Fabulous Financials

My net worth is $144,137, an increase of $3,823.10 or +2.72% over February 2008.

I haven’t been paying much attention to my finances lately. So other than what’s on auto pilot, I can’t take credit for doing anything special. The market has rebounded (sorta), but it’s still playing tricks with people’s emotions. In Jan and Feb ‘08, my retirement increased by only ~$500. This month, the increase is more than $3k. I contribute the same every month so of course I’m happy about it, but I ignore the reports of doom and gloom anyway. One day, I’ll write about my opinion of the impending recession and how I plan to deal with it by doing…umm…nothing.

Under ‘property’, I reduced the value of my car (kbb.com), which is something I plan to review quarterly. And the ‘liabilities’ consist of my real time credit card balances as of March 31st. It’s not a true reflection of my credit card debt per se’ (my only real “debt” is a mortgage) because the “statement” balances are always paid in full - usually between the 20th and the 22nd. However, to keep my NW report honest, I will capture the existing CC balances anyway.

INCOME & EXPENSES

As mentioned last month, I’ve completely separated business income and expenses from personal income and expenses for banking and tax purposes. Currently, I’m only reporting the personal cash flow, so the numbers below may appear lower than usual.

Net Income: $4,642

Total Expenses: $4,120

• Saved: $668
• Bills: $2,188 (68 under est.)
• Necessities: $701 (91 over est.)
• Non-necessities: $563 (313 over est.)

Net Cash Flow: $522

The ‘necessities’ $91 over est. is due to my lovely daughter’s lack of planning. Gotta love it when your kid tells you on Thursday that something is due on Friday. This one is special and she “totally can’t miss or it’ll be popularity suicide.” Her words, of course. *blank stare* What is so important you might ask? The band’s spring field trip. *roll my eyes* But oh, she’s “really sorry” for not reminding me, but “please ma, can I go?” *sigh* I tell ya, she better be glad we’re not living paycheck to paycheck or this lack of planning would cause her to miss out on a lot of things.

The ‘non-necessities’ $313 over est. is umm…err…uh. Hmm…I have no idea.

Ok, I’ll admit. I hadn’t been shopping in a month of Sundays, so my little spring shopping spree was long overdue. It wasn’t in the budget, but I did plan for it in my thoughts. Yea, that’s it. I just forgot to write it down. Mmm, hmm…my story and I’m sticking to it.

My net worth is $140,314, an increase of $7,234 or +5.44% over January 2008.

The market is volatile, so my investments are still taking a beating. Although I invested over $1,600 (excluding 401k match) this month, my retirement accounts increased by only $562 and non-retirement by only $108. Not the type of gains I’d prefer to see, but since my diversification is consistent with my risk tolerance, I’ll keep taking advantage of DCA.

Most of the NW increase can be attributed to cash, thanks to the long overdue bonus that JUST showed up in my check. I’m told a glitch in the HR system was affecting the bonus structure - nearly two months later than expected, but I’ll take it.

INCOME & EXPENSES

Although cash flow is tight, I survived the month spending less than I earned. This is also the first month I’ve completely separated business income and expenses, so the following will track earned income and personal expenses only.

Net Income: $4,600 (excluding bonus)

Total Expenses: $4,203

• Saved: $718
• Bills: $2,203 (83 under est.)
• Necessities: $1,181 (571 over est.)
• Non-necessities: $101 (149 under est.)

Net Cash Flow: $397

Not bad, not bad at all. It’s pretty cool to see the results of living paycheck to paycheck (on purpose). If it wasn’t for buying new tires, I would have been under budget in every area. That’s a first! I’ve considered spending the remaining $400 on a splurge, but I’m proud of my discipline and happy to report that I haven’t been shopping all year. When I’m chilling in Paris this summer, it will be worth the temporary delayed gratification.

Dear January,

I survived. Now good riddance!

With No Love,

First, I will begin with a short recap of 2006:

2006 annual review: from ($2,500) to $66,333. This was my first year tracking net worth value, so it took a while to find my groove. The first number was merely a guesstimate from the top of my head, but I gradually learned the true meaning of net worth valuation and finally decided what I wanted to track. In April 2006, I purchased my first home but didn’t add its value until July. Around the same time, I committed myself to a complete financial overhaul, established financial priorities and made a commitment to aggressive debt reduction efforts.

