Author Topic: 2015 Financial Resolutions?  (Read 4484 times)

JetsettingWelfareMom

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2015 Financial Resolutions?
« on: December 28, 2014, 11:26:42 AM »
I'm curious about the MMM investment community: are people all in on Vanguard and index funds, or has the recent market downturn spooked you? What financial resolutions do you have? And where in this low yield environment do you invest money, or do you just coast and focus on living the best life possible?

Rezdent

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Re: 2015 Financial Resolutions?
« Reply #1 on: December 28, 2014, 11:46:13 AM »
I'm curious about the MMM investment community: are people all in on Vanguard and index funds,
Im diversified - some funds, some real estate, few small projects
or has the recent market downturn spooked you?
No.  The market accounts are longterm investments.
What financial resolutions do you have?
Stay the course.  Meaning we have a plan and will continue to follow it
 And where in this low yield environment do you invest money,
See above: diversified and staying the course
 do you just coast and focus on living the best life possible?
Yes, because being frugal and saving for the future is what I consider the best life possible.

Travis

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Re: 2015 Financial Resolutions?
« Reply #2 on: December 28, 2014, 12:19:11 PM »
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or has the recent market downturn spooked you?

What downturn?  Check out the "badassery" forum, most if not all of us had a great year.

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index funds

Stocks for retirement are long term projects.  Even if this was a bad year, the point of the investment is to not need it for many years so a single year is a blip on the radar.

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financial resolutions

Keep savings above 50% of gross income.  This year I received bonuses and didn't pay income taxes so I have some high numbers to beat.

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focus on living the best life possible?

Finding new ways to enjoy life without spending money on it, and getting to know my son again.

Frankies Girl

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Re: 2015 Financial Resolutions?
« Reply #3 on: December 28, 2014, 12:34:53 PM »
I'm in index funds but with Fido not Vanguard (Spartan funds).

What downturn? The volatility that have happened over the last quarter is normal. If I spooked that easily, I shouldn't be investing. There hasn't been any corrections and every dip was followed by an even better gain - so it wasn't even anything to really pay attention to. I'm investing for long term, so short term volatility isn't a concern.

Resolutions are pretty much to stick to my plans and that includes building up a bit more cash for my reserves as I'm RE in 2015.

I don't see this environment as being "low yield" - it's just the market doing what it does. I'll continue to follow what my AA and invest as usual.


Zikoris

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Re: 2015 Financial Resolutions?
« Reply #4 on: December 28, 2014, 01:09:20 PM »
My index funds have been doing REALLY well this year, so not sure what that's about.

But yeah, basically we just coast. Our system is set, the habits are in place, and we just need to wait it out at this point. I spend my time outside work practicing ballet and learning self-sufficiency skills. Our expenses continue to drop year after year, which is nice and speeds the retirement process.

We have no resolutions - just continue down the path we laid out years ago.

JetsettingWelfareMom

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Re: 2015 Financial Resolutions?
« Reply #5 on: December 28, 2014, 11:53:23 PM »
Thanks for the replies all. I know it's been a good year on the indexes perhaps I need a boost of positive energy about it. I know a lot of people calling it a market top since I'm in financial services I read a lot. But since my industry is slowing down I don't have money to invest. Living without money would be a great goal...

rmendpara

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Re: 2015 Financial Resolutions?
« Reply #6 on: December 29, 2014, 12:09:53 AM »
Still investing in the same way. Changing my plans based on what the market does in a given quarter or year is a recipe for losing a lot of money from "fear".

So long as my savings rate stays north of 40% of total gross comp, or 35% on the low end, I'm happy. I am tracking closer to 44% based on my written budget, but a few trips or other items could lower it a bit, which I would be fine with. Got to stay focused on the big picture and the little things will take care of themselves.

scrubbyfish

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Re: 2015 Financial Resolutions?
« Reply #7 on: December 29, 2014, 12:34:18 AM »
I'm curious about the MMM investment community: are people all in on Vanguard and index funds, or has the recent market downturn spooked you? What financial resolutions do you have? And where in this low yield environment do you invest money, or do you just coast and focus on living the best life possible?

I'm very excited and happy! In the last year, I focused on:
-moving my investments from crap, low yield, high-fee "products" to low-cost index funds;
-learning about investing

As a result, I wrote a comprehensive financial plan for myself, will save at least $2000 (!) per year in fees, have higher returns over the long run and, for the first time ever, when I saw my investments drop I felt no fear and only calm, peace, happiness, and confidence. All of this showed at an appointment with a direct investing rep (required for one specialized account) recently. I was blown away at how far I've come (mentally) in one year...and all thanks to the forums!

My living costs recently reduced again quite significantly, and I'm intentionally going to increase my "luxury" spending by about $1000 in 2015. Other than that, I'll continue socking money into investments monthly and, yes, live joyfully!

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!