Newbies and others: what are your goals?

[FrugalTexan75]

My Plans for 2008:

Fully Fund 6 mo. EF (should happen by April)

Fund Car Replacement Fund to $4,000

Begin House Downpayment Fund (I have decided to put my Susie Orman Ameritrade money towards this, so by December I'll already have around $500 +interest towards this. If all goes well, I should be able to start allocating all savings funds to this goal by November at the latest.)

Every month I have a 5th paycheck, the whole amount goes towards whatever savings goal I'm concentrating on. I have a set amount each month that goes to savings - I treat it like a bill. I will be putting all but $50 of my Economic Stimulus money into savings (taking a little out for some kind of a treat.) Any extra money earned via babysitting, selling things, etc. goes towards savings. Also, any money "bonuses" I get for opening accounts, etc. goes towards whatever savings goal I'm concentrating on at the time.

Also, any interest I earn on my ING Orange account goes to savings.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Everyday move forward to where I want to. Now if only I could figure it out?

But seriously
1. Save money for student loans $8500
2. Pay cash to landscape backy yard $5k
3. Pay cash to finish retaining wall $5k

Right now we're in such flux because we have a lot of reimbursements for DH's job which he applied for and we fronted but never got reimbursed about $5k. And we have a tax refund, which I would love to send to our savings for a loan payment in the future. But it's unlikely. Sigh we have too much on our plate we have to keep holding cash to pay off stuff. I hate having so much cash.

[maat55]

Originally Posted by LivingAlmostLarge

I hate having so much cash.

I have a little room in my walet.

[Spud]

My long term goal is for my husband to retire as soon as financially possible so I can spend more time with him.

My goals for 2008 are:
1) Keep up with Quicken
2) Max husband's 401(k)
3) Max our Roths, or our Nondeductible IRA's if we find out we can't do Roth.
4) Learn more about investing options.

[maat55]

Originally Posted by Spud

My long term goal is for my husband to retire as soon as financially possible so I can spend more time with him.

I give it a month before you tell him to get another job.

[Spud]

Originally Posted by maat55

I give it a month before you tell him to get another job.

Noooooo way! I waited 32 long years to marry him, and he was 40 when we were married ... I feel like we missed out on about 5-10 years of life together already. I can't wait to spend that time together (and much more!) on the other end, happy, healthy and financially secure.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Nope, turns out I need it sooner than expected.

[KellyB]

Goals and Plans. Definitely!

Already acheived - Fully funded 3 month EF
No Credit Card Debt (any new charges paid in full monthly)

2008
Max $15500 into both our 401ks - on track via automatic withdrawals from pay.

Transfer $5000 each into Roth IRAs - completed in March

Save $6800 for vacation fund - completed in March

Save $2600 for Christmas Fund - on track by transferring $200/month into fund, but will probably complete by May 1

Save $2100 for Medical/House/Auto mini EF - completed in March

Save $1150 for 2009 Annual Bills such as Sewer, Tax Prep, Condo fee, etc - on track by transferring $200/month into fund, needed by Jan 2009, will complete by July 1 2008

Pay off HELOC by Dec 31 - started this Jan at $18800, have paid $10300, plan to use all refunds, commissions, etc. and should complete this by 12/1

Its good to have goals and plans

[Caoineag]

Goals and Plans for 2008

Pay off remaining credit cards by September
Using DH's bonus and increased salary to assist my payments

Start saving a downpayment for a cheap house
Using money that used to be used to pay on credit cards

Go on a week vacation
Using money stashed in savings account between now and August

[gekkoplus]

Our financial goal in 2008 is to save $50K (cash, IRA, 401K, ESPP, Investments combined).. Although saving 50% of our earnings is a steep task but we will be helped by our $10K 2007 tax refund and $1200 (?) stimulus on top of that..

[MonkeyMama]

My current goals are to:

*Max out our IRAs
*Save $5k/year cash (Car Purchase/House Maintenance Fund)
Well, I guess that is my plan for a goal of never borrowing money again.

We're on a 2-year timeline to get as close to this goal as possible. If we can do this by the time our little one starts elementary school in 2010, then we will feel confident in foregoing a second income indefinitely.

At that point, our goals will begin to revolve around early retirement.

[aida2003]

Hmm... I think we've got no immediate plans, just hopes which are:

- stay healthy and not have any issues/accidents, so that kids feel protected;
- hope that kids will be healthy, so we can pursue our careers (stay employed);
- hope that our current jobs stay as secure as they are, so that we can pay bills, save/invest in addition to 401k's and RothIRA's, and travel to Europe; Or if employment changes, then hope for a good change.

That's about my wishes.

[ceejay74]

Overall goals: Pay off all debt, save a lot of money, learn how to invest it, and live well (and well within our means) for the rest of our lives.

The Plan: Well, I formulated those goals gradually over the past year, after 33 years of not being able to see past next payday. So part of me thinks I won't get to where I'd like to be. But the good news is, every step I take at least gets me to a better place than I was before. :-)
Step 1: Only make purchases we can afford. Stick to a budget. (Has worked well for almost a year.)
Step 2: Pay off all credit card & personal debt by 12/31/09. ($63K to go.)
Step 3: Put future raises partly toward debt snowball and partly into quality of current life (travel, gifts, home improvement).
Step 4: Clear out room in budget to make and start tending to babies in 2-3 years.
Step 4: Learn best way to invest (we're planning an international move in 5-10 years and aren't sure if maxing out US-tax-free venues will save us anything if we have to pay UK taxes on them eventually).
Step 5: After CC debt gone, babies getting taken good care of, quality of life satisfactory, and investing knowledge gained ... find a good balance between paying down remaining (house & education) debt and investing/saving like crazy to make up for lost time!

Whew. Overwhelming when I look at it this way. Better to just focus on Step 1 for awhile. :-)

[dollarsaign]

Pay off $12,000 Debt
Get a new car.

Buy a home.

[kork13]

I always feel like I can't hold a candle to everyone here, because I'm only just starting my career and don't know what to expect... But, here's what I'm thinking... Note that all dollar figure savings are based on what I'll be making right now. As my pay increases, so will those dollar figures (thankfully...)

1) Max Roth IRA every year, contribute additional ~5% of pay to my "company's" retirement plan.
2) Build an emergency fund to at least $6000, $100/mo at a time... Thankfully, I already have $2500.
3) Save $100/mo for my personal indulgences... trips, camera equipment, collectibles (swords), whatever.
4) Never carry a credit card balance... 4 years running, so far so good.
5) Pay off the rest of my $11k car loan, currently at ~$6.5k (easy... I've got all the money in a money market, and I'm making double-payments on the loan. My 5-yr loan will be paid in just over 2 yrs.)
5b) Start saving $100/mo for the next car (~8-10 yrs down the road).
6) Save $100/mo (for now) to start saving to buy a house with a $50k-60k downpayment... It's likely gonna be a while before my line of work allows me to settle down enough to buy a house...

[sweeps]

Originally Posted by kork13

I always feel like I can't hold a candle to everyone here, because I'm only just starting my career and don't know what to expect... But, here's what I'm thinking... Note that all dollar figure savings are based on what I'll be making right now. As my pay increases, so will those dollar figures (thankfully...)

You have the right mindset, kork. Keep it up.