|
|
Home > Category: Personal Finance
|
|
Viewing the 'Personal Finance' Category
March 2nd, 2024 at 02:47 pm
TSP $1,103,630
IRA $322,758
Brokerage $98,764
Total Investments $1,525,152
Savings $33,691
February 2024 Net Worth $1,558,843
January 2024 Net Worth $1,481,220
Monthly Loss/Gain $77,623
Other Assets:
Checking $19,386
Car $10,575-16,372 (estimates)
I added my VIN to Monarch & got a vastly different car value than the one estimated from Credit Karma. Interesting. I really don't look at my car like true asset, but it does have value. However, if I had to replace my car I'd definitely be out more money.
I am sticking with Monarch. Mint was free, but I paid $50 for the year. I think it's worth it. I think it's the closest to replicating what Mint was. Still keeping Credit Karma as well.
Piling up cash as I really get serious about looking at houses is a big priority. I want to be back in my hometown by Christmas. So if I'm building I need to start soon.
Posted in
Home sweet home,
Net Worth,
Personal Finance
|
0 Comments »
February 5th, 2024 at 12:57 am
Of course, I owe money again this year. I think my former part-time employer did not take out enough in federal taxes. Since we transitioned to the new company this year I can see that my federal taxes paid has increased. Hopefully, I won't owe as much next year.
I did move from the 22% marginal tax rate bracket to 24%.
Federal tax bill $2,941
State tax bill $694
Total owed $3,635
Thankful for the surplus I always seem to accumulate in my checking accounts. It will come in handy.
Posted in
Spending stuff,
Debt,
Personal Finance
|
2 Comments »
February 5th, 2024 at 12:44 am
Investments $1,448,641
Cash Savings $32,579
January 2024 Net Worth $1,481,220
December 2023 Net Worth $1,470,019
Monthly Gain/Loss $11,201
I don't include the below in my net worth.
Checking accounts $17,979
Car value $11,000
Posted in
Savings stories,
Net Worth,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money
|
0 Comments »
January 24th, 2024 at 01:34 am
My 2024 pay has posted & we received a 4.7% raise. This translates into $5,456 for the year, $2.61 per hour, and $208.80 biweekly. I will receive a step increase in June. That increase will be another $1.77 raise per hour. I'm always grateful for whatever increases I receive. I have already increased savings & contributions for the year so there are no plans to make any further increases.
Posted in
Savings stories,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money,
Career,
Professional Life
|
4 Comments »
January 14th, 2024 at 05:43 pm
At the end of December I had about $19k in my checking account, which is about double my goal of $10k. So I decided to up my savings goal to $1000 a month from $500. I continue to end up with more money in my checking account at the end of the year than I need. In 2022 I did a transfer to my brokerage account at the end of December. Since I'm looking to buy or build a home this year I'll keep that money & just increase my monthly contributions.
Now my revised goals look like:
$23,000 TSP
$6,000 TSP employer match
$7,000 IRA
$6,000 brokerage
$12,000 savings
$2,600 FSA (to fund my vision surgery)
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Savings stories,
Investing,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money
|
1 Comments »
January 4th, 2024 at 01:38 am
Investments $1,438,561
Savings $31,458
December Total $1,470,019
November Total $1,388,506
Monthly Gain/Loss $81,513
Not included, but worth mentioning. Checking accounts were $19,208 total & car value at lowest estimate is $11k. This puts me at $1.5 million net worth for the first time.
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
Net Worth,
Investing,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money
|
1 Comments »
December 30th, 2023 at 03:54 pm
2023 Q4 is done for the year:
TSP $1,040,872
IRA $306,280
Brokerage $91,409
Total Investments $1,438,561
For comparison, 2022 Q4:
TSP $810,864
IRA $243,949
Brokerage $79,994
Total Investments $1,134,888
ANNUAL Gain/Loss $303,673
Posted in
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
Net Worth,
Investing,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money
|
1 Comments »
December 24th, 2023 at 02:45 am
A few this and that as the year comes to a close.
I upped my monthly IRA contribution to $575 per month, which would bring my annual contribution to $6,900 annually. I'll put in an order for $100 on January 1st to get me to $7,000.
I increased my biweekly TSP contribution to $900 which will max me out for the year at $23,000. They reduce the last paycheck's contribution automatically.
Based on tax efficiency I got out of the high dividend yield fund at Vanguard and exchanged to the tax managed capital appreciation fund. VTCLX return was much better than VHYX this year. I could kick myself for not making this change earlier, but c'est la vie, non?
My last paycheck was about $800 higher than usual so I must have been paid for my performance award. My other paycheck was higher as well after working extra hours on my last weekend.
I'm excited & ready for 2024, but enjoying time spent with family this Christmas.
