Author Topic: Race to 50K  (Read 75018 times)

Rosy

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Race to 50K
« on: June 05, 2017, 02:37:49 PM »
Can you imagine seeing 50K on your own statement? I can't quite yet, but I just figured out a plan on how to get there - in 30 months (less than a 3 yr car loan:)

This is a challenge to reach 50K - devise your own plan, state your deadline and go for it!
To be clear, this is not a Net Worth challenge - this is a savings/investment challenge. Doesn't matter if you presently have zero NW or 100K+ already.


Here is my plan:
$50K by December 31, 2019
$1666.66 mo x 30 mo = $50,000  - I can do this!:) says she, fiercely wishing it to be true.

So here we go:
June 2017
$  $1533 - still need $133 by the end of the month - wish me luck.
« Last Edit: June 08, 2017, 02:20:54 PM by Rosy »

TartanTallulah

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Re: Save or invest - 50K
« Reply #1 on: June 06, 2017, 04:43:29 AM »
I wish you lots of luck, strength, wisdom and determination, and as few obstacles as possible. Have you decided how you're going to apportion the money as you save it?

(I have a similar challenge, with a slightly different time frame and target, and a sketched-out plan of how I'm going to make it happen and how the savings are going to be divided in order to meet my requirements at different points in time as efficiently as possible. It feels a bit like spending money and still having it.)

Rosy

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Re: Save or invest - 50K
« Reply #2 on: June 06, 2017, 01:51:20 PM »
I wish you lots of luck, strength, wisdom and determination, and as few obstacles as possible. Have you decided how you're going to apportion the money as you save it?

(I have a similar challenge, with a slightly different time frame and target, and a sketched-out plan of how I'm going to make it happen and how the savings are going to be divided in order to meet my requirements at different points in time as efficiently as possible. It feels a bit like spending money and still having it.)

No concrete plan on how I will ultimately apportion it - other than that I'm leaning toward 50% investment and 50% savings
right now, I'm thinking 6 months ahead - Jun-Dec = 10K if all goes to plan:)
I am pondering if I should place it in Vanguard Admiral shares once it hits 10K.

Or - after three months I'd have enough to open a regular Vanguard account and then simply add the monthly savings until I reached 25K
Or - possibly stop at 10K investments and put the next 10K into a CD or similar vehicle

I wish I were smart enough to figure out a way to make the 25K cash savings work for me too, other than interest. A super secret stock tip? a hot new company? 

@TartanTallulah - I'm curious - So what were you thinking of doing that would be a bit like spending money and still having it?

TartanTallulah

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Re: Save or invest - 50K
« Reply #3 on: June 07, 2017, 09:54:25 AM »

@TartanTallulah - I'm curious - So what were you thinking of doing that would be a bit like spending money and still having it?

It's just a psychological thing, I haven't found the Holy Grail! Being focused on saving and investing with a definite endpoint means that every time I plan and make a deposit in my interest-bearing cash account, after-tax investment account, or freestanding pension fund it feels like I'm spending money and getting something I value for it, even though that something is as intangible as making measurable progress towards my goal, rather than letting it dissipate into household expenditure.

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #4 on: June 08, 2017, 02:17:23 PM »
Yes, makes perfect sense to me. ^^^ If every dollar has a purpose it is much easier to stay on track. Automatic savings is the best invention ever - I don't ever really "have" the money, it goes to a different account and it is fun to see your stash grow.

I just looked up to read the inscription on the coin of the Mustachian logo (banner) - Financial Freedom through Badassity - so true.
Be back to post at the end of June - to record whether I made my first monthly goal of $1666.66
In the meantime, maybe I can find a new bank that pays both a bonus and offers at least 1% or better APY.
« Last Edit: June 08, 2017, 02:21:38 PM by Rosy »

MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #5 on: June 09, 2017, 06:27:43 AM »
Hi Rosy!  I think I will join you!  I really need to have a 50k balance in my TSP in the next 30 months.

My balance is depressing low at 29k.  I am currently adding only $440 a month (minimum I can do to still get the max match) as I stash cash for a rental property down payment.  I really need to give the retirement account some attention.  My average returns on this account are 8%, and at this rate (440 a month deposit with 8% returns) the online calculator I used says I will reach 50k in exactly 30 months.  So while this doesn't seem like much of a challenge for me, it means if my returns are not actually 8%, I will have to increase my deposits to hit that 50k.  Not as exciting a plan as yours for sure!

