I am 48, single, no kids. I am a health care professional. I feel that I'm generally a very good saver and a not so good budgeter - hence the credit card debt payoff I worked through in 2020.
My personal finance goals for 2025:
1. Contribute maximum to Thrift Savings Plan. This is a recurring goal that I’ve accomplished every year since 2008.
2. Contribute maximum to Roth IRA. This is a recurring goal that I’ve accomplished every year since 2001.
3. Pay off credit cards. Completed January 2021. Now the strategy is to pay off my credit cards monthly with no balance carryover.
4. Build up emergency & long-term savings. I completed my initial goal in April 2021, but am rebuilding again after an expensive first year after building my home.
5. Invest in brokerage account. I am rebuilding this account after having used it for my home downpayment.
6. Give to church monthly. I now contribute by autodraft.
7. Give to charity monthly. Food banks are my preferred charity to give to. I have automated my charitable donations at work to give with my biweekly paychecks.
8. Apply for promotions as they become available. Right now I’m very happy in my current position, so this isn’t much of a goal currently. I have received several raises, I enjoy the work I do, & the people I work with…I’m very happy to stay where I am.
9. New goal for 2024! Build new home with $100k down. This will be funded from my brokerage account & cash savings. Closed on my new build home in August 2024 with $134k down.🏡
My mortgage company refunded me $3,140 in escrow surplus. Right now I've just deposited it into my checking account. I will use it to pay off all my medical bills & vacation expenses.
Hi Firefly ... Just a small suggestion to be careful with the escrow refund. Some mortgage companies are infamous for giving refunds and then coming back a few months later asking for that money back and possibly more.
Each month the bank should be esvrowing 1/12 of your annual Real Estate tax and if they pay your homeowners insurance, 1/22 of that.
Most require a 2-3 month upfront payment at closing, based on what the prior owner paid in taxes and their estimate of what your insurance will cost.
You can easily determine what they should be escrowing by doing the math against your current property tax and potentially insurance.
The amount the mortgage company is holding in escrow after the refund should be three to six months of payment depending how close they are to payment date.
If you are eligible for a tax abatement - owner occupied property, veterans benefits, widows benefit (different locales have different rules) - they could have a surplus. Also if you have better than average insurance rates.
U
If taxes or insurance go up, they should increase your escrow payment to cover it.
My preference was always to pay taxes and insurance myself so I didn’t deal with the bank’s vagaries. Some people don’t trust that they have the ability to set aside the funds each month in a sinking fund so prefer that the bank do it. And of course, some mortgage lenders require it because they don’t want to lose property in tax foreclosure.
Great tip, Michelle. I did note that my escrow account far exceeded what my projected expenses would be for the year so hopefully they will not ask for it back. They pay for my homeowners' insurance and property taxes. I pay the homeowners' associations fee every January.
I am 48, single, no kids. I am a health care professional. I feel that I'm generally a very good saver and a not so good budgeter - hence the credit card debt payoff I worked through in 2020.
July 8th, 2025 at 11:35 am 1751970948
July 8th, 2025 at 05:57 pm 1751993841
July 9th, 2025 at 01:40 am 1752021642
July 9th, 2025 at 01:57 am 1752022657
Most require a 2-3 month upfront payment at closing, based on what the prior owner paid in taxes and their estimate of what your insurance will cost.
You can easily determine what they should be escrowing by doing the math against your current property tax and potentially insurance.
The amount the mortgage company is holding in escrow after the refund should be three to six months of payment depending how close they are to payment date.
If you are eligible for a tax abatement - owner occupied property, veterans benefits, widows benefit (different locales have different rules) - they could have a surplus. Also if you have better than average insurance rates.
U
If taxes or insurance go up, they should increase your escrow payment to cover it.
My preference was always to pay taxes and insurance myself so I didn’t deal with the bank’s vagaries. Some people don’t trust that they have the ability to set aside the funds each month in a sinking fund so prefer that the bank do it. And of course, some mortgage lenders require it because they don’t want to lose property in tax foreclosure.
July 24th, 2025 at 09:36 pm 1753389415
July 24th, 2025 at 09:38 pm 1753389489