Now here’s a quick look at 2007:

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Click on the links for more details about each month…

• January 2007: $69,230 - added pension value which increased net worth to $92,659. Also increased my annual goal from $100,000 to $125,000.
• February 2007: $93,820
• March 2007: $99,677
• April 2007: $111,203 - earned a six figure net worth!
• May 2007: $112,324
• June 2007: On vacation in early July, forgot to pull numbers. Paid off car!
• July 2007: $119,694
• August 2007: $118,192* - reduction due to car depreciation and I decided to reduce the value of my personal possessions from $5,000 to $3,000.
• September 2007: $126,187 - met 2007 annual goal!
• October 2007: $131,167 - changed the format of the net worth spreadsheet. Same data, different presentation.
• November 2007: $130,412* - reduction due to market performance and issues with rental property reduced cash flow. Paid off student loans!
• December 2007: $132,857 - spent more $$ than I earned (*smack on back of hand*) but ended the year on a good note.

*Two months of “negative” growth.

In 2007, my net worth increased by $40,198 ($92,659 to $132,857) or +43.4%. I attribute the growth to aggressive debt reduction efforts and regular contributions to my investment accounts despite market fluctuations.

Although my “long term” net worth goal is $1,000,000+, I need to establish a “short term” goal for 2008. Now that I have an idea of what I can achieve, a reasonable - yet challenging - target is $200,000. This is an increase of $67,143 or +50%.

I can do this.

As of 31 December 2007…

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My net worth is $132,857, a small increase of $2,445 or +1.87%. Nothing out of the ordinary that requires explanation, but if you have any questions/comments, I’ll be happy to address them.

Beginning with January, I will remove liabilities from the spreadsheet. All credit cards are paid in full when their statements close. IMO, I don’t track utility expenses every month so why should I track a temporary credit balance?

Also, as mentioned yesterday, my new net worth goal is $1M+ and I will achieve it in the next 12 years. See how I just made that definitive statement to the world? I didn’t say I’m going to try, I said I will achieve it in 12 years. Watch me run dat.

I will continue to provide monthly net worth updates, only for the sole purpose of monitoring my short term goals (and the “to do” list) that will help me achieve the long term goal. As each little milestone is achieved, I’ll have a little celebration. Then in 2020, it’s g’on be a mu’fuggin’ party y’all! LOL

December Income/Expenses

The holiday season is behind us (thank goodness) and I managed well with the “planned” holiday shopping budget. However, a lot of self indulgence, a few last minute gifts and two “single ma, can I borrow” phone calls were not part of the plan. Since I haven’t mastered the concept of delayed gratification or the art of saying HAYLE NO to broke azz people, December was extra tight on the purse strings.

Net Income: $6,491
Total Expenses: $7,313

• Saved: $750
• Bills: $3,968 (604 under est.)
• Necessities: $782 (297 over est.)
• Non-necessities: $1,813 (1,498 over est.)

Net Cash Flow: -$822 [oops, I spent more than I earned!]

Do as I say, not as I do. LOL

See what had happened was…I told mapgirl, Debt Hater, and HC that I aint have no money, right. But nooo, they INSISTED that we do brunch - and drink mimosas - and hit up Best Cellars for a quick wine tasting - and shop at Georgetown Park. It’s all their fault, they MADE me spend money I didn’t have! Such negative influences.

But…I did discover a new wine that I absolutely love: Moscato d’Asti from Italy. It’s a sweet dessert wine, light, and crisp with a slight fizz. Think I copped a bottle? Ya damn skippy! I’m learning that I have a preference for whites. And my girl, BK Diva, bought me another bottle for my born day. I luv her like a play cuzzin, but she better hurry up and bring it to me ‘fo I have a hissy fit. Thank ya kindly!

Ooh, ooh!

I also scored a fabulous born day gift from mapgirl, “How to Invest $50 - $5,000″

With my new goals for 2008, how PERFECT is that. A handy little resource for people with umm…limited funds. Ha! All of us can’t be BIG BALLAZ - gotta start somewhere. The book reviews claim it’s “easy to understand and apply the concepts” so I look forward to reading it. Thanks mapgirl!Ya know, I may only have $1.81 sitting in my checking account (no lie lol), but my mortgage is paid, my fridge is full, I have no consumer debt, my net worth is growing, and I have fabulous friends. Can it get any better?Yep! LOL Check in with me next month…