TartanTallulah

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #6 on: June 09, 2017, 03:59:01 PM »
Automatic savings is the best invention ever - I don't ever really "have" the money, it goes to a different account and it is fun to see your stash grow.


Very true. The main reason I'm close to being able to claim a meagre sort of FI is that over the years I've had a payroll deduction with employer contributions which has meant that I've saved money without ever seeing it, and that has protected me through years of financial carelessness. That, and a phobia of debt which has meant that I've never had actual money troubles.

I've been selling off the remaining stock from an online shop that was my husband's "job" while he was a SAHP, but which was really just a hobby and was never profitable. He closed the business a few years ago and the stock has just stayed in the cupboard, neatly organised and in as-new condition. I've priced it to sell and cut our losses rather than to break even. So far, deducting the cost of postage and eBay and PayPal fees, I've made enough for my husband to double his monthly pension contribution for 12 months and almost covered the cost of a piece of workshop equipment that needed replacing - our "jam today" portion. Anything above that will be mine to invest, and I've earmarked it for my after-tax investments which I intend to leave for as long as possible but will be able to access any time if I need it.  The actual numbers are small, but when you've got a target it all counts.

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #7 on: June 10, 2017, 02:30:17 PM »
Hi Rosy!  I think I will join you!  I really need to have a 50k balance in my TSP in the next 30 months.

My balance is depressing low at 29k.  I am currently adding only $440 a month (minimum I can do to still get the max match) as I stash cash for a rental property down payment.  I really need to give the retirement account some attention.  My average returns on this account are 8%, and at this rate (440 a month deposit with 8% returns) the online calculator I used says I will reach 50k in exactly 30 months.  So while this doesn't seem like much of a challenge for me, it means if my returns are not actually 8%, I will have to increase my deposits to hit that 50k.  Not as exciting a plan as yours for sure!

@mommycake - Welcome to the challenge and thanks for joining me - I am thrilled to have some company on this long journey. 
I'm holding you to it:) $440 x30 months for you to reach your goal of 50K.
Oh, I don't know about yours not being as exciting as my goal - $50K is plenty exciting no matter how you look at it.

So tell me, how will you make up the difference - if it plummets below 8%? Quarterly? Spare change - side gig?

@TartanTallulah That sounds like a lot of work to me - yay you for pulling it off. You know, I think it is always the small stuff that adds up or sinks us. Those are some impressive results either way.
I've decided to work a bit more on my own side gigs, an area that I totally neglected this year. Mostly, because for three months I couldn't see - eye surgery related. Then we had company for weeks and indulged in a nice long vacation - so it is time to examine our financial lives and work on long term goals.
My plan is among other things to update my long neglected photography website. Just signed up for some classes to improve my skills, partly because I hope to improve my sales, but even more so, because I really enjoy it and now that we replaced the old computer and monitor, I'm ready to roll with edits and uploads. It was a real pain before.
Who knows, you and I may well exceed our goals and timelines - good luck!

MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #8 on: June 14, 2017, 04:38:24 AM »
Hi Rosy,

If I have to increase my retirement deposits, I will have to spend less on groceries and baby stuff.  I have a tendency to spend more than necessary on these areas.  Right now I know my daughter needs a new swimsuit/sun hat/ sunglasses.  There is a perfectly nice second hand store I can go to for these items to save money.  Also I can temporarily cut my food budget by buying less meat and shopping at Aldi's more instead of the closer grocery store.  Actually I should probably do these things anyway! and not just if my market returns decrease :)

westtoeast

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #9 on: June 14, 2017, 05:32:49 AM »
Hi, I'd love to join! I put myself in the race to 100k challenge but that's so far off that I find myself ignoring the thread.

Here's where I am:
$7100 in Emergency Fund
$9,400 in Roth & 457 investment accounts
$9,500 in pension (post-tax)... not sure if I should count this but chances are high I'll withdraw it prior to vesting.
Total w/o pension: $16,500
Total w/ pension: $26,000

I also have a few thousand in a short terms savings account for travel and stuff-- I won't count that.

My plan: I'm a teacher so my numbers look funny in summer.
June: $500 --> EF
July: $1200 of summer school salary --> EF
Sept-June: $1300 --> 457; $200 --> EF (per month)

I'm in a high cost area and I'm aggressively paying student loan down so these numbers are as high as I can!

