Series, which is my personal financial story. Each post gives a piece of the story, detailing how I got into debt and how I turned things around.
Next Time on TVG&M: …To Sum Up
Friday, November 9, 2007
Where Am I Going? – Part I: Goals
Here are the goals I have set up for myself:
Immediate term (Present – 2008)
- Pay off AES student loan by January 2008
- Increase Emergency Fund to $1000 by March 2008
- Pay off credit cards by March 2008
- Pay off The Bank of Friends by May 2008
- Increase net worth to -$93,000 by December 2008
Short term (2009 – 2010)
- Pay off The Bank of Mom & Dad by April 2009
- Pay off car loan by October 2009
- Increase net worth to -$60,000 by December of 2010
Mid term (2011 – 2013)
- Have no high-interest, unsecured debt by December of 2012
- Includes everything except federal student loan and mortgage
- Start contributing 15% to retirement investments by January 2013
- Increase net worth to -$30,000 by December 2013
Long term (2014 – 2022)
- Increase net worth to $0 by December of 2015
- Save $30,000 for house down payment by December 2016
- Pay off federal student loan by December 2019
I’ve always been a very goal-oriented person. That trait is how I got to law school, which is how I got so far into debt, and I plan on using the same trait to pull myself back out. The goals I’ve set up are both attainable and measurable, and they have the added bonus of being things that I want very badly. The charts in the sidebar are a huge motivator for me, and I’m looking forward to watching them go to the right, pixel by pixel.
Next time on TVG&M: My Plan of Attack
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