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RSSJanuary 2006 Net Worth Update (+$9,814)
Here's my net worth update for January as of 1/31/2006. It a great way to start the year and I am well on my way to reaching my year end net-worth goal of $265,000.
| | Dec-05 | Jan-06 | Change | % |
| Cash | $ 6,767.92 | $ 8,322.69 | $ 1,554.77 | 22.97% |
| Saving | $ 31,578.16 | $ 32,182.28 | $ 604.12 | 1.91% |
| Brokerage | $ 41,444.02 | $ 45,559.61 | $ 4,115.59 | 9.93% |
| Roth IRA | $ 20,508.99 | $ 21,476.28 | $ 967.29 | 4.72% |
| 401(k) | $ 71,494.39 | $ 72,649.45 | $ 1,155.06 | 1.62% |
| Stock Option | $ - | $ - | $ - | 0.00% |
| ESPP | $ 29,249.98 | $ 28,929.72 | $ (320.26) | -1.09% |
| Rental Equity | $ 40,842.21 | $ 41,026.58 | $ 184.37 | 0.45% |
| Other Assets | $ - | $ - | $ - | 0.00% |
| Receivable | $ - | $ - | $ - | 0.00% |
| Reserve Funds | $ - | $ - | $ - | 0.00% |
| Loans | $ (31,894.81) | $ (30,341.25) | $ 1,553.56 | -4.87% |
| Tax Liability | $ (3,000.00) | $ (3,000.00) | $ - | 0.00% |
| Total | $ 206,990.86 | $ 216,805.36 | $ 9,814.50 | 4.74% |
Highlights for January
-All credit card debt (except current month's purchases) is in the form of 0% APR balance transfers earning interest in my savings accounts.
-I reduced my monthly stock investments as well as reduced my 401k contributions (down to 10% from 20%) to increase the amount of cash on hand in the event I came to an agreement to buy a house (I made offers on 2 different houses), but couldn't come in agreement with either seller.
-I found out that in 2005 I had earned $1990 in passive income.
-I bought Taxcut Deluxe + State for a net $8.96 and have been working on my federal and state income taxes ever since.
-After searching around for various options, I decided to try Quickbooks SimpleStart to help me keep track of self-employment income.
Stock Investments for January (Outside of 401k & ESPP):
$250 in Roth IRA
Since I was trying to increase my cash on hand, I refrained from additional investing for the month.
by 2million on
02/01/06
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Comments (23)
DATE: 9:20 AM
don't you think you have too much money tied up in company stock? your employment is dependent on your company, and a substantial portion of your savings is as well. i would sell out as early as you can under whatever discount policy they give you.
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 9:33 AM
In general I would agree with you. I always think its a good idea to not "put all your eggs in one basket". However, at the moment I think the stock is undervalued and I think the risk of the company stock plummetting is pretty low. That being said I do have plans to sell some of the stock off at some point in the hopefully near future.
Posted by 2million | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 9:56 AM
Were you able to automatically deduct your monthly CC minimums from your online bank account? I use Emigrant Direct and I was hoping that I'd be able to do that vs. having to worry about trasferring to my other bank account and then paying off the balance.
Posted by franky | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 10:19 AM
franky,Let me know if you find a way to pay automatically, I haven't found a good one yet. I just sit down once a month and go through all my credit cards and pay the min on the 0% BTs and pay the balance on the other cards I use. Worked for me so far.
Posted by 2million | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 11:08 AM
Very nice progress...unless you have any major expenses (besides the house) throughout the remainder of the year I'd readjust that year-end goal to something a bit more challenging.I agree with anonymous above about the company stock, but if you're comfortable with the risk involved then the decision you have made is a good one.Good luck the rest of the way!
Posted by Brian | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 1:57 PM
Question: I'm 25 and looking to purchase my first home at the end of this year. I have some cash built up that is admittingly sitting idle in my checking account but I feel that I'll need it for the home buying process.I'd like to make some short-term (12 months or less) investments that will give me access to the cash in Decemeber. Do you have any suggestions? -Chris
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 2:01 PM
Chris,You bet! There are a lot of possibilities, but here is a no brainer one.Get one of these higher yield online savings accounts that don't have fees or minimums like HSBC direct, Emigrant Direct, or ING Direct (send me an email, I can send you a refer you to them for a $10 bonus for me and a $25 bonus for you). I have used all 3 and can recommend them all. No more risk than your checking account and you will be earning a 4.25%-4.8% (or possibly more) APY. If needed you can find more info on each in this or other blogs.
