First post(yay). Probably too ambitious, but I'm looking for guidance. Not sure where to put the extra money my wife will be bringing in. I took most of the clothes off my financial parts below:
Income:
Work $4,700/mo. after deductions (His)
Work $?,???/mo. after deductions (Hers)
I've had a full-time salary job for 7 years and she's a recent graduate just starting her new career doing medical per-diem work. Her income has fluctuated due to limited shifts, but she just picked up more hours at another hospital which will probably have her making as much as I do. We're fairly frugal, since we lived off only my income while she was in school, but not entirely mustachian(yet).
Monthly Expenses:
$1157 Mortgage
$ 389 HOA Dues
$ 45 Utilities
$ 50 Internet & Landline Bundle
$ 98 Cell Phone 3-Lines
$ 30 Coin Op Laundry
$ 75 Gasoline
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$1844 Total Monthly Expenses
$2000 Additional Spending
Spending habits are very much a work in progress. Recently I bought "Food Rules" and had my wife read it. We are planning on making some major changes to reduce food costs and to hopefully prevent medical problems in the future(following a recent death in the family). I also signed up for Mint.com to help keep track of expenses, so I can report back later with those details(food, entertainment, etc.). We say, "no" to Comcast.
Cash:
$ 26,500 Checking Account
$ 1 Savings Account
We recently bought her a new car(mustache "no-no") and paid it off immediately ("yes-yes"?), but I can tell I'm carrying to much cash in the bank account. Savings doesn't provide much of a return, so I leave it in checking. Not sure what to do... thinking accelerated house payments. As soon as my wife starts getting more hours per week, we'll have more to save/invest/use.
Credit:
$ 0 Amazon Visa (Used for most purchases) $17.5k limit
$ 0 Discover (Used only for gas) $14k limit
$ 0 Target Card
$ 0 Kohls Card
I pay my credit cards off each month.
Assets:
$290,000 Condominimum (1 bdrm, 660 sqft.) in Santa Clara, CA
The place is small, wife my want to move soon. HOA dues are pretty high, but I bet I could rent the place for a reasonable amount. Not sure how to swing that sort of arrangement(buy one place while still owning another).
Investments:
$20,000 403(b) Retirement Account (adding $300/mo. tax deferred)
$ 5,000 IRA
$46,000 CalPers (Pension)
I don't have much of a clue if the amount I'm putting is appropriate for my age(32). I work for the state, so I'm paying into the pension system. Some employees say here for an eternity until they are 63 to get nearly 100% of their paycheck(depending on years of service) and others leave at 55 then pick up a part time job. Not sure where the road will take me at the moment, but earlier retirement sounds extremely appealing - even taking up a part time job would be fine. Time > Money
Loans:
$-173,000 @ 4.120% - 30yr fixed as of 7/2012. (Refinanced)
I've been in it since 2004 and bought it for 228k. It's currently worth 290k+. Someone listed a unit with the same layout for $2000/mo rent, so I'd like to keep it as a income source. Right now I also receive a mortgage credit certificate(MCC), which is pretty cool come tax season, but obviously not having a loan would be better.
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I appreciate the advice that comes along and really enjoy the blog. I'm sure there are those that are similar to me, so I'm going to spend some time with the "search" button and keep my mouse off the "post" button for a while (standard forum etiquette and procedure).
Thanks!
(I miss my beard)