Goals: (w/o pension)
June 2018: 33,000
June 2019: 50,000




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Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #10 on: June 16, 2017, 08:25:41 PM »
Hi Rosy,

If I have to increase my retirement deposits, I will have to spend less on groceries and baby stuff.  I have a tendency to spend more than necessary on these areas.  Right now I know my daughter needs a new swimsuit/sun hat/ sunglasses.  There is a perfectly nice second hand store I can go to for these items to save money.  Also I can temporarily cut my food budget by buying less meat and shopping at Aldi's more instead of the closer grocery store.  Actually I should probably do these things anyway! and not just if my market returns decrease :)

Exactly! Once it becomes a habit, you'll automatically do it - almost as good as having automatic savings withdrawals. You can do it!:)

 I'm so tight this month, even the $134 extra savings is going to be tougher than I thought it would be. Not the best start, but hey, what's life without a little challenge? I just need to come up with some ideas to generate some extra cash - $134 would be a nice start:)


Hi, I'd love to join! I put myself in the race to 100k challenge but that's so far off that I find myself ignoring the thread.

Goals: (w/o pension)
June 2018: 33,000
June 2019: 50,000


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Welcome to the challenge westtoeast! Glad to have you join our journey to 50K.
 I know, I was thinking the same thing, that 100K is way too far off and honestly may or may not ever happen for me. For now, I am very happy to have figured out how to get to 50K in 30 months - so I am sticking to my plan - although, this first month is proving tricky already.

Good luck with your summer teaching job!

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #11 on: June 22, 2017, 08:25:24 AM »

Here is my plan:
$50K by December 31, 2019
$1666.66 mo x 30 mo = $50,000
- I can do this!:) says she, fiercely wishing it to be true.

So here we go:
June 2017
$  $1533 - still need $133 by the end of the month - wish me luck.

Whoa:) - Update:

June 2017
New balance: $ 4,588.92 - "only" $45,411.08 more to go:)

Mindgames:)  I only counted the $1.5K that I was due on the 21st of June, this month.
I was so focused on the process in my head about how to reach 50K within 30 mo that I forgot to count what I already had saved as of May, because I originally thought I needed that money to cover June expenses, but then figured out ways to hang onto it all - by my fingernails.
So June is indeed an uber frugal month for me, but with these results I don't mind.

I am obsessed with reaching that 50K goal, the sooner the better:)
I plan to stay uber focused and hope that throwing a little extra at it each month will speed up the process along the way.

Outlook for July 2017:
As long as I make the $1,666 happen in July then I'm golden, because that is the last month with (larger than comfortable for me, if I also want to save) cc pmts.
I definitely need a side gig to make it through July unscathed.
(Reminder math games for myself: $45,411.08 new bal divided by 29 months to go = $1,565.90 mo - reduced mo sav would still get me to my goal of 50K by Dec 2018 as planned.) Right now I am almost two months ahead of schedule - I like that.

Thanks guys for hanging out with me as I try to make it all happen as planned - or sooner:)
Good luck with your goals!

TartanTallulah

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #12 on: June 22, 2017, 12:19:53 PM »
It's always a good feeling to be ahead. Well done Rosy!

I have scope to get ahead too. My husband worked lots of overtime last month, and it looks as if he'll have similar working hours for at least the next month though I don't think he could sustain it forever (bless him, he's worked around 50% of the number of hour each week that I usually work - but he does work hard during those hours). And the next three months look like being brutal months at work for me too because we're short-handed. I'd rather work three days a week and have more time to go out to play, but if I work four or five days a week I'll earn more, and our expenses are dropping, so each extra session brings me closer to my target.

8% of my before-tax income gets skimmed off into my pension fund before I see it, I've swept 35% of our total income into our joint linked savings account and another 12% into my ISA, and over the month another 6% gets debited to my husband's pension and my ISA, so if we manage to live on what's left in the checking account (and we should) we'll be saving two-thirds of our joint income this month.

I got round to writing down what I want all our little pots to do at various stages of retirement too. It was a reality check - we're not there yet unless we're prepared to live on grass and roadkill and will have to be focused about saving if I want to retire rather than just having a career break at 55.

MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #13 on: June 28, 2017, 05:00:32 AM »
Great job Rosy!  That's a nice jump ahead :)

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #14 on: June 30, 2017, 03:27:14 PM »
June 2017 - $4,588.92
July 2017 begins with $6,221.92
- only $43,779.08 more dollars to go

Outlook for July is not as bad as I feared, so I set up trsf of $100, plus my already dedicated $1533. Not a bad start:)

For now, I am getting 0.75% APY with my regular Capital One 360 savings account. But, I noticed that their Money Market account pays 1.10% APY for balances over $10K - that means an extra, free $110 annually, if I transfer once it hits $10K.

