Budget review - short and long term goals

[iliketosavemoney]

Great work.
I would build the cash back up (looks like you have that goal in mind)
And, those student loans would be killing me. The balance went down $1200 in 10 years? I'd be aggressively attacking those even though they have a low interest rate, they are hanging around forever.

Whoops I edited my post for clarity. Those numbers were from 2013 in black and 2014 in red.
Definitely paid off the student loans within the 10 years!

Also forgot to shout out Saving Advice as this site was where I started my personal finance journey!

[bjl584]

Great work.
I would build the cash back up (looks like you have that goal in mind)
And, those student loans would be killing me. The balance went down $1200 in 10 years? I'd be aggressively attacking those even though they have a low interest rate, they are hanging around forever.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Congratulations that is Soo amazing

[james.hendrickson]

Just wanted to say - great work!

[iliketosavemoney]

Reviving this old thread I made from over 10 years ago..
I really wanted to emphasize the power of compound interest.

10 years ago, our Roth IRA balances were $28,500 and $12,500.
We've been maxing both and as of today the balances are $281,000 and $155,000.
The first Roth IRA had some rollovers rolled into it but the second one is from contributions only.

Our Roth 401k was at $33,000 in 2014 and it eventually got rolled over into the first Roth IRA.
We still continuted to max the 401k but in a traditional account and in 2024, it is at $420,000.

All our holdings are in index funds, VTSAX, FSKAX, and FXAIX.

I know not everyone is able to max their retirement savings but even just consistently saving a little bit every month will add up.
Especially for our younger savers who have time on their side!

See you all in 10 years!


Edit for clarity: The text below is from 2013 and 2014.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Black Text (2013), Red Text (2014)

Income per month:
I contribute 6% to my companys Roth 401k. Maxing my Roth 401k!
Fiances company does not offer a retirement plan.
Combined take home pay of 6800 per month Take home pay is around 6200 or so

Debt per month:
Cash savings - 2400 around 1000
Roth IRA - 920 Still maxing both our Roth IRAs!
Mortgage/Tax/Insurance - 1138 (129,000 @ 3.375 / 15 year) 2500 (1780 min plus 720 principal) 232,000 @ 4.625 / 30 year -- moved to a bigger home
Water - 60 70
HOA fees - 235 300
Student Loan - 77 (9700 @ 2.2) 77 (8500 @ 2.2)
Car Loan - 177 (7500 @ 5.2) All 3 cars paid off!
Car Insurance - 150 (2 cars) 220 (3 cars, 1 is for dad)
Internet - 55 60
World Vision - 30
Cellphones - 270 (4 smartphones, 2 for parents) 150 (6 smartphones, i love tmobile!)
PSEG - 40 avg 180 avg combined gas/elec
Electricity - 80 avg 180 avg combined gas/elec
Groceries - 400
Gas - 400
Whatever is leftover is usually used up for something..
Term life insurance both - 100

Balance:
Roth IRA - 9000 28500 and 12500
Roth 401k - 13000 33000
Cash savings - 20,000 6000 hope to make this 30000 EF

Goals:
- We are getting married in 6 months. Estimating the wedding cost to be around 30,000 to 35,000. We are able to pay in full for the wedding by the date. We know there will be a significant amount of gift money given to us for our wedding but we are not counting that into our plan. Done!
- We want to have a child right away. Not sure how this will work out as I hear some people take years to conceive and some people conceive right away. Done! Kind of, expecting early next year
- Currently in a small 1 bedroom condo so maybe move to a 2 bedroom when the baby needs its own room. Keep the first home as a rental unit or sell and use the money for more down payment on the new home??Done! Sold and moved.
- I want to max my Roth 401k but am holding off to save for the wedding. After we are married, have to save again for a down payment on a bigger home. Then maybe I can max out the Roth 401k. Or should I max it while saving less in cash? Done!

Any suggestions or comments on how to better achieve my goals? Or maybe even change my goals?[
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[MathTeacher]

You are a great example of how making goals and writing them down helps achieving them.
I also used Mint. Then switched to Moneyble.
Tracking app is a must.
You improve where you track.

Congrats!

[Eagle]

Thank you for your encouragement!

I do use Mint to track income and spending. For the investments, I put them in a fund (Vanguard and Fidelity) with the lowest expense ratio I could find. (VTSAX and FXSIX).

Thanks for the tip about checking my insurance rates. I bet I could save a bunch by shopping rates for these.

I just started grad school but its only one class a semester because my company only reimburses that much. I'm not in a hurry to finish quickly so I'll probably take two per year (maybe a third in the summer if we have extra money).

We switched car insurance from Farmers to Progressive and saved about $500 a year. We used Progressive's Snapshot Program to get a 13% discount. We also pay every 6 months ahead to get the 5% discount. Do some research and get a few quotes.

[iliketosavemoney]

Thank you for your encouragement!

I do use Mint to track income and spending. For the investments, I put them in a fund (Vanguard and Fidelity) with the lowest expense ratio I could find. (VTSAX and FXSIX).

Thanks for the tip about checking my insurance rates. I bet I could save a bunch by shopping rates for these.

I just started grad school but its only one class a semester because my company only reimburses that much. I'm not in a hurry to finish quickly so I'll probably take two per year (maybe a third in the summer if we have extra money).

