Author Topic: 2014 Financial Goals  (Read 49899 times)

nottoolatetostart

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #100 on: January 09, 2014, 05:34:30 AM »
Here are our expectations for 2014 (it's going to be a great year):

1. Have a healthy, bouncing baby #2
2. Max out 401K's
3. $75K into investments
4. Maybe do some kind of IRA - just gotta wait and see what our income ends up being
5. Get grocery/dining bill to average of $400/month throughout year (previous average in 2013 was around $795....putting head down in shame)
6. Take 28-29 weeks off work for maternity leave (~15 100% paid, 14 unpaid) - unpaid leave should not be "felt" as our fed tax bill will shoot down significantly, save $10K+ in daycare expenses by keeping our oldest at home too, reduced FICA, reduced state taxes)
7. Fund Xmas and other random miscellaneous expenses through selling our crap at 1x/day....other things will be donated if not sold

Ottawa

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #101 on: January 09, 2014, 06:01:44 AM »
1) Continue a savings rate of 80% or greater (actually the SR would be higher taking into account DB pension contributions taken at source)...
2) Increase ER portfolio (not including paid-off house) to 500K!
3) Move spending to 30K from 33K annually, a 10% reduction (mainly through reducing the need for after school child care).

TKE Super Dave

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #102 on: January 09, 2014, 06:35:22 AM »

I think these are going to be my plans.
  • Finish saving $5k for my emergency fund. Currently at $3.7K. $5k will be my 3 month emergency money.
  • Fully fund my IRA for the first time ever.
  • Double my net worth (currently 5.5k, so needs to be 11K or greater)
  • Take control of any accounts my father is still holding on for me (my grandmother and grandfather has been gifting me money to different accounts for years and I have no idea how much and how many, my father has been taking care of them for me until I was ready)
  • Save enough for the weddings I have to go to. (Two this year and my little sister's next year)
  • Fully furnish my apartment.
  • Begin saving for a family cruise in Hawaii in 2 years, estimated needing about $3000 (possibly less). (We'll be celebrating my Aunt's retirement from work, my sister, mom and I are her only family and this is what she wants to do)
  • Possibly write a will. (I have no dependants but I'm finally starting to accumulate enough stuff that I should think about who I'd leave everything to)
« Last Edit: January 09, 2014, 06:37:17 AM by TKE Super Dave »

Phoebe

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #103 on: January 14, 2014, 03:08:07 PM »
1. Get umbrella insurance
2. Spend less this year than last
3. Increase NW by $250K
4. Get pregnant (ok not financial, but still a goal)

jjquantz

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #104 on: January 14, 2014, 03:38:33 PM »
Not all strictly financial, but all with a financial impact:

1) Reduce workweek to 3 days (already negotiated, now to implementation),
2) Maintain same total savings despite reduction in income,
3) Pay for 3 weeks in Europe (35th anniversary gift for DW) without impacting savings,
4) Reduce electricity usage by 10%.
5) Reduce miles driven by 20%.

Alfred J Quack

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #105 on: January 15, 2014, 04:27:03 AM »
1. Get umbrella insurance

I don't want to appear ignorant but what's an umbrella insurance?

My list:
1. Reduce mortgage by 16k
2. Keep current expenditure (including mortgage 46%, without mortgage ~20%)
3. Renegotiate cable/internet in July, contract ends then and I've already terminated the subscription after which they usually call with a swaying offer which I'll graciously accept if it means going from 43 per month to less than 38 :P (can't have internet without cable via this provider but only other option is DSL which is unstable and only ~6 cheaper for a reasonable ISP)
4. Invest token amount for tax purposes and to test the local waters because Vanguard is not a real option (can only buy by using fax-orderforms)

arebelspy

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #106 on: January 15, 2014, 06:19:04 AM »
1. Get umbrella insurance

I don't want to appear ignorant but what's an umbrella insurance?


Fancy people who live in high rain areas like Seattle have really expensive umbrellas they have to insure.

(Just kidding.  It's a balloon insurance on top of all your other that covers everything at a much higher limit.  So you might have car and home insurance, this would be a few million policy that covers anything over those policy limits as well as any other random stuff: https://www.google.com/search?q=umbrella+insurance )
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

pachnik

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #107 on: January 15, 2014, 07:20:55 AM »
1. Get umbrella insurance

I don't want to appear ignorant but what's an umbrella insurance?


Fancy people who live in high rain areas like Seattle have really expensive umbrellas they have to insure.

(Just kidding.  It's a balloon insurance on top of all your other that covers everything at a much higher limit.  So you might have car and home insurance, this would be a few million policy that covers anything over those policy limits as well as any other random stuff: https://www.google.com/search?q=umbrella+insurance )

Thanks!  this was definitely my morning chuckle!!  Especially since I live in high rain area (Vancouver BC)!
« Last Edit: January 15, 2014, 07:22:56 AM by pachnik »

arebelspy

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #108 on: January 15, 2014, 07:29:42 AM »
I can't claim credit, someone used that joke last year when we were discussing it.. maybe Russ?
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

catccc

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #109 on: January 15, 2014, 10:26:36 AM »
1.  Spend less than last year  (2012: $47K, 2013: $43K, 2014: $39K... hopefully!)
2.  Max out my 401K, my Roth (done!), and Spousal Roth (done!), max out my backdoor Roth  (I just learned about that last one on these forums!)
3.  Increase net worth to $550K  (Dec 13 ending is $474K)
4.  Contribute entire bonus to kids' 529s, plus contribute more on top of that.
5.  Invest the cash that's been sitting around as a "down payment for a house" for years.