Posted by 2million | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 2:37 PM
I am curious to know how you calculate/estimate "home equity" in the chart. I am also surfing in from businessweek - very interesting blog!PS I agree with the first comment that you seem way over-exposed to IBM stock!
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 2:52 PM
Good question. To date, I haven't given it much thought other than I calculate my home equity by backing out my remaining mortgage from my purchase price. Recent sales in the neighborhood would suggest I could sell it for a fair amount more than this, but I have not adjusted for this increase. I feel like I should be conservative with the value I associate with real estate.
Posted by 2million | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 3:25 PM
2million, I have a question. I am 20 years old and have about 7k sitting in a high yield money market account (4.0%) it is good because it is about 5 miles from my house. Do you recommend any other places to put my money? I noticed you have a bunch of places you put your money and get very decent returns. I also contribute about 900-1200 a month to that account I had over 10k but I just bought a vehicle for 3500.Please help
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 9:11 PM
how much time a week do you think you spend managing your personal finances (on an average)? just curious...excluding blog updating
Posted by crawlspace | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 11:18 PM
Could you please explain your balance transfers? I don't really understand how that works. How do you transfer money to your savings from your credit cards?Thanks
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 11:49 PM
good job 2million! at this rate, you will surpass your goals this year.
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 2:24 PM
You know I don't have a break down of how I do 0% Balance transfers on this blog - I think I'll create a post on this topic - check back in the next day or two.
Posted by 2million | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 2:29 PM
crawlspace,Good question. Its a lot less now than it used to be. I only log into my MS Money program (the pf software I use to manage my finances) a couple times a month for about an hour or so each time. I would say maybe 2-4 hours a month total including paying bills, updating account balances, and organizing my records for taxes. I find personal finance software (like Quicken or MS Money)to be a real time saver.I spend much more of my time preparing figures/tables and various updates for the blog.
Posted by 2million | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 4:03 PM
2million,I have a question. I am 20 years old and have about 7k sitting in a high yield money market account (4.0%) it is good because it is about 5 miles from my house. Do you recommend any other places to put my money? I noticed you have a bunch of places you put your money and get very decent returns. I also contribute about 900-1200 a month to that account I had over 10k but I just bought a vehicle for 3500.Please help
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 4:26 PM
I was trying to think how best answer your question. I don't really have enough information to give you much advice. The only suggestions I can make are to consider funding retirement accounts such as an IRA, Roth IRA, and/or 401k if you haven't already done so. Money markets have little to no risk and therefore their return is not as big as other (more riskier) investments.If you are interested in trying to achieve higher returns (and willing to take on more risk of not making money), consider looking at other investment vehicles. Low cost index funds like those offered by Vanguard are typically a great way to start investing in the stock market. But then again you could in theory loose some/all of your money. I recommend checking out Fool.com to learn more about starting to invest in the stock market.
Posted by 2million | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 11:31 AM
Congrats on your increase in net worth. I will post yours along with other PF bloggers to my site shortly.Neo
Posted by Neo | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 3:30 PM
What kind of account do you keep your savings in? I'm in ING right now with their 4.75% winter save sale - HSBC is currently beating that at 4.80%. www.highinterestratesavings.com
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 1:30 PM
2million,I sent you a PM about the online savings accounts for the referral. Look forward to your reply. Regards,Chris
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 1:30 PM
2million,I sent you a PM about the online savings accounts for the referral. Look forward to your reply. Regards,Chris
Posted by Anonymous | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 4:41 PM
Personal finance bloggers net worth data (chart and graph) has been posted.http://neos-nest-egg.blogspot.com/2006/02/personal-finance-bloggers-net-worth_11.htmlNeo
Posted by Neo | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM
DATE: 4:41 PM
You also made the top twenty in the Personal Financial Bloggers' Net Worth Index! Good month!
Posted by moneysmartz | September 10, 2006 3:17 PM