Current plan
Right now I am leaning toward a split of $20K Vanguard and $30K liquid savings for my $50K total.
 
1. The current plan is to stash $10K, hope to be there by Sep? - immediately open Money Market @1.10% APY.
2. Then save up 3K by Nov 2017? - open Vanguard account and fill up to $10K - by Apr 2018?
3. Next, I'll switch to 50% save and 50% invest each month, until Vanguard hits $20K, by Apr 2019?
4. Finish line - add another $10K to Money Market by Oct 2019?

I guess a lot depends on whether I can ramp up the process by saving a bit more along the way, so far I am two months ahead of the original target date of Dec 2019.

How about you?




TartanTallulah

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #15 on: June 30, 2017, 04:38:30 PM »
Nicely done, Rosy!

Late June/early July might be a leaner savings month in my household. We have two car services to pay for, my husband needed to buy a new smartphone, and we've had a vacation which, though not intrinsically expensive, involved buying an extra three or four tanks of fuel. Some of the money I swept into the linked savings account may be getting swept back into the checking account. I'm hoping that signing up to reducing my grocery spending in July will help retrieve the situation.

My husband had a message from work asking him to continue to work additional hours (24 hours instead of 9 hours a week) for longer than expected. This will provide additional income for saving for the next two months. With both of us working so much overtime, though, we are going to treat ourselves to a fortnight in the sun during the winter.

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #16 on: June 30, 2017, 09:12:32 PM »
Quote
With both of us working so much overtime, though, we are going to treat ourselves to a fortnight in the sun during the winter.

Tartan - I wish to get away from the heat in Florida:), but the 4th of July weekend is upon us, so we may indulge as well:)
Looking good for your income - $$$ are a good thing.


MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #17 on: July 07, 2017, 08:05:42 AM »
update - 29 months to go...

up 500 from last month to 29,500 in retirement account.  Returns dropped this month so I went ahead and increased my monthly deposits from 440 to 535, set to start next pay period. 

Hope everyone had a good 4th of July!  We had a very low-key holiday but saved money by staying home and hanging in the backyard. 

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #18 on: July 10, 2017, 02:33:51 PM »
Looking good Mommy Cake - we're really doing it!

I am obsessed with this 50K goal. Decided to add an extra $2K by redirecting money originally allocated for my Travel stash.
Added small side gig monies to the travel fund instead.

UPDATE:
July 2017
$8,221.92 - only $41,779.08 to go to reach my goal of 50K

YAY - the new ticker worked - I love visuals:)
« Last Edit: July 10, 2017, 02:47:24 PM by Rosy »

MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #19 on: July 19, 2017, 04:14:12 AM »
Rosy you are crushing this !!!!!

I hit 30k, yay!  28.5 months left to go, and with my increased deposits I should hit 50k just in time.

Westtoeast, how are you doing? 

TartanTallulah

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #20 on: July 19, 2017, 05:09:29 AM »
Yay, everyone's making great progress :-)

I'm doing OK too. My main target is to have a year's projected and researched expenditure in cash by the end of March 2019. My secondary, good-to-have, target is to have a year's expenditure plus the cost of a frivolous midlife crisis set of (two) wheels in cash by the end of March 2019 and not let my husband talk me into the frivolous midlife crisis purchase before I've got time to play on it. If I can keep working until then, everything will fall into place.

westtoeast

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #21 on: July 19, 2017, 05:39:29 AM »
Rosy you are crushing this !!!!!

I hit 30k, yay!  28.5 months left to go, and with my increased deposits I should hit 50k just in time.

Westtoeast, how are you doing?


I was just coming to update-- thanks for asking!

My investments just crossed $10,000. My Emergency Fund just crossed $9,000. So my number is now $19,000... feeling pretty excited! It will be $20,000 after my next summer school paycheck. I'm on track to exceed my goal, actually. I should be at $36,000 by this time next year (assuming I don't have to touch my emergency fund).

Nice work everyone, some solid gains!


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Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #22 on: July 30, 2017, 08:20:38 AM »
Rosy you are crushing this !!!!!

I hit 30k, yay!  28.5 months left to go, and with my increased deposits I should hit 50k just in time.

Westtoeast, how are you doing?


I was just coming to update-- thanks for asking!