Zaga

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #110 on: January 15, 2014, 10:49:31 AM »
catccc, you can't have both a Roth and a backdoor roth in the same year.  They are both IRA's, and each person can contribute a max of $5,500 to one IRA a year.

ArcticaMT6

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #111 on: January 20, 2014, 12:41:35 PM »
Financial Goals for 2014:

Pay off one of my student loans (Currently at $9400 @ 5%) - Should be done by April.
Pay off one of my wife's student loans (Currently around $15k) - This will be a bit more of a stretch.
Increase my 401k contribution by at least that of my raise (expecting 3%)
Reduce eating out spending
Reduce my soda intake significantly/completely
Make more money on my side hustle of woodworking - Got some tools I want to buy, but don't want to spend my own money on

Leggo

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #112 on: January 20, 2014, 09:29:59 PM »
1.  Fully fund TSP ($17,500)
2.  Fully fund 2 x Roth IRAs ($11,000)
3.  Pay down $20,000 of student loan debt
4.  Increase non-qualified investments by $20,000
5.  Sell land in upstate NY and decidedly unmustachian sports car to help with goal #4.
6.  Buy a reliable car that can make a 3 hour drive every weekend and fit three kids in the back, but still gets high 30s MPG, for under $5k.

Prairie Gal

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #113 on: January 21, 2014, 06:11:48 AM »
I have one big goal this year. Pay off my $62K Heloc. Anything else is gravy.

horsepoor

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #114 on: January 21, 2014, 07:09:29 PM »
My goals aren't too lofty, but I've only recently pulled my head out of my ass:

Increase my pre-tax retirement contribution - already upped from 5% to 10%.  Will probably go to 15% later in the year.
Pay off my credit cards (luckily only carrying balance on a 1.9% promo rate)
Open a Vanguard account and start making regular investment contributions
Accelerate paying down my car loan (also luckily at low APR)

Ipodius

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #115 on: July 06, 2014, 03:38:31 AM »
Great thread :) I'm impressed by a lot of the goals around here!

1. Increase income by 50% minimum (change jobs)...
2. .... while not increasing our living expenses
3. Max out pre-tax retirement accounts
4. Increase overall savings rate (taxable and pre-tax) to 40% of gross income
5. Pay for an overseas trip to visit my sister cash

Came across this thread and it's interesting to see how I'm doing against my goals:

1. Done - increased by nearly 80%
2. Unfortunately not done :( Increased living expenses by about 15% - working to cut it back down
3. Well on our way to doing this - will be able to max it out before my next tax return.
4. If I get a decent bonus or a raise we will definitely make it, if not it's going to be very close.
5. On target to do this. Looking at 40% off our airtickets through a rewards programme from our bank, so that helps a lot!

How is everyone else doing on their goals?

ruthiegirl

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #116 on: July 06, 2014, 06:41:26 AM »
Last year our goals were crazy:  sell our house, sell our car, move across country, settle into new town and new job. 


This year is easy by comparison:

10% gross pay to retirement account.

$35,000 to fund a down payment on a house.

Hot damn.  We are kicking ass or perhaps my goals were too lax. 

We have retirement set to 11% (will max out after we buy a house), are on track to fund 2 IRAs, and our house fund is almost 40K.  We are ahead of schedule and living large. 

MountainGal

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #117 on: September 02, 2014, 04:04:10 PM »
Hi there, newbie Mustachian here, w/ a bit of chin stubble...  Am wondering how everyone is doing with their 2014 goals?

arebelspy

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #118 on: September 02, 2014, 06:01:07 PM »
Hi there, newbie Mustachian here, w/ a bit of chin stubble...  Am wondering how everyone is doing with their 2014 goals?

Thanks for the reminder bump!

1) Purchase 3-5 Properties adding at least 15k to my annual cash flow using conservative estimates.
2) Increase net worth by more than our gross salaries (~90-100k with tutoring/summer school) without counting any equity gains on our properties, increase NW by 200k+ counting equity gains.
3) Save 75%+ of net income

Not really goals I guess, as none are really a challenge, but more like progress markers.  I'd be very surprised if we don't hit them all without much effort.

1: Done (3).
2: Done (16.2k).
3: Done so far (about 79% through last update), and expect to accomplish it easily (first half of the year is more expensive with taxes due in April).

Not really goals I guess, as none are really a challenge, but more like progress markers.  I'd be very surprised if we don't hit them all without much effort.

I don't really bother with stretch goals anymore.  We're happy with where we're at, and just plugging along.  So I guess I'd call it more like "what we expect to accomplish financially in 2014," rather than "goals."

