End of year checkup! Where my people at?!
Very happy with our progress in 2020. Maxed my 401k, paid off a 30k 401k loan, consolidated heloc and mortgage into single 2.625% mortgage, found a daycare that is less than half the price of the old one and better fit for us to boot, set up the individual 401k, and got wills in place, all while living in a covid world. With the good market gains and pumping 85k into retirement accounts including my contribution, my employer match, my husband's contribution, and the loan payoff, our net worth has increased over 200k, to a little over 550k without considering real estate or a little over 900k with the equity in our home. I'm hoping to hit the paper millionaire mark this year!
Spending is still a problem but as my husband said: at least we are going in the right direction! When I graduated from law school into the great recession twelve years ago our net worth was -150k. I'm happy with the swing. I might focus on one or two things this year to work on: amazon purchases or groceries.
Looking forward to 2021, the big expense this year is probably going to be a new roof. I'm sure we will have a burst of spending when covid is (hopefully) over and we can travel again. I might buy myself a sexy midlife crisis convertible too (1981 Fiat Spider Pininfarina, dark blue or black, manual) if I'm able to pay off my student loans. YOLO.
Financial Goals for 2021Evaluating current life insurance policy and revising if necessary - carry over from 2020
Maximize credit card points earning opportunities - prepping for when we can travel again
Reorganize charitable contributions
Increase 529 contribution
Disable one click purchase option from Amazon
Pay off half of remaining student loans
New roof - ugh
Get a new family car??? - still discussing. Roof is probably pushing this back some :-(
Evaluate and rebalance, if necessary, Roth IRA
Investigate new job opportunities (including expat) - current job getting a little stagnant
Investigate season ticket requirements at local colleges / sports teams for when son is old enough to go with me
Backyard Chickens = Profit???
Goal for 2032 is 2 million invested in 401k's, 500k in a roth ira, a paid off house, and an adequate college fund for junior. To get there we need to increase husband's contribution by 10k/year next year and start a mega back door roth in two years. And/or better than 7% gains over the next decade.
Let's hit it!
And remember, just keep swimming!
3/4 Year Check-up! I guess it's me. Making good progress toward 2032 - I realize that this is very far out, but I picked it because the majority of my savings is going to be via 401k and I'm aiming to take advantage of the rule of 55. Also, work from home during Covid has made me realize how much I like working in the office!
Been a fairly productive year so far:
Maxing my 401k - in process, plan to increase contribution after paying off 401k loan DONE
Paying off a 401k loan that we used as part of a down-payment on our home - in process, set aside 1/3 of the money already and have a stock option bonus coming in July that should do it. DONE
Getting a will - met with an attorney and have a draft that I need to review in my inbox. After review, will sign via socially distancing shortly. DONE
Evaluating current life insurance policy and revising if necessary - no progress. Goal is to pay off house and provide living expenses for husband and child for a period of time should I die. I'm the primary earner. NOT DONE
Opening an individual 401k for husband (self-employed) so that he can contribute more than he is able to in his IRA. - complete, although we need to up contributions to take advantage of it. DONE
Also, with interest rates so low we are refinancing mortgage and heloc (pre-MMM) into a single 30 year fixed at 2.625%. Crazy low! The refinance is considered cash out because the heloc was for a remodel job, and the lender suggested we could take more than just what was needed to pay off outstanding mortgage balances but I resisted. I felt like the queen in lord of the rings when she was able to resist the ring.
Also, hit 500k invested combined with husband!
Expense-wise, doing okay. high on TV (which we upgraded this year), home services (because we hired and fired a lawn service - trust me I know), and lawn and garden expenses because we are renovating backyard. Higher on groceries too but correspondingly lower on eating out. Most travel cancelled so that saved us some money.
Keep on swimming, folks.