Before and After SA?

[fruitbowlk]

Where were you financially before you found SA and where are you today?

[fruitbowlk]

I had two 401k loans out
I was half way paying off my 5,000 in cc debt.
I had very little savings in the bank.
I had a low balance in my roth IRA
A ok 401k amount.

I now have an EF
I now have a car fund
I now have a vacation fund
I now have a house fund
I now have a christmas fund
I have under 2,500 in debt. I will be debt free in June 09.
I have a better roth ira still a small balance
I still have an ok 401k would have been more the the market.
And the most important part is I have a change of mindframe about savings, invest, spending and being in debt.

[GREENBACK]

I found this site last spring while looking up tax info. I started reading the threads out of curiosity and found them interesting. My finances were already in good shape and have been for a long time. Some of the ideas I have used to get myself out of any debts I had or problems I faced were echoed many times over here. I never knew anyone had written entire books on this stuff til reading about it here.

I remember having some credit card/ installment loan debt at one time and thinking to myself "you need to start spending less than you earn" and I did. How many times has that statement been made here?

Anyway, I have a bit more saved than when I joined a few months ago but that's about it.

[Caoineag]

I was already starting to pay off my debts when I found this site so it was more a support that made me keep my finances in mind then a saviour. I did have 40k in debt and currently have 20k in debt so the past year on this site has seen me pay a lot off.

[maat55]

I owed 3000 on my truck.
1000k EF
Had existing IRA but was only contributing 50 per month(due to debt reduction)
No other debt(other than house)

Today:

10k in EF
2k in car fund(400 per month goes in)
No debt(other than mortgage)
Investing 800 per month into big black hole.
Payed cash for wedding

[Broken Arrow]

Before SA, my ex-wife and I's combined net worth was -330k.

Now? Well, I'm debt-free and net worth is in the positive range.

[skydivingchic]

Like caoineag, this site has been mostly a support/focus mechanism for me. I had decided to pay off my CC once and for all and had started using Mvelopes when I found this site. I keep coming back to keep me focused. Here are a few things that have gotten better since I started Mvelopes and started visiting here:
- CC debt has been gone for a year and a half and is now PIF each month. I'm earning cash back rewards without paying interest charges.
- I have one month's expenses in my checking account and am able to fund all envelopes once per month. December's checks won't get touched until January.
- I started a Roth IRA and am maxing it out.
- I'm more aware of how little things add up to help me meet bigger goals.
- SA led me to discover a 5% checking account, which helps me earn a fair amount of interest each month. People on this forum also alerted me to CDs with good APYs.
- I have opened a savings account with Emigrant Direct, which gets much better interest than my brick and mortar savings account.

[Gjowers]

I came to SA for support and ecouragement. I also like talking about personal finance, frugality, and investing.

[Ima saver]

I have been here for almost 3 years. I was in pretty good shape before coming here, but the $20 challenge has really gotten me focused on all the small ways you can save more. My cash savings has really grown. I enjoy being here cause it is the only place I can talk about saving and budgeting without being criticized. (doesn't that seem strange?)

[PrincessPerky]

Before SA:
-only two kids,
-5K in CC debt (mostly for birth of second kid)
-kept paying fees for losing bills and check overcharges (pure stupidity)

Now:
-4 kids
-0 CC debt (well except the fridge on 0% that I am debating on paying or not)
-bills auto and nearly all on time (except I am still an idiot)
-we have an EF

Still plenty of room to grow, but in general life is MUCH improved.

[disneysteve]

I'm like GREENBACK in that my finances were in fine shape before I got here. I came to the site because I enjoy talking about financial issues, budgeting, savings tips, etc. I like helping others get their finances in order.

[MonkeyMama]

Before SA, frugal super savers.

BUT, terrible at investing. Had a pile of cash earning less than 1% and some costly mutual funds, etc. So, I am thankful for this forum for getting us to manage our assets better. Last year we earned 3% - 6% on our cash. Most of our retirement is now in low cost indexes.

We also just have more focus. We didn't necessarily have a good plan or a good look at the big picture before. So now we track our net worth (to keep a better eye on the big picture) and set annual financial goals. It makes a big difference. I feel like before we were doing well, but missing some pieces of the puzzle. & in real life, yeah, no one to talk to about this stuff. We didn't have anywhere to turn for financial guidance before. Thus, all the saving in the world wasn't going to help without better asset management skills.

We've also just gotten more of our ducks in a row, since being here 2 years. Got our wills set up and our long-term disability insurance, etc. (We had most our ducks before, but were missing a few important ones).

[Broken Arrow]

Just wanted to say that support was my biggest thing here as well. I was going through a divorce and was not just a financial wreck, but more importantly, an emotional wreck.

It's not hard to find financial resources, but finding a supportive community that cared and gave support is much harder to come by. Thank you, community.

[maat55]

I've been a Dave Ramsey for many years but had got serious about his program a year before joining here. Paying for a wedding last year as well slowed my progress.

I came here for the discussions and to be helpful if possible. I want people to know the things I wish I had known when I was younger. I also am still learning things as I go. Many of the books I have read and get inspiration from were presented on this forum.

[MoneyTrev]

Roughly the same in my opinion. I just learned a few new ways for investing.

[ScrimpAndSave]

I had about $2,000 in credit card debt.
No savings


I now and debt free and have $15,000 savings.
I also opened a roth ira (going to start contributing in 2010 after I save for my house downpayment)

I love savingadvice.

[asmom]

There are really two lives before SA: before and after grad school

Before grad school:

No CC debt
No student loan
No car loan
No savings
No retirement. I didn't believe in debt but I didn't believe in planning for the future either. Head was in the "wrong" place.


After grad school:

$10,000 student loan
$20,00 auto loan
$10,000 credit card debt
$45,000 home equity loan
$0 savings
$0 retirement. Felt like a vise was gripping my chest.

After saving advice and today:

$9800 student loan
$5900 auto loan since transferred to a 0% credit card
$0 credit card debt
$34,000 home equity loan
$2000 savings
$8000 retirement. Those numbers still look awful but I am excited about the future, I will retire the auto loan in March and in exactly two years, the student loan will be gone and savings account will be $30,000. And 5 years from now, the home equity loan will be gone, I will be fully funding my Roth as well as continuing my 401K contributions.

[Like2Plan]

I am a relatively new member, joined in May 2007 at less than T-4 years to retirement with plans in place. I like the exchange of the ideas and interesting topics on SA.

I am now at about T-2 years to retirement and still on track.