Posted in
Retirement readings,
General musings,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Career
|
1 Comments »
December 13th, 2023 at 04:41 pm
Yesterday my Thrift Savings Plan balance crossed $1 million for the first time. $1,001,824.87 to be exact.
My Roth IRA balance is $295,011.92. If this holds steady I can expect to cross $300k next year.
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Retirement readings,
Net Worth,
Investing,
Personal Finance,
Retirement
|
8 Comments »
December 10th, 2023 at 03:08 pm
I signed up again for YNAB. I had done the free trial back in 2016 or 2017 and was throughly confused so after the free trial I let it go. I've been looking for something to replace Mint & signed up for Credit Karma, but I haven't been impressed. I have an account with Empower, but don't care for how they are always trying to sell me their services. I guess that's fair since the service is free. They have to make their money some way. So, I decided to try YNAB again and to my surprise I qualified for another free trial. So far, so good. I feel like they've improved some things as I'm not quite as confused as I was last time. There's still a learning curve, though.
Posted in
Personal Finance
|
0 Comments »
December 3rd, 2023 at 02:49 am
Contribute $23,000 to my Thrift Savings Plan. My match will be a little over $6,000. 💰
Contribute $7,000 to my Roth IRA. 💰
Contribute $2,600 to my Flexible Spending Account. 💰
Save $6,000 in my brokerage account. 💰
Save $6,000 in my savings account. 💰
Buy or build a new home with $100,000 down. 🏡
Keep dancing! 💃🏾
Cherish every moment & memory made. 💗
Posted in
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money
|
0 Comments »
December 2nd, 2023 at 10:41 am
One of my CDs pays the monthly dividend on the 1st so I'm always a day late.
TSP $980,827
IRA $290,549
Brokerage $86,295
Total Investments $1,357,671
Cash Savings $30,835
Total Net Worth $1,388,506
Monthly Gain/Loss +$117,446
Checking $16,841 (included this month just to give an idea of what I usually have for cash flow, not included in my net worth calculation)
Car $15,062 (checked Kelley Blue Book value this morning, also not included in my net worth calculation)
My investments gained another $14,000 just one day later. I'm less than $9,000 away from reaching one million in my TSP. So close!
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
General musings,
Net Worth,
Investing,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money
|
1 Comments »
December 1st, 2023 at 12:49 pm
I had an alert set on my phone to open another CD at Capital One today, but have been thinking that I would just keep it liquid while looking for a house. I have two CDs maturing on January 2nd and February 1st and those are both set to transfer to savings rather than renew. That will give me a nice cushion for the new home purchase. Also, I checked rates this morning and the 5.30% 10 month CD is now 4.30%, which is what their savings account is paying. I can go to 12 months for 5.00%, but I think it's better to hold on to cash.
Net worth looks great for November. I'll post final numbers today or tomorrow. Investments are almost to July 2023 numbers. I have exceeded the high of 2021 Q4, but only because of added contributions. I am on track to max out my retirement plans.
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
Net Worth,
Investing,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money
|
0 Comments »
November 26th, 2023 at 10:50 pm
When my auto insurance renewed in Septmember my rate was raised by 30% with no changes to my driving record. I know that USAA has never been cheap, but this rate is almost triple what I get when I look at Geico or Progressive. So after 23 years solely with USAA I am thinking about leaving them. Who do you have auto insurance with and what do you think about their service?
Posted in
Savings stories,
General musings,
Budgeting,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money,
Shopping
|
1 Comments »
November 3rd, 2023 at 12:54 am
October was not a good month financially, but I had a lot of fun. I vacationed in Napa Valley & Lake Tahoe. I got back to dancing again with salsa & bachata lessons. I walked regularly. I lost weight. I looked at future homes. I still worry & pray about my mom, but I had more to sustain & relax me.
Investments $1,240,842
Cash Savings $30,218
Total $1,271,060
Monthly Gain/Loss -$35,869
My net worth dipped below $1.3 million, but I'm not worried. I don't know what the markets will do short term, but I have faith in investing long term. Next month I will have another $10,000 to ladder into a CD. Capital One is paying 5.3% for a 10 month CD. And my checking account is paying 5.25%.
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Home sweet home,
General musings,
Net Worth,
Travel Tales,
Investing,
Personal Finance
|
1 Comments »
October 5th, 2023 at 03:26 am
Investments $1,277,331
Cash Savings $29,599
Total $1,306,930
Monthly Loss/Gain -$55,424
Quarterly Loss/Gain -$33,096
July was such a promising month, but it's been downhill since then. At least the interest rates on savings is paying a little more. I may lock in some more money in CDs before interest rates start dropping.