EDIT: Okay, thinking about it later in the day, I came up with these goals: Buy ~8 more rentals this year, adding 30-35k cash flow to my portfolio, and hitting full FI by the end of 2014.  It'll be a stretch compared to what we fully expect to happen (above), but it isn't infeasible, I can see a few scenarios where this occurs.  Most of those scenarios are either 1) Out of my hands, and will require luck, or 2) Will require a LOT more work than I'm willing to put in (i.e. an extra full time job worth).  Two won't happen, so it'll depend on the first scenario.  We'll see.

Nope, didn't get the luck this stretch goal would have required, so just plugging along as normal.  Not even close to these goals (see above for actual progress).
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

Ottawa

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #119 on: September 02, 2014, 06:13:21 PM »
1) Continue a savings rate of 80% or greater (actually the SR would be higher taking into account DB pension contributions taken at source)...
2) Increase ER portfolio (not including paid-off house) to 500K!
3) Move spending to 30K from 33K annually, a 10% reduction (mainly through reducing the need for after school child care).

1) Overall rate for 2014 at a tick over 70%; which is what 1) should have said. (Pass)
2) Up to 455K.  Probably falling short this year since we have 16K in installment taxes to pay in Sept/Dec this year instead of March 2015.  Probably save another 10K this    year..so would need 35K in growth or market returns of 7-8% over the next 4 months (unlikely)
3) Spending was down to 32K on an annual basis at end of August (actual spending at $22,600).  Still hoping to hit 30K for 2014...will be a stretch though.

NinetyFour

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #120 on: September 03, 2014, 03:20:10 AM »
1) Continue saving for (unmustachian) purchase of Four Wheel Eagle camper
2) Reduce debt by $20K
3) Increase investments by $36K
4) Continue to lower monthly expenses, especially groceries and insurance

1) Made the wise decision (with encouragement here) to put off this purchase for 2 - 3 years
2) Debt has decreased by $64K (killed this one!)
3) Investments have increased by $55K  (killed this one also!)
4) I have failed on this one so far.  Still working on it.

pachnik

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #121 on: September 03, 2014, 07:36:18 AM »
If my 'temp to perm' job goes perm (and my fingers are crossed), here are my financial goals:

1.  Start by putting $1,000.00 per month into my RRSP.  This is about 33% of what I take home.
2.  Then increase the percentage. 
3.  I have some cash sitting around - put it into TFSAs or whatever - but get it working for me.

Well, the job isn't going so well... but I have been putting $1,000 + into my RRSP. Close to 40% lately.  And the cash has been moved into investments in TFSAs.  So under the circumstances, pretty good.

I love that we are all still here and working on this.  Hope some more of us chime in!

Carrie

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #122 on: September 03, 2014, 08:15:52 AM »
Our ambitious goals are
1. max out retirement, a 401k and 2 Roth IRAs (we're about $7k shy right now, so it'll take some budget magic)
2. continue funding college savings @ $3k per year
3. pay mortgage principal down by $20k (this takes a backseat to maxing retirement)
4. work extra between now and mid-summer to make these goals possible; encourage spouse to go for a promotion
5. would love a net worth increase of $120k to beat our 2013 increase (of about $114k)

Getting closer to maxing the 401k,  but not quite there yet (shy by 4k, I think). Roths are on auto and will be maxed by the end of the year.
Increased college contributions to $4200 this year. 
Mortgage principal has been paid down by almost $10k and we'll likely have it down another $7-$10k by the end of the year.
Net worth increase is way behind, up about $45-$50k, so far for the year. Unless we have some huge gains, we won't beat last year.

fallstoclimb

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #123 on: September 03, 2014, 09:49:03 AM »
1) Pay off student loans.  29K remaining.  It will be a stretch to hit this by the end of Dec but I want to SO badly. 
2) Continue biking to work 80% of the time. 
3) Introduce a regular telecommute day

Not really a goal, but I predict that our net worth will hit 75K this year if all is well.
I'm also hoping to get our average monthly spending under 4K. 
Stretch hope is for a grade promotion, but my understanding is that depends on people above me retiring, so I can't really do anything to help that along.

1) Done
2) I doubt I'm actually biking 80% of the days (hardly biked at all after a brutal winter+injuries), but I am still biking so we'll say this is a win
3) Done (now have two, in fact).

Net worth -- time will tell.  Probably only feasible if you include our home value in there (and maybe not even then).
Average monthly spending -- we hover around 4K, can't seem to get reliably below it.
Grade promotion -- fairly sure this is in the works (but maybe not if I keep posting on this damn site!)

FIreDrill

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #124 on: September 03, 2014, 10:39:09 AM »
We will see how 2014 turns out but the initial goals are these.