My investments just crossed $10,000. My Emergency Fund just crossed $9,000. So my number is now $19,000... feeling pretty excited! It will be $20,000 after my next summer school paycheck. I'm on track to exceed my goal, actually. I should be at $36,000 by this time next year (assuming I don't have to touch my emergency fund).

Nice work everyone, some solid gains!


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We are all crushing this:) - yay! You go guys! We got this!

Update:
July ended with $8,221.92

August starts with:
$1,533 auto trsf
$  100  auto trsf
$  200  one time trsf Reg
TOTAL $1833
Looking into finding another $200 this month to reach a cool two thou. My goal is to come up with an even $2K each month from now on, except for Dec.

To keep it real and to keep me motivated, I broke up my 50K goal into five steps - each step is $10K!

PLAN - SUCCESS - reached step one of my five step plan to reach 50K!!!
1. Aug 2017 - $ 10,054 - opening a Money Market account at Capital One - APY 1.10%
- comes with a $200 bank bonus if I qualify, which would sweeten the pot even more.

Next step - open VC by Oct 2017:)
2. Sep 2017 to Feb/Mar 2018 - $10K total. The plan is to open VG acct in Oct 2017 w $3K+ and contribute ea mo until it hits $10K+ (Admiral shares)
3. Apr 2018? - skip savings send to vacation account instead - May 2018 to Oct 2018  - save up to the next $10K online at 1.5% APY
4. Nov 2018 to May 2019 - $1K ea mo to MM and $1K ea mo to VG - total $5K ea = $10K
5. Jun 2019 to Nov 2019 ??? - total $10K - sav/inv?

I can't believe this is really happening. Anticipation - it will be so cool to hit each step, can't wait for the halfway mark.

How are things looking for August for everyone?






MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #23 on: August 02, 2017, 04:35:16 AM »
Great job Everyone!!!!!!  Glad we're all on track :)

My last July deposit has me at 30,500 to start out the new month.  July brought great returns, and Mint thinks I will hit 50k by November 2018. 

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #24 on: August 10, 2017, 01:29:54 PM »
Just reporting in because of a slight detour.

Aug is now a straight up total of $10K in a CD at 3% APY

Step one completed. $40K more to go:)

GO MOMMYCAKE GO! I'm so jealous:) - love your August numbers.

MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #25 on: September 05, 2017, 04:31:42 AM »
Well it's a new month everyone! Great job on the 10k Rosy!

My retirement account didn't do very well in August; I'm only at 31,000 to start out September.  I'm still on track to hit 50k sometime in November 2019 though.

I've been saving for another rental property but after months of no luck am considering putting this on hold.  If I stop the down payment savings, I can really up the contributions to the retirement account.  I'm gonna take some time to mull this over....

How did everyone else's August go?

westtoeast

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #26 on: September 05, 2017, 04:37:22 AM »
I'll have to come back at the end of Sept for a real update, since I didn't get paid in August (it was sad seeing all my accounts stay basically the same, especially since my investments didn't do that well). My first 457 deduction did get taken out of my first Sept check though, and I moved some of my first paycheck to my EF, so I'm now at $21,035. Every thousand counts!

MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #27 on: September 29, 2017, 08:16:48 AM »
Checking in for September....

Retirement account is at 32,000 this morning.  Investments did well this month, and Mint bumped up my date to meet 50K goal from Nov to Oct 2018. 

I had been considering forgetting about saving for another rental property, but I think I may have found one.  May put in an offer this weekend. 

Rosy are you out there?

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #28 on: October 09, 2017, 12:57:16 PM »
Good job everyone!:)

Checking in - and it's not all good - I'm struggling a bit at present. Instead of adding another 10K total for Sep Oct Nov, which I was gearing up to do, I spent that 10K plus I'm now in debt for another 11K. My budget is shot right now and most of my cash emergency savings is gone.
Let's just say, these were necessary and satisfying expenses, but I had hoped to put them off for another year. There is a possibility of getting back $7K and I will strive to come up with a few extra bucks and savings in November - we'll see how it all goes.

So - sigh - total saved as of Oct 9, 2017 $10, 042.
Bottomline - October looks very iffy at the moment - with luck I might manage to put away $500 in savings, but I'm not holding my breath. Will update at the end of the month.