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Savings stories,
Net Worth,
Investing,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money
|
2 Comments »
September 23rd, 2023 at 08:02 pm
I charged the balance owed on my vacation next month to my American Airlines credit card. I wrote & mailed a check, but somehow they also debited my checking account. So o paid twice. Rather than wait on a reimbursement check I'm just going to switch all my credit card purchases to this credit card. I also charged a couple of Trader Joe's grocery runs to my new Kohl's Capital One card in order to get a $15 credit promotion.
I also started to use my debit card on my new chocking account so I'll start earning 5.25% interest. I'm trying to be smarter about taking advantage of all promotions & interest requirements.
Posted in
Personal Finance
|
2 Comments »
August 28th, 2023 at 01:57 pm
Not much to say about the stock market. I hit my high July 31st & it's been down since then. Oh well.
Looks like my cash surplus will be double what it was at the end of last year so I'm starting to think what I should do with it. Fully fund my IRA in January or pad my home down payment? I could do both actually.
I am looking forward to Napa Valley & Lake Tahoe. Flights & hotel have been booked. I booked the rental car yesterday. Now just to reserve the wine train.
For those that have been to either destination, what did you enjoy doing?
Posted in
Savings stories,
Travel Tales,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money
|
0 Comments »
August 10th, 2023 at 12:47 pm
The 18 month CD rate at Capital One is now 5.15%. I don't know if I want to lock up my cash right now as I think about buying a home, but it's very tempting. I don't quite have the $10k that I like to have as I ladder my CDs. I'm at right about $8k. If they still a have this rate at the end of the year I may consider the longer term. Right now I have two 11 month CDs at 5.0%.
Posted in
Savings stories,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money
|
3 Comments »
July 29th, 2023 at 11:53 am
July is shaping up to be an expensive month, but I am enjoying myself. I had my trip to NYC earlier this month, I attended an Alicia Keys concert this Sunday, and I just booked a trip for October to Napa Valley & Lake Tahoe yesterday. I'm really looking forward to it.
Since the laboratory where I PRN at may be bought out by the end of the year, I may not have a second job beyond December. That is fine by me. I will have more time to visit home. I have started to look at new homes being built. I supposed I should also look at existing homes, but I am excited about the idea of picking out just what I like in my home. My lease ends in one year so I would like to time my next move around the end of my lease.
I really want to encourage my parents to get a house cleaner at least every two weeks. My dad has so much on him as caregiver. I will bring it up this weekend. I might have to call in the troops (my sisters) for support.
My investments & net worth are at an all time high of $1.361 million and $1.429 million respectively. I just want to see $1 million in my TSP. Just once, even if it doesn't stay there. I am at $982k so I'm close.
Posted in
Investing ideas,
Home sweet home,
Spending stuff,
Investing,
Personal Finance
|
2 Comments »
July 20th, 2023 at 10:47 am
Yesterday I got my paystub for my biweekly check. We got our raise as well as backpay. It was a nice little bonus.
The market is up this week & I'm inching towards $1 million in my TSP. My high this week (before my biweekly contribution Thursday) was $979k. I am at $1.35 million in all investments.
I also hit a liquid cash high of $50k. I don't keep that much in cash as I always look to have my money invested. Even when I was saving for my first home I didn't have that much saved.
Posted in
Retirement readings,
Net Worth,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Career,
Professional Life
|
0 Comments »
June 3rd, 2023 at 02:08 pm
Yesterday the markets went wild on the news of the debt ceiling deal, but too late to improve my May numbers which show a loss from April. Again, this does not including my checking account cash which hovers around $15k or my car value.
Investments $1,230,403
Cash (not including checking) $27,157
Total $1,257,560
Loss $6,985
Additional contributions in April $3,250
Got two notices that my rent will rise by $20 on July due to increases in water collections from two elections. Not an issue, especially considering my recent raise. I just wish they would do something about my noisy neighbor, who thinks his apartment is a music studio.
Posted in
Savings stories,
Home sweet home,
Net Worth,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money
|
0 Comments »
May 27th, 2023 at 07:41 pm
I really can't believe it, but we had another raise announced this week. It was 5% this time. I never would have expected another raise after the 16% raise we received last year & the 4% annual raise we got in January. I think we are also going to get retroactive pay for the raise back to April. What makes this better than the 10% retention is that it goes toward your pension calculation & your match calculation.
I have no plans to increase savings. If I end up with a lot of cash in my checking account - like I did last year - I will make a contribution to my brokerage account, but otherwise I just plan to enjoy the money for once. I max out my TSP & IRA every year. I contribute monthly to my brokerage & savings. This time I'm going to learn to relax & enjoy the present rather than save for the future.