Keep spending under 35k for the year.  This isn't going to happen. Already at 30k for the year :(
Max out Roth IRA's = 11k                    We will be trying to max out T-IRA's after our 401k's now
10% to 401k + match = approx. 11k    Done! Will max out my 401k and get about 14k into the Wifes before the end of the year. This will equal about 38k after matches.
Add extra to taxable accounts = 20k     This is now being diverted to 401k and T-IRA's.
Sell Mustang and invest = 10-12k         Work in progress.... I agreed to a price with a buyer but I need to get our other car up and running before I sell off the mustang.  Should be gone in a couple weeks! :)

Should be a good year :)

Wow, our goals have changed a lot since the beginning of the year.  My wife got a new job and is now eligible for a 401k.  After reading up on the Roth pipeline we decided to try to max out our pre-tax advantaged accounts like 401k's and T-IRA's. Updates in Bold.


SS

Anatidae V

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #125 on: September 03, 2014, 06:25:28 PM »
Our goal is to live on one income (<$55k). All money above that will go into house deposit or investing.

So, I thought I was going to come back here and say we'd already failed. However, YNAB tells me we have spent $41.5k so far this year, so we haven't gone over the line yet. With 4 months to go and $14k, I think we'll end up over spending, maybe as much as $7k over, depending on if expenses fall in December or January. Fingers crossed we can drop a few things and keep it down to get closer :)

Rural

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #126 on: September 03, 2014, 06:56:22 PM »
Fully fund 403(b) and 457 ($35000).
Fully fund HSA ($5800 because of a small employer match)
6.5% of both paychecks into pensions (easy; this is not voluntary!)
Finish paying back a small family loan on building supplies -- this will be done in March, paying $1k a month
Figure out what to do with the extra 1k a month after that. Likely more building supplies through the summer, then maybe start a driveway paving fund.

We look set to save/ put into equity 70% of gross this year, base salaries. But that doesn't account for my summer pay, which my employer will not put into pretax accounts. Don't know yet what it will be. May be time to look at taxable accounts with it assuming the EF holds up.


1. Can't do this entirely at my workplace where the better funds are because I just don't make that much, but 457 will be maxed at 17,500 and the 403(b) will be at ~$12k. We also have just started to discuss what to do with the cash that's building up, so perhaps we should start up his 403(b) with it's less-good funds, or maybe just go taxable in Vanguard (there's no match to leave on the table here). My entire salary is going to benefits and pretax savings; my last monthly paycheck was $75, so I need to add a little more to the 403(b) pot next month...


2. Will be done before year's end; I've adjusted my withholding to get more into the 403(b) instead of the HSA and will make a direct post-tax deposit into an HSA once I'm done with my research.


3. Pensions done, but that's no real thing since we don't have any choice.


4. Family loan paid off.


5. Still figuring on the extra money, but there is quite a bit of it now, so we're on the right track.

Happy Little Chipmunk

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #127 on: September 06, 2014, 12:18:51 AM »
Quote
1) Fully fund the Roth IRAs
2) Increase the amounts going to the kids' 529 funds. (They know they will get a basic level of funding from us, but will need to pitch in too.)
3) Get our wills updated (we had the first meeting with the lawyer and now have to do our homework.)
4) Be serious about tracking our budget on Mint (especially food!)
4) Have the hubby test-drive semi-retirement by cutting back at work

Making decent progress on the goals, but have also added a bit of debt. We replaced the 14 year old Prius with a "new to us" Jetta TDI wagon (it gets better milage than the Prius!) We'll get it paid off pretty quickly though because I hate having a car payment, even with a low rate. We are also a month away from getting the fancy heat pump payed off (0% financing is sweet.)
-We funded the Roths
-Increased the amount per month going into the 529s and the mortgage. (Not by much, but it will add up.)
-Have all-but-signed the new will; should be done at the end of the month (actually it is a trust; made sense in our situation.)
-Am tracking on Mint and also keeping a spreadsheet with our monthly "personal balance sheet"
-And the biggest deal is that the hubby has switched to 80% at work and we are still meeting our goals. And even better, he believes this is possible. With some of his extra breathing space he's volunteering at a high school to spin up an AP computer programming class.

Feeling good!

CommonCents

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #128 on: September 09, 2014, 08:39:46 AM »
To be edited as I refine my thoughts and goals:

My 2014 Goals:
1) Sell condo
2) Track expenses for new house
3) Fully fund both 401ks: $35,000
4) Increase my income by 7% (involves 4.5% in guaranteed raises and 2.5% in side hustles or other mechanisms)
5) Learn more about investing by reading more
6) Open a taxable fund with Vanguard and invest $5k this year
7) Purchase: washer, dryer and grill for new house
8) Begin a vegetable garden
9) Bike to train at least 2 quarters
10) Vacation in Turks & Caicos or Brazil (TBD) for friend's wedding for 7-10 days

1) Done
2) In progress (e.g. we replaced 4 halogen light and we want to see if the $35/month drop in electricity bills was solely due to that, which is insane, or also due to getting to summer; we have some tweaking to do to drop our heating bills more - need to schedule an energy audit).  I also want to track our savings rate more carefully (which is complicated by my husband's delayed reimbursement for work spending, which is not done on a separate card).
3) In progress, scheduled to meet
4) Very well exceeded if you count my husband's 16% raise.
5) Need to get on this
6) Done
7) Done
8) Quasi fail.  Had only 2 tomato plants+cilantro+basil on our deck for fear animals would get it, plus lack of time.  Working on plans for next year.
9) Errp.  Hangs head in shame.  Need to buy husband a bike still.  This will be a fail.
10) Done (in Domenican Republic for only 5 days, but had another wedding in San Diego for 5 days immediately before it)
[/quote]

