With the new year approaching, I decided to change the format of our monthly net worth updates. The spreadsheet layout will stay the same for easy comparison to previous months, but the detail in the blog post will change. I am replacing my typical “What Worked”, “What Didn’t Work”, and “Next Month” sections with more detailed information on each line item on the spreadsheet.

Overall

Overall, December was an okay month for our net worth. It increased $2,376.30, to a total of $296,126.38 (see spreadsheet screenshot). It might not be a huge increase, but it was enough to get us past our 2015 net worth goal of $296K one year ahead of schedule!

Retirement Accounts

Our retirement accounts are comprised of my wife’s 401(k), our Roth IRAs and our Traditional IRAs. My wife’s company matches up to 3% of her 401(K) contribution and deposits the sum once a year on January 1^st (it is 100% vested when deposited). In December, we contributed $242.50 to my wife’s 401(k) and saw the total balance of our retirement accounts increase $1,001.86 over last month to $139,023.63.

Cash & Savings Accounts

Cash and savings accounts consists of a small sum of cash at home and our online savings account balance. It does not include our checking account balance that we use to pay our bills each month. This month, we had a tiny increase of $54.60 to our cash and savings bringing the total to $9,207.30.

College Savings Accounts

Our kids have 529 Plans through Vanguard. We contributed $165 to our son’s 529 Plan and it increased $314.84 over last month to a total balance of $11,349.23. We also contributed $165 to our daughter’s 529 Plan and it increased $216.25 over last month to a total balance of $3,673.32.

Home

We use the $489K purchase price that we paid in January 2012 for our home value. Current comps in the area are ~$650K. The current balance on our mortgage loan is $368,895.17. We paid $100 extra to mortgage principal this month.

Cars

“Car 1” is a 2011 SUV with 53K miles and “Car 3” is a 2004 SUV with 99K miles. We no longer own a “Car 2”. When calculating our net worth, we depreciate the vehicles 1% per month. Car 1 has a current loan balance of $25,652.15 and Car 3 is paid off.

Credit Card Balance

The $5,767.31 credit card balance is from a new HVAC that we installed in September 2014. It is 0% for two years.

We have been blessed with good incomes for the past 8 years, breaking the $100K mark in household income in 2008 and working our way up to ~$250K in 2014. Our net worth has grown considerably as well. From $23K at the end of 2008 to nearly $300K at the end of 2014.

With that being said, I feel like we should have made better progress on our net worth, considering our incomes. I looked back at the last couple of years and determined that a considerable amount of money has been “invested” into our new home, but are not accounted for it in our net worth calculation. Some of the larger ticket items are:

$7,000 new HVAC
$1,200 new pool pump
$1,700 pool fence
$1,600 white picket fence in front yard
$1,800 security camera system
$1,500 refrigerator
$2,500 wash and dryer
$600 dishwasher

I use the purchase price of our home ($489K) for its value when calculating our net worth. If I included home appreciation, that would add another ~$150K based on comps in the area.  

I have no plans to begin accounting for improvements to the property or home appreciation but it does make me feel good to know that we bought at a great time and have invested in our home to make it safer, nicer, and if we sell one day, maybe more valuable.

How do you account for your home as an asset?

Happy Thanksgiving! November was a good month for our net worth. It increased $7,220.55 over last month, to a total of $293,750.08 (see table below).

What Worked
My wife earned a $12,490 gross ($7,664.17 net) quarterly bonus. We used this money to pay some of our 0% credit card balance down, deposited a bit into savings, and paid an additional $1,100 to our home mortgage. We contributed $617.20 to our retirement accounts in November and the total balance increased $4,577.35 to $138,021.77. I also moved my old company 401(k) balance ($68,291.73) to traditional IRA with Vanguard.

What Didn’t Work
We purchased a new (used) vehicle adding $26,000 in debt to our liabilities. Thankfully, they gave us $5,000 trade-in for our 2006 Honda Accord (120Kmiles) that was pretty beat up and needed ~$1,200 is work.

Next Month
December should be a pretty typical month. We plan to keep the Christmas presents affordable, but thoughtful.

The first month of me not working was a tough one financially. In October, our net worth decreased $6,226.76, to a total of $286,529.53 (see table below).

What Worked
We saw small gains in our IRA’s, savings, and 529 Plans.

What Didn’t Work
We contribution at total of $242.50 to our retirement accounts, but saw them decrease $566.41. Our 0% credit card balance increased due to purchasing a new HVAC system.

Next Month
November should go a little better because my wife will earn a quarterly bonus of ~$12K gross. We plan to use the proceeds to pay down our 0% credit card debt from the HVAC system.

In September, our net worth decreased $4,161.88, to a total of $292,966.29.
 

What Worked
I separated from my company on September 19th, in an effort to find a position that provides a better work/life balance. With my departure, I paid off the $4,757.76 balance of my 401(k) loan.  

What Didn’t Work
We contribution at total of $5,000.26 ($4,757.76 of which was a loan repayment) to our retirement accounts, but saw them decrease $28.54. Our savings account balance decreased due to pulling funds from the 401(k) loan repayment.
 

Next Month
Next month will be the first full month without a dual income for our household. We’ve run the numbers and know that we can make ends meet until I find a job, but October will be telling, to say the least.

In August, our net worth increased a whopping $12,455.81, to a total of $297,128.17.

What Worked
My wife earned a $13,050.00 gross ($8,009.69 net) quarterly bonus. She is doing amazing in her career and it has been a huge blessing our family. With proceeds from the bonus, we significantly increased our savings account balance. We contribution at total of $1,210.38 to our retirement accounts and saw them increase $4,532.01.

What Didn’t Work
For the next few months, we will be making steady, but slow progress paying down our 0% credit card (current balance $3,474.85). Our taxable brokerage account continues to wallowing.

Next Month
I will be leaving my company on September 19th, hoping to find a new job that provides a better work/life balance. In the meantime, things will be a little tighter as we live on my wife’s income. Before departing my company, we will be paying off the remainder of the 401(k) loan (~$4,800) that we took out for our home down payment.

In July, our net worth decreased $3,801.350, to a total of $284,672.36.

What Worked
Our daughter’s new 529 Plan had a $5.61 increase over last month

What Didn’t Work
We passed a net worth milestone of $290,000 in June, but dropped back well below $290K and have not yet recovered. We also added another hospital bill to the 0% credit card. We contribution at total of $818.88 (low because my wife is currently on disability) to our retirement accounts and saw them decrease $2,216.94. 

Next Month
September 19th will be my last month working at my current company. I have decided to take a break (hopefully short) to spend time with my family and then begin looking for a new job. So, we’ll try to get more money tucked away into savings in August to help get us through my period of unemployment.

March was a good net worth increase month.  In March, our net worth increased $2,728.93, to a total of $276,759.31 (click on spreadsheet below).

What Worked
We contribution at total of $1,223.05 to our retirement accounts and saw them increase $1,953.11.  We also contributed $150 to our son’s 529 Plan and $750 to savings.  We also closed my wife’s ESPP and moved the money into savings. 
 
What Didn’t Work
Our relatively new taxable brokerage account investment declined considerably.