Posted in
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
General musings,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money,
Career,
Professional Life
|
5 Comments »
May 10th, 2023 at 02:23 am
I enjoy following your budgets so much that I thought I'd give it a go at sharing mine. I know that I put more on credit cards than this budget accounts for, so I really need to get better at actually accounting for my expenses. Now that I write that, I realize that I had nothing in my budget for travel or shopping, which is definitely not correct. In fact I just spend $800 on booking ballet & plane tickets for NYC in July. 🩰 ✈️ 🚖
rent $1712
utilities $100
auto insurance $143
cell phone & internet $143
food $400
travel $300
shopping $300
church $100
charities $100
Apple $1
IRA $500
savings $500
brokerage $500
Expenses $3399
Savings $1500
Total $4899
I now realize that in posting a budget how vulnerable you feel opening yourself up to others' scrutiny.
Posted in
Food fiend,
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
General musings,
Spending stuff,
Travel Tales,
Budgeting,
Food / Groceries,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money,
Shopping
|
2 Comments »
May 10th, 2023 at 01:59 am
Since I don't know if I'll be able to recover my lost entries, let's try this for a third time. Third time's the charm, right?
Retirement investments $1,156,452
Brokerage investments $81,542
Savings $26,551
Total $1,264,545
My brokerage account is set aside for a future home purchase and my cash savings is earmarked for future car purchases. I put $500 into each every month.
I hope to not have to buy another car until 2032, which is when all cars are projected to be electric. I know a hybrid CR-V today will cost approximately $35k with the trimmings I desire, which are nothing extravagant.
Not included in my net worth is my cash in checking accounts and car value, which amount to approximately $35k.
Posted in
Retirement readings,
Savings stories,
General musings,
Spending stuff,
Net Worth,
Personal Finance,
Retirement,
Saving Money
|
0 Comments »
May 10th, 2023 at 01:51 am
I got an email that my new checking account is now paying 5.25% interest which may finally motivate me to start using my debit card. I haven't used a debit card for a very long time. I have to make 15 credit card transactions in order to qualify, which seems like a lot!
Posted in
Personal Finance
|
1 Comments »
April 29th, 2023 at 11:11 pm
Even though they cut me an off-cycle check all of my retroactive earnings were shown on this paycheck along with my current earnings. Thankfully, my match was accounted for from both pay periods. My premium for both health & dental were doubled up, but the FSA pro-rated for the missed paycheck. It will be just a few dollars extra every check for the rest of the year. All fine by me.
Investments are up for April, just waiting for monthly interest payments to post before my final tally.
Posted in
Net Worth,
Personal Finance
|
1 Comments »
April 23rd, 2023 at 11:07 pm
I just checked Capital One's 360 performance savings went up 0.10%. I think it was 3.20% when I first opened my account then it went to 3.30%. So far it's just been very small incremental rates increases. I also noticed that their CD rates have not gone back up to 5.00%. I was worried when I opened my two accounts, after listening to Suze Orman speak, that they would have big rates increases right after I opened my accounts. The term was only 11 months, so it's not like I'm locked in for a long time either way.
I wish I had gotten some I-bonds when the past two years. Now it seems like inflation is finally slowing down. I can't remember exactly why, but there was a reason I was hesitant to invest in them initially. Maybe I was worried about cashing them out early? Not quite sure.
Posted in
Savings stories,
Personal Finance,
Saving Money
|
0 Comments »
April 15th, 2023 at 04:41 pm
Well I did get a paycheck from my PRN job, but there was a snafu at work with processing time cards so I didn't get paid at my full-time job. No biggie. I'm actually carrying a little extra cash at the moment as I've been receiving reimbursements for planning work events. And since I got out of debt in 2021, I've kept a good amount of cash on hand.
I'll get a double paycheck on the next paycheck. I'm most concerned that they get my match on my retirement contributions correct since my contributions that should have been on this paycheck will be doubled up on the next paycheck.
Posted in
General musings,
Personal Finance,
Career,
Professional Life
|
7 Comments »
February 27th, 2023 at 11:59 am
I don't know if you recall, but about a year ago my medical center signed a 10% retention bonus for my occupation because we kept losing people. We later received a big boost after a salary survey which equates to a little over 16%. We've been able to hire some employees since then so I expect that the retention bonus will lapse this month. This year we also got a 4% annual increase & they are already discussing an 8% increase for next year.
The extra money was very nice, but I think I'll be fine without. Of course, I wouldn't turn it down! With it, I've been able to accumulate more than $40k in my cash accounts which is the highest I've ever seen, plus add another $5k to my brokerage account at the end of last year. Now I'd like to give more to church & charities.
Posted in
Personal Finance,
Career,
Professional Life
|
0 Comments »
|