Our biggest current issue is investing a huge chunk of cash we have from selling the condo ($175K) that didn't go into paying off the mortgage.  DH doesn't want to invest in the market while it's high unfortunately, so I can only get him to nibble at putting money into the stock market.

marty998

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #129 on: September 09, 2014, 03:55:26 PM »
Half a million net worth would be nice.

ooh I've smashed that one. On my way to $550 by the end of the year hopefully.

dandarc

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #130 on: September 11, 2014, 12:37:21 PM »
1.  Get spending under 40K per year

2.  Max out all retirement accounts - two Roth IRAs, one 457 and one Solo 401K - Together, this should total a shade under 70K, more if I get an increase in my rate at my "big job" in July.  Solo K's are pretty awesome.
Our goals changed not that long after this post.  We decided it was time to move to be closer to everything, so that happened in June.  We took on a small mortgage (50K) to make that happen.  Stated new goals are:

1.  Annual burn rate < 50K including mandatory mortgage payments (8500 goes to P/I on minimum payments, so this is close to #1 above - we were in a paid-off condo when that was written).  This one I'm not sure about - need to find another 400 / month or so in cuts to get there.

2.  Turns out is very easy - maxing all accounts + made some contributions for 2013 to my Solo K = we've already put about 75K in, and should get to around 95K by years end.  And have another 2-4K left over to throw at the mortgage.  So maxing the retirement accounts are not really a goal any more so mach as "what's going to happen if our income doesn't take a dive".

shellyrr

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #131 on: September 12, 2014, 07:14:35 AM »
I know it is late in the year but I will share some of my goals.  One was to get a permanent full-time job closer to my house with less stress.  Achieved this in June and saving over 14K in mileage compared to my old job.  Pay off all home equity loans used for purchase of rental properties and refinances-- achieve in August, 2014 yeah without any help from husband.  Cut spending on kids in general-- activites, clothes, toys.  I sold $750 of their stuff in a garage sale and this helped with the motivation.  Now if only Justice wouldn't have such high prices.  Even ar 70% off it is still quite high.  Less is more right? I got rid of life insurance, one of my service plans for rental property, and will be taking off full coverage insurance on my car soon. Learning to cook my new fave Indian Food and dreaming of a mmm vacation to Goa as a reward to myself.  Using cc rewards cards to bank miles for the tickets. Kinda hard now that I am resigned to spend less.

FI plan made  goal is to payoff three rental properties and will achieve overall cf for of $44K minus repairs and maintenance.  Estimated arrival time is 12/2018.  Don't plan on touching my nest egg 401K or IRA.   Have a 529 plan for kids, but stopped doing this as I am focusing on paying down debt. Enough in there for books for the kiddos and our district offers alot of cis classes so they only need 2 years at public university in state to pay for with their part-time job.  I am hoping they pick mom's school the U of MN.  Go Gophers!

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #132 on: September 12, 2014, 07:50:00 AM »
New to MMM and the forum.  My goal for the remainder of 2014 is to better educate myself financially and MAKE A PLAN.  I am in decent shape financially thanks to a good salary and decent saving habits but have gotten to age 42 basically on autopilot in terms of planning for retirement.  I have no plan.  Need a plan.  Will have a plan by end of the year. 

Alfred J Quack

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #133 on: September 16, 2014, 12:44:03 PM »
1. Get umbrella insurance

I don't want to appear ignorant but what's an umbrella insurance?

My list:
1. Reduce mortgage by 16k
2. Keep current expenditure (including mortgage 46%, without mortgage ~20%)
3. Renegotiate cable/internet in July, contract ends then and I've already terminated the subscription after which they usually call with a swaying offer which I'll graciously accept if it means going from 43 per month to less than 38 :P (can't have internet without cable via this provider but only other option is DSL which is unstable and only ~6 cheaper for a reasonable ISP)
4. Invest token amount for tax purposes and to test the local waters because Vanguard is not a real option (can only buy by using fax-orderforms)

1. Shattered, reduced mortgage by 24k by reallocating some savings and being more frugal. 24k was the max penalty free so this is it for the year. Reallocated savings will be built up in de meantime, I'll come out ahead since the mortgage was 4% and savings only 1.75% interest.
2. Mixed, expenses without mortgage were 21% so far due to an unexpected dentists bill (total expenses so far 8k with base mortgage payment included). Due to the mortage payoff total expenses were only 39% though so I'm calling it a win so far :P
3. Working on it, cable company promised a 6-month discount but then did not follow through while extending my running contract for 2 years (which is not legally allowed over here). I registered a complaint but have yet to receive a resonable response.
4. DW had an investment account and since we are married (joined finances) this was not neccesary. Have checked out some investment options though for when the time comes.

clarkfan1979

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #134 on: September 16, 2014, 07:32:10 PM »
I want to pay off the rest of our debt, including student loans.  I also want to get a promotion or new job that pays more than what I'm currently making.  I like my job and it's at a "prestigious" place, but the pay is shit.  Prestige don't pay the bills!