I'm still here @mommycakes - and I'm not going anywhere until I reached my goal - just reeling from a major setback right now. Struggling to get back on track, but I'll get there:) - can't let a little thing like 25K expenditures in one month get in the way of my goals, especially since these were (partially) planned expenses.
Right now I can only dream of your $32K:) - good luck with your real estate hunt!

haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #29 on: October 09, 2017, 02:57:26 PM »
I'm joining in. Currently I'm in the race to $10K where I am tracking my Net worth but I'm going to join this race to $50K to track my retirement accounts.

Goal - Hit $50K by June 2019

                           10/9/2017
401K                  $23,828.55
Capital One IRA      2,232.00
Fidelity IRA          322.27
Total Retirement $26,382.82     

Remaining to reach goal = $23,617.18 in 21 months is roughly $1,124 a month. This will not be my number in the beginning. I'm working on paying down some debt so my monthly contributions will be close to $500 at least for the next 6-8 months. After that I can start throwing more money towards retirement.


westtoeast

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #30 on: October 09, 2017, 03:06:46 PM »
October Update!

Investments = $14,585
Emergency Fund = $8,000 (I moved some of this over to my Roth IRA)
Total = $22,585

So about $1,000 increase since my last post. It should have been a little higher, but I did dip into savings a bit to cover a few unexpected expenses (necessary). On the bright side I'm now on track to hit 50k in January 2019 IF I stick to some pretty darn rigorous goals. I've also been side hustling and while some of that is funding travel, I should be able to divert a little bit to savings. It would be so amazing to hit the goal before 2018 ends, but that would be tough.

Glad to see folks still active here-- it can be really hard to stay motivated on these long term goals!

westtoeast

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #31 on: October 09, 2017, 03:10:38 PM »
Good job everyone!:)

I'm still here @mommycakes - and I'm not going anywhere until I reached my goal - just reeling from a major setback right now. Struggling to get back on track, but I'll get there:) - can't let a little thing like 25K expenditures in one month get in the way of my goals, especially since these were (partially) planned expenses.
Right now I can only dream of your $32K:) - good luck with your real estate hunt!

Setbacks can be so frustrating! Although it sounds like this spending was going to happen either now or later-- hopefully the fact that the spending happened now doesn't change your overall date too much. You'll get there one way or another :)

haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #32 on: October 16, 2017, 12:58:31 PM »
Remaining to reach goal = $23,617.18 in 21 months is roughly $1,124 a month. This will not be my number in the beginning. I'm working on paying down some debt so my monthly contributions will be close to $500 at least for the next 6-8 months. After that I can start throwing more money towards retirement.

Well I increased my 401K contribution so it should be around $775 for just 401K. I then plan to save whatever else I can into a separate savings account until I reach $3K after which I'll put that into an IRA and set up some auto-deductions. I looked at my FIRE goal and I'm gonna need to hit $50K by end of 2018 to stay on track so I'm shortening my time-frame to 14 1/2 months! Yikes. Here's hoping the market helps me out with this. :)

DieHard_772

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #33 on: October 16, 2017, 01:35:25 PM »
Hi there!  I just saw this thread for the first time.
I have been updating on the Race to 10k thread all year.
Looking forward to using this thread

Will update soon

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #34 on: October 17, 2017, 12:23:11 PM »
@haypug - welcome to the challenge!:) I see you are as driven as I am on this particular challenge. Motivation is key, but it helps to see others adjust and re-adjust their plans on how to get there - good going so far!

FOCUS - like those steel bars they put into concrete buildings, they can move if need be, but they are rock solid.

@westtoeast - I hear ya, it is hard to stay motivated for a long time - because life and setbacks happen - but, so do windfalls and unexpected blessings and opportunities. Nice to see you on track.
I'm looking forward to all of us reaching our goals - blips an' all:)

@DieHard - Yay - welcome to the club - looking forward to seeing your goals and your plans on how to make it all happen:)!

Update for October - looks like there will be just a little bit of incoming funds for saving - wayyy better than zero:)

DieHard_772

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #35 on: October 17, 2017, 12:55:11 PM »

@DieHard - Yay - welcome to the club - looking forward to seeing your goals and your plans on how to make it all happen:)!

