So I sat down last night and balanced my budget. That was a bit depressing.
+$3,400: Total Monthly Income.
-$1125: Split mortgage and bills.
-$405: Home equity loan.
-$100: Extra payment to Home equity loan.
-$350: Gas and car maintenance estimate (commuter).
-$150: Dining out.
-$100: Clothing allowance.
-$100: Emergency savings to ING account.
-$100: Personal care.
-$45: Pet.
-$33: Gym.
That leaves $892 each month. That's GREAT! That an extra payment to the home equity loan, PLUS upping my savings each month!!! Wait. Uh. I don't have $892 at the end of each month. Where is it?? Oh yes, I ignore my homemade lunch most of the time in favor of dining out with coworkers. That's right, I bought a pair of $200 shoes - to replace my staple black strappy heels. But two weeks later I found a pair super cute Coach peep-toe pumps at Nordstrom Rack that I just HAD to have as they're classic...$119 down from $300. That was like SAVING money! Right?
Goodness. I am NOT this retarded. Seriously. I have faithfully categorized and recorded every purchase I have made for the last 2 years. I know exactly how much I've spent on clothing. I know what my monthly average is for dining out. I am aware of my tendancy to not shop for 4 months straight, then impulse-buy a $300 coat. But I excuse myself constantly. "That was an anomaly!", "Oh, that month I travelled a lot", etc.
My situation...I'm 27, female. I own a house in Northern CA. My boyfriend lives with me (hence the split mortgage and house bills). Besides that, finances are completely separate.
I have a 401k through work - which is good...but I don't have anything to compare it to; what SHOULD I have in there? What's normal for someone who's been employed for 5-6 years? Also, my e*trade account - which I'm shamefully ignoring as the only stock I have is company stock and it's been faltering for the last 6 months. But where do I start?
So I'm here. Hoping that being accountable to a community of sorts will help me along. Give me that obsession! Because I don't have anyone in the real world other than myself. And apparently, I'm sucking at it.
The Facts.
August 1st, 2007 at 07:20 pm
August 1st, 2007 at 07:33 pm 1185993207
August 1st, 2007 at 07:43 pm 1185993827
August 1st, 2007 at 08:35 pm 1185996908
Good luck!
August 1st, 2007 at 08:42 pm 1185997348
August 1st, 2007 at 09:42 pm 1186000968
I think you're doing great for someone your age! You own a home and you have a good chunk of money in an emergency fund. That's fantastic!
From the looks of it, all you need is a little fine tuning and you'll be set. Like they say: You can never be too rich or too thin. I like the rich part, myself.
August 1st, 2007 at 10:57 pm 1186005466
August 1st, 2007 at 11:01 pm 1186005668
cheers.
August 2nd, 2007 at 02:55 am 1186019757
August 2nd, 2007 at 03:58 am 1186023491
The only thing I want to add is that you may want to consider dumping your company stock. For one thing, it's one stock. There's no diversification. Second, it's your own company's. Third, it's a taxable investment.
If it was up to me, I'd go ahead and take a hit on selling it and put what's left into a savings account for your emergency fund.
August 2nd, 2007 at 04:11 am 1186024299
Littlemama: I haven't read many financial books. I started the Finish Rich Workbook about a year ago, but didn't get very far into the organization as it required I overhaul my current system. Then I began to question their methods vs. mine...and I lost track.
Luckyrobin: I know I have a ways to go before I need the 401k...but I just need a benchmark. Don't know where to find one!
Broken Arrow: I know. But it was doing SO WELL for SO LONG, I sold some at $97, then got greedy...waited for $100...then got distracted for a few months. Next thing I know it's in the 80's. Now 70's. Dammit.
August 2nd, 2007 at 05:09 pm 1186070997
If you're looking for ways to free up more money, just comparing your budget to my own, and your income is pretty close to mine, I would say that your monthly allowance for dining out, clothing and personal care seems a little high. That is, if you consistently spend this much most months.
August 2nd, 2007 at 09:10 pm 1186085442
August 5th, 2007 at 03:07 pm 1186322869
Welcome!
August 6th, 2007 at 01:28 am 1186360087
Finish the Finish Rich workbook. You set up and get everything organzied once and then you don't have to think about it again.