Prestige does not pay the bills. Don't fall for it. One of my friends is a computer programmer that interviewed at Columbia. Their pay was 20% higher than what he was currently making but the cost of living was about 100% higher. He said not thanks, and their response was, "But this is Columbia, we are Ivy League." He was like I don't care who you are, I need a specific amount of money to pay the bills and you are not providing that, so I'm out. They were shocked and upset. I guess most people go for the prestigious pitch.

Sadly, I think some profs fall for this, because many are in the game for the academic prestige. Universities will use this as leverage to pay profs less. I have interviewed at some smaller teaching schools that pay very well. Other profs at larger Universities snub their nose at such schools, but the pay is actually higher. Especially when you factor in that your summers are off because the research requirement is not that high, your hourly wage is even higher. 

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #135 on: October 13, 2014, 09:40:51 PM »
I wonder how everyone is doing?

Savings 2014
  • Continue to stay out of debt.Done!
  • Continue fully funding both 401ks ($46,000).Done!
  • Vanguard index fund on 1 of 3 paychecks per month ($24,000)21,500 so far...[\b]
  • Cut costs on Cable TV and phone.Done!
  • Figure out if the "hidden cushion" in my checkbook really is the $10,000 it appears to be (and invest it if it is).Done.  Used it to pay off unexpected expenses and invested the rest.
  • Save $10,000 to use as downpayment on rental property.  Wait for a good bargain before buying.In Process

We've got an offer in on a rental now.   We'll buy it for cash as we're having trouble finding mortgages small enough to buy it with one.  We'll sock away any rent into the next downpayment/expenses fund.  When we find another rental to purchase, we can get a HELOC on the 1st rental to purchase the 2nd. 

sleepyguy

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #136 on: October 15, 2014, 01:22:43 PM »
Close enough to year end.

1. Actually managed to put away 25% of my take home while SO/GF was out... she's back to work now and we're really put away some cash (she makes 2x what  I do)

2. I've hardly played at all this year.  I'm actually down a few hundred I think, no big deal.  I'll get back into the groove in 2015.

3. Zero time, kids and family has taken over.  I did manage to play twice a week as well (league).  I'm fine with failing this goal... I turned down quite a few offers :(

We're still fine even though I only managed to make 33% of my goals, lol.

1. Stay on just my income (still put away 20% to RRSP/TSFA), once SO get's back to work (June 2014) 100% of her pay goes to investments (RRSP/TSFA/Non-REG).

2. Also have a 15k goal of poker but that will be generally driven by how much spare time I have.

3. Also small goal of $5k coaching/teaching tennis in the summers, again driven by my spare time.

That's about it.
« Last Edit: October 15, 2014, 01:25:25 PM by sleepyguy »

NinetyFour

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #137 on: October 15, 2014, 02:27:28 PM »
1) Continue saving for (unmustachian) purchase of Four Wheel Eagle camper
2) Reduce debt by $20K
3) Increase investments by $36K
4) Continue to lower monthly expenses, especially groceries and insurance

1) Listened to reason, and decided to postpone (by 3 - 4 years) this purchase.  So glad.  SUCCESS!

2) As of 12/31/13, my debts totaled $276,181.  As of 10/6/14, my debt was $207,927.  Crushed this goal.

3) As of 12/31/13, my investments totaled $276,633.  As of 10/6/14, they totaled $321,290.  Kind of afraid to look at my investments right now.  Maybe they will bounce back by year's end?  Success??

4) Had a little trouble here.  Looks like I might end up having spent, on average, $40 less per month on groceries this year than I did last year.  That's good, but I was hoping for great.  With regard to insurance, no progress to report.  I wanted to switch to another insurer, but my house situation is a bit tricky, so I didn't have luck finding an alternative to my current insurer.  Might give it another shot in November.


MrsCoolCat

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #138 on: November 09, 2014, 09:35:58 PM »
My goals changed and I see 2015 being similar to what they were initially for 2014. I hated my last company. They were a cheap dead end company that did not promote their employers or gave them any incentives (big or small) much less plastic ware (they rationed them!). Because of this I wanted to save and invest. A way out perhaps. Eventually, I was unemployed for 3 months and my goals changed. I actually enjoyed those 3 months tremendously and realized that life was too short and I needed to enjoy it! Odd, because most people would panic and probably spend even less! I didn't spend more, but I thought to myself if something were to happen then really, I saved in vain. I'm only young once and I should enjoy it AND somewhat save (if that makes any sense). Now, I work for a good company but my boss is quite (in her own words) neurotic, so I'm back to thinking, "Well, sh!t I can't work for this nut forever! I better save and invest, again!" So I guess that's me at the moment. Time to save because happiness in the corporate world only lasts so long, plus my ultimate endgame is not to work until I'm 59.5

SwordGuy

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #139 on: November 10, 2014, 10:02:47 PM »
Time to save because happiness in the corporate world only lasts so long, plus my ultimate endgame is not to work until I'm 59.5

Most everyone in the mid-size+ organization world has 3 bosses over them.  Over a 5 year period of time you're statistically certain one of them will be a moron.