Update for October - looks like there will be just a little bit of incoming funds for saving - wayyy better than zero:)

Thanks Rosy.  The Race to 10K thread was really helpful and encouraging, and I'm sure this will be too.
As for me, here are our current numbers (I am including money that will be spent in the next few months for simplicity... and maybe to pad the numbers a bit, but hey!  Also, to be fair,
this only includes money in my bank account, not my wife's, and there are other things that are technically assets like some silver coins and of course things we own.  Maybe in the future
I will add some of those to help with the numbers a bit on our race to $20K networth, we'll see) 

OUR ASSETS:  $15654
Money for spending:  $1952
Savings:  $2125
Our Investments (my IRAs, my wife's Sep-IRA, and our HSA):  $11,576

OUR LIABILITIES: -7305
Credit card:  -$2925
Student loan: -$4380

TOTAL NETWORTH:
$8349

Considering that, by my calculation, our networth was nearly -$15k two years, I would say we are making great progress!
Onward to the next milestone:  $20k!

haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #36 on: October 17, 2017, 02:03:46 PM »
Thanks Rosy.

Nice to see you in this challenge DieHard

I'm thinking that once I see my paycheck after the updated 401K deductions that if I have extra money to save I will just increase my contribution to 401K again. With the tax savings and the company match (I think it's 33% but I'm not sure how high they match) it probably makes more sense to work on getting my 401K up to the max first before saving in an IRA. So that is the new plan. Like you said Rosy, plans can change and I think being flexible to switching things up in order to make the best financial decisions will be the best thing I can do.

Everyday I am on this thread and also reading the blog posts I am grateful. I have been able to start turning my financial situation around much faster than I thought possible and I am still learning.

Once I see the October numbers I'll be able to set up some monthly goals. Main focus right now is still paying down some debt but Retirement savings is obviously a close second. My FIRE goal is 2030 so I have a long way to go but staying on track for the long haul will be key and having these races along the way is super helpful.


DieHard_772

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #37 on: October 29, 2017, 01:29:42 PM »

Everyday I am on this thread and also reading the blog posts I am grateful. I have been able to start turning my financial situation around much faster than I thought possible and I am still learning.

I completely agree.  The excitement of making progress is awesome.
Occasionally I need to rein in my head from being impatient, and realize that my effort will pay off... I expect that over time I will be able to save even more, it's a matter keeping my mind in the positive:  The Glass is Half Full!

At the end of the day, our networth grew by well over $20k from two years ago, and I promise you, that is the most networth growth I personally have experienced... so far

DieHard_772

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #38 on: October 29, 2017, 01:33:29 PM »
Our networth, according to the numbers I have been tracking (which doesn't include my wife's bank accounts or the estimated value of other possessions)
has temporarily peaked at over $11,000 (for the first time ever)... with monthly expenses, this will decrease again, yet the mountain top keeps rising.

The next benchmark is to get our networth over $20k.  I am giving myself until next September, and I would like it to happen a lot faster :)

 In reality, it could be well over this already, yet like I said, it's according to the numbers I am tracking
(which mostly are investments).
« Last Edit: October 29, 2017, 01:35:15 PM by DieHard_772 »

MommyCake

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #39 on: October 30, 2017, 06:26:25 AM »
I'm so happy to see two more people joined us this month!  Welcome Haypug and Diehard! 

Sorry to hear about your setbacks Rosy, that is never fun or easy to handle.  We're all here cheering you on - you will get past it!  There are always ups and downs in life.

My TSP retirement account, which is the only thing I'm tracking here, is doing fine and at 33,100 at the end of October. 
My real estate deal is just about fallen through.  Home inspection was this weekend and I found out the house needs extensive work, and do not think the price will be negotiable to make up for it.  So it looks like a no go.  I'm still considering re-prioritizing retirement account above real estate if this does not work out. 

Happy Halloween tomorrow, and hope we all have a good November....

haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #40 on: October 31, 2017, 08:28:18 AM »
                           10/9/2017      10/31/17
401K                  $23,828.55     $24,456.73
Capital One IRA      2,232.00         2,250.61
Fidelity IRA               322.27            311.75
Total Retirement $26,382.82      $27,019.09 change of +636.27

$22,980.91 left to save by December 2018

My short term goal is to reach $28,000 by the end of November. Currently I am putting $590 into my 401K with an employee match of ~$250 I think. So that gets me to around $27,860 I'll just need to put in another $140 for the month to hit it. I'll probably increase my 401K from 10 to 12% and that should take care of it. Of course assuming the market stays the same or goes up. :)
                                               

DieHard_772

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #41 on: November 01, 2017, 08:50:06 AM »
                           10/9/2017      10/31/17
401K                  $23,828.55     $24,456.73
Capital One IRA      2,232.00         2,250.61
Fidelity IRA               322.27            311.75
Total Retirement $26,382.82      $27,019.09 change of +636.27

$22,980.91 left to save by December 2018

My short term goal is to reach $28,000 by the end of November. Currently I am putting $590 into my 401K with an employee match of ~$250 I think. So that gets me to around $27,860 I'll just need to put in another $140 for the month to hit it. I'll probably increase my 401K from 10 to 12% and that should take care of it. Of course assuming the market stays the same or goes up. :)
                                             

Nice job!