[snafu]

Congratulations on marriage and baby on-the-way. You've done well managing money, paying debt, contributing to retirement and apparently cash flowing your wedding. Good on you. Not clear- have you completed grad school? Do you use www.mint.com [or something similar] to track spending, income & investments? Do you know the fees and management costs of holdings in your various retirement plans? When baby comes it's typical to review all insurances [life, auto, home, health etc.] Having a mortgage broker send your program out to 'bid' has potential to get better rates for the same or better coverage.

It will sound trite but small saving and little reductions which don't affect lifestyle or cause you to feel deprived makes a big difference over the long term. There are lots of ideas on frugal Q&A thread for example.

[Eagle]

@iliketosavemoney
Looks like you really put forth great effort to accomplish your goals. You also cut down on some expenses.

Congrats on getting married and your little one on the way!

[iliketosavemoney]

Looking at this old post of mine, a lot has changed for the better!

My new goals are:
Save 30k for EF.
Keep saving for retirement.
Finish graduate school.
Be a great dad.
Win the lottery?

Income per month:
I contribute 6% to my company’s Roth 401k. Maxing my Roth 401k!
Fiance’s company does not offer a retirement plan.
Combined take home pay of 6800 per month Take home pay is around 6200 or so

Debt per month:
Cash savings - 2400 around 1000
Roth IRA - 920 Still maxing both our Roth IRAs!
Mortgage/Tax/Insurance - 1138 (129,000 @ 3.375 / 15 year) 2500 (1780 min plus 720 principal) 232,000 @ 4.625 / 30 year -- moved to a bigger home
Water - 60 70
HOA fees - 235 300
Student Loan - 77 (9700 @ 2.2) 77 (8500 @ 2.2)
Car Loan - 177 (7500 @ 5.2) All 3 cars paid off!
Car Insurance - 150 (2 cars) 220 (3 cars, 1 is for dad)
Internet - 55 60
World Vision - 30
Cellphones - 270 (4 smartphones, 2 for parents) 150 (6 smartphones, i love tmobile!)
PSEG - 40 avg 180 avg combined gas/elec
Electricity - 80 avg 180 avg combined gas/elec
Groceries - 400
Gas - 400
Whatever is leftover is usually used up for something..
Term life insurance both - 100

Balance:
Roth IRA - 9000 28500 and 12500
Roth 401k - 13000 33000
Cash savings - 20,000 6000 hope to make this 30000 EF

Goals:
- We are getting married in 6 months. Estimating the wedding cost to be around 30,000 to 35,000. We are able to pay in full for the wedding by the date. We know there will be a significant amount of gift money given to us for our wedding but we are not counting that into our plan. Done!
- We want to have a child right away. Not sure how this will work out as I hear some people take years to conceive and some people conceive right away. Done! Kind of, expecting early next year
- Currently in a small 1 bedroom condo so maybe move to a 2 bedroom when the baby needs its own room. Keep the first home as a rental unit or sell and use the money for more down payment on the new home??Done! Sold and moved.
- I want to max my Roth 401k but am holding off to save for the wedding. After we are married, have to save again for a down payment on a bigger home. Then maybe I can max out the Roth 401k. Or should I max it while saving less in cash? Done!

Any suggestions or comments on how to better achieve my goals? Or maybe even change my goals?

[iliketosavemoney]

Thanks for your responses

I didn't bother refinancing the car loan because I will pay it off in full after the wedding (in about 5 months)

I am not paying the car loan yet because I want to keep cash for the wedding. Once the wedding is over I will pay off the loan in full.
Also, I pay my insurance in full very 6 months. I just broke it down into monthly costs.

For several reasons (personal and family), we will be having a big wedding at a wedding venue. I think we got the best price we could for a wedding in NJ.


Here's my plan:
Contribute fully to both Roth IRAs
Contribute up to employer match to 401k
Save up everything in cash until the wedding
After the wedding, keep some cash for an EF
Pay off the car loan
Pay off the student loan
Contribute maximum to 401k
Decide on my housing situation later as the market can change in the next few years.

[twest]

Question Does the wedding have to be $30,000? I know that day is important and if there was no debt and a ton of savings then I think that would be ok. My hubby and I only spent about $3000 for our wedding. I thought it was nice and we are just as married as the next couple. Just a thought.

I would like to see you pay off the car loan. It would free up $177/month to then apply to the Student Loan. If it were me rather than saving $2400 per month I might take some of that and apply to the student loan. Then pretty quickly you would be debt free with the exception of the mortgage. Just something to take into consideration.

[cascade11]

Debt per month:
Car Loan - 177 (7500 @ 5.2)



Any suggestions or comments on how to better achieve my goals? Or maybe even change my goals?

Just a few questions
Why are you paying a car note, when you have enough in savings or in your budget to pay it off? You are giving away interest.

2. Why are you paying monthly auto insurance? Most insurance companies give you a discount for paying your premium in full; which could save you a few hundred bucks.[/QUOTE]

+1

[Ant81]

Debt per month:
Car Loan - 177 (7500 @ 5.2)



Any suggestions or comments on how to better achieve my goals? Or maybe even change my goals?[/QUOTE]

Just a few questions
Why are you paying a car note, when you have enough in savings or in your budget to pay it off? You are giving away interest.

2. Why are you paying monthly auto insurance? Most insurance companies give you a discount for paying your premium in full; which could save you a few hundred bucks.