Morons can be worked with or worked around.

It's the psychotic ones that are the real problem.  You can't be reasonable with people who are crazy.

MrsCoolCat

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #140 on: November 10, 2014, 10:28:28 PM »
Oh, I'm currently working with a crazy! NEUROTIC! JOY!

Time to save because happiness in the corporate world only lasts so long, plus my ultimate endgame is not to work until I'm 59.5

Most everyone in the mid-size+ organization world has 3 bosses over them.  Over a 5 year period of time you're statistically certain one of them will be a moron.

Morons can be worked with or worked around.

It's the psychotic ones that are the real problem.  You can't be reasonable with people who are crazy.
« Last Edit: November 10, 2014, 10:30:29 PM by ChinaChao »

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #141 on: December 13, 2014, 03:10:54 PM »
We have several goals for 2014 (well, I do, my DH is just kinda along for the ride. He has great potential though, I know it.)
  • Debt reduction of $16000
  • Contribute $10000 to my 401K
  • Fully fund a ROTH IRA
  • Continue to refine the budget / build funds for irregular but expected expenses

May have more than this, but its a start.

Time to check in. My goals, for my income, were tight. I was nervous to see how I ended up.

Reduced debt by $16,700! 
I won't know the exact amount of my 401k contribution until year end, but I think it will be within $100 of my goal.
Currently have contributed only $2500 to ROTH.
Have built up additional savings outside of retirement accounts. Which I may move into the ROTH, still debating this.

We also purchased a "new" used car for my husband. His car had to be unexpectedly replaced. We paid cash though and only spent $3200. So I'm calling that a win.

Overall I'm pretty happy with the progress, but need to outline 2015 goals.

SwordGuy

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #142 on: December 13, 2014, 10:04:22 PM »
Savings 2014
  • Continue to stay out of debt.Done!
  • Continue fully funding both 401ks ($46,000).Done!
  • Vanguard index fund on 1 of 3 paychecks per month ($24,000)We'll hit 27,000, with Vanguard Admiral Shares in the total US and total International funds.[\b]
  • Cut costs on Cable TV and phone.Done!
  • Figure out if the "hidden cushion" in my checkbook really is the $10,000 it appears to be (and invest it if it is).Done.  Used it to pay off unexpected expenses and invested the rest.
  • Save $10,000 to use as downpayment on rental property.  Wait for a good bargain before buying.Bought rental property for cash as I couldn't find a mortgage that small.  Hope to have it rental-ready by the end of the year.   Would have reached $36,000 on the Vanguard investing but we're cash-flowing the renovation repairs plus we upped our charitable contributions this year.   The latter wasn't really in our budget but we realized that we have the money to do it and we should.

KiwiSonya

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #143 on: December 13, 2014, 10:18:47 PM »
Wow, what amazing progress you have all made this year. I have only joined Mmm two months ago but I'll be keen to join you for 2015. I'll be aiming big as you guys have shown it can be done!

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #144 on: December 13, 2014, 11:12:16 PM »
My goals aren't too lofty, but I've only recently pulled my head out of my ass:

Increase my pre-tax retirement contribution - already upped from 5% to 10%.  Will probably go to 15% later in the year.
Pay off my credit cards (luckily only carrying balance on a 1.9% promo rate)
Open a Vanguard account and start making regular investment contributions
Accelerate paying down my car loan (also luckily at low APR)

Killed #1 - contributing !40% for the last few pay periods to end up around $15.5K on my TSP.  Will be maxed in 2015.
#2 Not paying any CC interest.  Will have my 0% card payed off before the intro period is over in May
Haven't done this yet... trying to decide between killing debt and making 2014 Roth contributions.
Done- started year @ 13.5K ish, and currently at 4.5K, with plans to kill this in February at the latest (though mathematically, I should throw it in a Roth instead).

Peony

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #145 on: December 16, 2014, 04:12:16 PM »
My big goal for 2014 is to treat my rentals as a proper business.

That means raising rents, addressing deferred maintenance, converting one space from residential to commercial (a big involved deal), making sure all insurance is adequate, formulating my plan for the future. I would like to involve my older kid, age 19, in this process, at least as an observer. I want him to see what things cost and how one deals with professionals (architects, real estate brokers, etc.) and tenants.

Next, I want to use YNAB faithfully and optimize my personal and business spending.

Finally, once I feel the rental situation is set up optimally, I actually want to go back to work part-time. I miss working with other people and have been finding myself reading the Help Wanted ads wistfully.

1) Being more businesslike on the rentals:
 
-- Raised rents by 7.2%. Plan to raise them a further 3%-5% when leases are up this year.
 
-- Increased insurance on principal rental. Debating whether to boost liability above $1M (costs substantially more, but I think it may be worth it.)

-- Began the large, costly masonry job that was looming. Got a good estimate; job's not done yet so can't quite claim success. But a start has been made.

