November was a wild ride. Our income was near record breaking (for us), our expenses reasonable by comparison, and my wife’s company laid off the entire national sales force (click on spreadsheet below).
November 2012 Net Worth Update (+18,666.21)
Our net worth increased an amazing $18,666.21 from last month, to a total of $207,920.17 (click on spreadsheet below). This puts us at 120.05% of our 2012 net worth goal of $173,200.
Sadly, my wife was laid off this month, but not before contributing to our net worth in a big way. She earned a quarterly bonus of $11,350.00 gross ($8,182.69 net). We tithed 10%, put $6,500 into savings, and are keeping the balance in our checking account. In addition to the bonus, her company automatically 100% vested her in her 401(k) match and profit sharing. We didn’t expect to see any of this ~$6,000 because she was only with the company for 1-1/2 years. This blessing increased our total retirement accounts balance ~10%! We contributed a total of $3,021.83 to our retirement accounts and saw them increase $9,321.16 to $74,552.93 total. We also contributed $1,500 to our son’s 529 Plan this month. Busy month!
My wife’s company laid off the entire sales force, so we focused on putting money into savings.
Next month is a big question mark. My wife will be officially unemployed after she receives her last paycheck on 12/14.
Net Worth Milestone – $200,000
Today we passed the $200,000 net worth milestone! Our net worth is currently $200,435.
We passed our last milestone of $190K in October. Based on my forecasts, we should hit the next net worth milestone of $210K by January.
I will update our net worth meter (on the left side of the screen) at the end of the month.
October 2012 Income Statement
October 2012 Net Worth Update (+992.69)
We barely squeaked by with an increase to our net worth this month, but we’ll happily take it. Our net worth increased $992.69 from last month, to a total of $189,253.96 (click on spreadsheet below). This puts us at 109.27% of our 2012 net worth goal of $173,200.
We continue to pay our auto loan a week or two early so that more of our payment goes to principle ($264 principle reduction this month instead of ~$200).
We passed the net worth milestone of $190,000 earlier this month only to see the market retract and drop us down below it again. We contributed a total of $1,854.48 to our retirement accounts but only saw them increase $968.85 to $65,231.77 total.
Next month my wife receives a third “extra” paycheck and may earn ~$8K gross quarterly bonus. We plan to put a large portion into savings and also contribute ~$1,500 to our son’s 529 Plan.
Net Worth Milestone – $190,000
Today we passed the $190,000 net worth milestone! Our net worth is currently $190,625.95.
We passed our last milestone of $180K in August. Based on my forecasts, we should hit the next net worth milestone of $200K by December.
I will update our net worth meter (on the left side of the screen) at the end of the month.
September 2012 Income Statement
September was a normal income month and a high expense (click on spreadsheet below).
September 2012 Net Worth Update (+5,243.86)
In September, our net worth increased $5,243.86 from last month, to a total of $188,261.27(click on spreadsheet below). This puts us at 108.70% of our 2012 net worth goal of $173,200, which means we’re starting to make pretty good headway towards our 2013 net worth goal of $211,000.
What Worked
We contributed a total of $1,445.04 to our retirement accounts, and saw them increase $3,449.87 to $64,262.92 total. We contributed $275 to our son’s 529 Plan thanks to birthday gifts from family.
What Didn’t Work
Our excessive spending continues to keep us from putting more money away. As a result, our credit card bill each month has been much higher than usual. We pay the card in full each month in order to avoid interest charges, but had to pull some money out of savings last month to make it happen.
Next Month
We hope to get caught up a little in October. I received a third “extra” check that will help cover our large credit card bill without pulling much money out of savings.
August 2012 Income Statement
August was an amazing month – enormous income and large expenses (click on spreadsheet below).
Our total income for August was $17,679.78, our second largest income month EVER. The only larger month was December 2011 ($25,449.19, which included proceeds from a recreational vehicle sale). Our income was huge this month because of my wife’s awesome quarterly bonus ($13,750 gross, $9,839.22 net). In addition to our regular paychecks, my received a $25 company reimbursement. We also received $50.00 in credit card cash back rewards, a $50.00 gift for my sons 529 Plan, and we earned $3.22 in interest income from our online savings account.
In July we spent a total of $13,051.92. We had many rare expenses this month, starting with a $561.81 water bill (broken sprinkler) and $397.03 gas/electric bill (darn A/C). We also went on vacation to Canada($1,865.36), bought a new car battery ($125.91), insurance for our new SUV ($165.97), a portable A/C unit for my son’s room ($173.24 after a $150 gift card), various costs for my wife’s reunion. We were busy this month!
Next month (September) should be a much more normal income month and hopefully, a mellow expense month.
August 2012 Net Worth Update (+11,797.62)
In August, our net worth skyrocketed $11,797.62 from last month, to a total of $183,017.41 (click on spreadsheet below).
What Worked
N/A, we were blessed with an amazing month.
September should be a standard month in terms of our net worth increase. However, it’s a milestone for our family as our son turns 1 year old!