DieHard_772

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #42 on: November 01, 2017, 08:51:40 AM »
I'm so happy to see two more people joined us this month!  Welcome Haypug and Diehard! 

Sorry to hear about your setbacks Rosy, that is never fun or easy to handle.  We're all here cheering you on - you will get past it!  There are always ups and downs in life.

My TSP retirement account, which is the only thing I'm tracking here, is doing fine and at 33,100 at the end of October. 
My real estate deal is just about fallen through.  Home inspection was this weekend and I found out the house needs extensive work, and do not think the price will be negotiable to make up for it.  So it looks like a no go.  I'm still considering re-prioritizing retirement account above real estate if this does not work out. 

Happy Halloween tomorrow, and hope we all have a good November....

Thanks MommyCake.
Haypug and I have frequented the Race to 10K thread, which has been really cool because it's so supportive. 
This one is the next logical step, I'm glad this thread exists.

It's a bit more appealing at this point to me than the Race to 100k thread.

Rosy

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #43 on: November 05, 2017, 12:47:42 PM »
I'm happy to see everyone is on track:) It does take commitment and time to reach our next lofty goals:)!

@haypug - I agree with you 100% about coming here often to stay motivated and focused. None of this comes naturally to me, although I am a planner and that is my one ace in the hole - besides I do like a challenge:)
I'm competitive, so all those gauntlets help me stay on track and do more than I might otherwise consider doing on my own.

1. Update for October: No progress, partially due to more expenses than usual. Instead, I decided to shore up my various accounts which all took a beating, and the travel and emergency account plus the X-mas account, before I add any more to my $50K goal.
2. November outlook: $500 max - zero at worst. We'll see.
3. December may be zero, because I am padding the travel account to up it to $3K. I also plan to pay off everything - no more cc debt, so I will start out 2018 with no debt, except a car loan.

4. By January 2018 - I plan to be totally back on track -lord willin' and the river don't rise:). I actually feel "relatively" confident in this plan and starting the New Year off with zero cc debt is certainly a great incentive, not to say relief.


haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #44 on: November 06, 2017, 07:54:58 AM »
Nice planning Rosy, I too am working on being debt free and there are times when I want to just not save anything and put all my money into debt pay off but I know especially with the 401K match that it's probably not a great idea. So I will stick with mostly paying off debt while putting a lower percentage away for FIRE.

haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #45 on: November 07, 2017, 10:17:13 AM »
Only 4,802 days until retirement ;)

DieHard_772

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #46 on: November 08, 2017, 11:50:44 AM »
Only 4,802 days until retirement ;)

Wow... I can almost taste it ;)


haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #47 on: November 08, 2017, 12:41:20 PM »
Whoops I meant to post this in the FIRE 2030 thread. ;)

haypug16

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #48 on: November 15, 2017, 07:17:47 AM »
Mid month update. I love paydays :)

                          10/9/2017       10/31/17         11/15/17
401K                  $23,828.55     $24,456.73      25,051.95
Capital One IRA      2,232.00         2,250.61        2,248.65
Fidelity IRA               322.27            311.75           300.27
Total Retirement $26,382.82      $27,019.09     $27,600.87 (increase of $581.78)

$22,399.13 left to save by December 2018

My short term goal is to reach $28,000 by the end of November I'm ~$400 away from that goal and with about $475 going into my 401K per check I will definitely hit this goal this month. That will leave me $22K to save over 13 months which is about $1,700 a month. I'll be increasing my 401K contribution from 12% to 14% in January followed by quarterly increases of 2-3% all year. With an end goal of 25% (maxed out) by year end. If I can I'll increase a little faster but I still need to keep my Debt Payoff as top priority.


westtoeast

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Re: Race to 50K
« Reply #49 on: November 28, 2017, 04:56:48 AM »
Woo, I reached the halfway point! EF & investments now equal $25,000. Could have been higher but November was a spendypants month for me. I did also move some more of my EF over to my Roth. I think this was the right call, but I should leave my EF alone now. On track for $40,000 by end of summer 2018. $50,000 in early 2019. Gotta stay focused!

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!