-- Made a plan for giving the potential commercial space more curb appeal. Did not do the conversion yet, as current residential tenants in that space are super-reliable. Had a couple phone conversations with a reputable commercial rental broker familiar with the area. Laying groundwork.

-- Made an appointment to meet with a trust attorney early in the new year. Want to discuss exit strategies for the highly appreciated rental property. Want to explore charitable remainder trusts as a way to minimize cap gains/depreciation recapture.

-- Brought 19-y-o and 17-y-o, separately, to the property to deal with service providers. Trying to spark their awareness/interest. So-so results.

Budgeting:
-- Used YNAB faithfully all year and I cannot express how much it has helped me get control of my finances. Also, my tax info has been super-easy to organize.

Part-time work:
-- Agreed to work 2.5 days per week at friends' art-supply store. Nice customers, good products, fair prices. Not much $$, but it's social and will let me put a little $$ into an IRA.

So, by and large, mission accomplished! Time to start thinking about 2015.
« Last Edit: December 17, 2014, 09:12:12 PM by Peony »

CU Tiger

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #146 on: December 17, 2014, 08:58:16 PM »
We paid off the mortgage. Raised our savings rate to 35%. Started tracking things more carefully.

We need a new thread for 2015, and more folks need to let us know how they did this year.

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #147 on: December 18, 2014, 05:50:18 AM »
We paid off all but $3500 on a home equity line, faithfully used YNAB for the year (letting us get to a simpler plan), streamlined most of our investment accounts, helped pay for our son's wedding, began addressing deferred house maintenance issues, and trimmed our household operating expenses.  Feeling ready to do more in 2015.

Le0

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #148 on: December 18, 2014, 07:25:09 AM »
Here are my 2014 goals.

1. Pay Down Debt

2. Reduce Overall Spending  - On a per month basis we would like to cut our spending to $2500 a month. That will help pay down our debt.

3. Increase Income – I want to become more diverse in my income. Less reliant on a full time job and more profitable with my time


1. We have accelerated student loan payments from the minimum 560 > 800 and plan to increase it to 1000 in the new year. In addition to this I am getting repayment assistance on one of the loans so the government pays all of the interest, we have managed to pay don't a couple 1000 in a couple months.

2. We haven't managed to achieve $2500, and to be honest with rent that number might not be possible, however we have dialed in on all of our spending. Used YNAB for over a year, and saved a relatively good portion considering our debt payments.

3. I just achieved this in the last couple months. I picked up a side hustle that is paying me an amount equal to 1/3 of my take home pay at work. Its a nice addition and really maxes out the amount of time I want to give to a side hustle, for a great price. There is opportunity to make even more money with the side hustle and it has me thinking about the possibilities of taking it full time.

Overall I am happy to see in one way or another I have made improvements in a 3 of these areas. 

arebelspy

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Re: 2014 Financial Goals
« Reply #149 on: December 18, 2014, 08:15:15 AM »
Hi there, newbie Mustachian here, w/ a bit of chin stubble...  Am wondering how everyone is doing with their 2014 goals?

Thanks for the reminder bump!

1) Purchase 3-5 Properties adding at least 15k to my annual cash flow using conservative estimates.
2) Increase net worth by more than our gross salaries (~90-100k with tutoring/summer school) without counting any equity gains on our properties, increase NW by 200k+ counting equity gains.
3) Save 75%+ of net income

Not really goals I guess, as none are really a challenge, but more like progress markers.  I'd be very surprised if we don't hit them all without much effort.

1: Done (3).
2: Done (16.2k).
3: Done so far (about 79% through last update), and expect to accomplish it easily (first half of the year is more expensive with taxes due in April).

Not really goals I guess, as none are really a challenge, but more like progress markers.  I'd be very surprised if we don't hit them all without much effort.

I don't really bother with stretch goals anymore.  We're happy with where we're at, and just plugging along.  So I guess I'd call it more like "what we expect to accomplish financially in 2014," rather than "goals."

EDIT: Okay, thinking about it later in the day, I came up with these goals: Buy ~8 more rentals this year, adding 30-35k cash flow to my portfolio, and hitting full FI by the end of 2014.  It'll be a stretch compared to what we fully expect to happen (above), but it isn't infeasible, I can see a few scenarios where this occurs.  Most of those scenarios are either 1) Out of my hands, and will require luck, or 2) Will require a LOT more work than I'm willing to put in (i.e. an extra full time job worth).  Two won't happen, so it'll depend on the first scenario.  We'll see.

Nope, didn't get the luck this stretch goal would have required, so just plugging along as normal.  Not even close to these goals (see above for actual progress).

End of year update, everything remains the same from September.  I noticed I skipped goal 2 when answering above, because goal 1 had two parts so I split that into answers 1 and 2 when answering, which caused me to miss question 2.

It should read: Yes. Yes. Yes. Probably, or close enough that I don't care.

Not sure if there's a 2015 goals thread, so I'll post this here.. Based on the same above reasoning from my first post, these are more like "what I expect to accomplish" rather than goals.

What I expect to accomplish:
1) 60k+ net cash flow.
2) 1MM+ net worth.
3) FIRE*.

*Whatever that looks like, and however long it lasts.
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