Net Worth November 2010
It’s been 8 months since I posted my last one at this blog and 3 months since updating my chart. My debt reduction continues to have a steady increase in my monthly net worth. WordPress blogs won’t allow javascripting to be displayed, so I can’t show you the chart. Instead, you can view it here.
| Assets: | |||
| November ’10 | March ’10 | Difference | |
| Cash | $1,849 | $1,225 | $624 |
| Savings | $715 | $1,000 | ($285) |
| 401K (current): | $7,928 | $5,913 | $2,015 |
| 401K (rolled over): | $44,814 | $43,354 | $1,460 |
| Total Assets: | $55,306 | $51,492 | $3,814 |
| Liabilities | |||
| SBA: | $27,699 | $28,762 | ($1,063) |
| BECU Visa: | $1,389 | $0 | 1,389 |
| Line of Credit: | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Citibank: | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Discover: | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| US Bank: | $0 | $5,643 | ($5,643) |
| Total Liabilities: | $29,088 | $34,405 | ($5,317) |
| Total Net Worth: | $26,218 | $17,087 | $9,131 |
Not bad. My net worth is now just slightly less than my total debt. Small gains in the stock market, for which I have no say in, have positively impacted my 401K. My very small 4% contribution (and 1% employer match) have helped my current 401K contributions as well. My formula is based on very few items, so it’s slow, steady, and consistent from month to month. In other words, my networth continues to plod upward.
Cash looks deceptively better. Most of this shouldn’t be counted. It includes $500 for xmas spending, which should be blown by the end of the year, obviously, and $525 for my vehicle to be maintained. Something is guaranteed to break on it soon.
It’s been so long since I last posted this that having a new source of credit (the BECU Visa) shows up as a new debt, while I actually moved the US Bank charges to it, and have been steadily paying it down. So it deceptively looks like all new debt, which it isn’t, it just hasn’t had a higher start on a net worth charge before to be compared to!
Musings on my bf/money relationship
There have been some changes lately with J that have eased our financial relationship. Since March, he has been on unemployment. He finished up paralegal studies in spring, and had an internship that turned into a 1-2 day a week paid gig. He has received recommendations from that small firm for other positions, of which he is in the middle of applying for. He has been interning (no pay, experience only) with a bankruptcy lawyer, and got an additional/temporary 1 day a week position with a lawyer in the same office for a few months. I haven’t seen a big spike in his income levels lately (he only works 2-3 days, and gets a percentage of unemployment still). He also started to legitimately seek additional employment.
J is an interesting person. He is extremely giving and loyal. He grew up on a farm, can build and make things, knows how to cook, live off the land, and has a serious artistic slant. But he isn’t what modern society would call a go-getter, accomplished, or an achiever. He is ok with lower-paying jobs. He doesn’t ever expect to go beyond the $10-$15/hr salary or think about himself in a high-paying job. He continue thinks about what he could do to survive if he had to, totally the wrong mind-set for achievement, advancement, and a higher salary. Having a paralegal degree is a great start, for the first time he is able to get $15/hr minimum, more as he gets more experience.
Since he was layed off and became unemployed, he has been paying 1/3 of the rent, with me paying 2/3. He has also not been paying a lot of utilities or other bills. Recently, he settled a lawsuit due to an accident we were in 2 years ago and got a settlement for several thousand dollars. We had tentatively discussed having him pay back rent and other expenses. I’ve calculated them at about $1,500 (on the low end, my fault for not keeping track). But that didn’t happen. He is saving that for a down payment on land, in some rural area that he can build a house himself and live off the grid.
This has been a bit upsetting to me, and I’ve tried to broach the subject several times (without success). I’m a bit shocked that he doesn’t consider it a responsibility to pay me back, as if the bank of debtmaven will not ever become due. Basically, it comes down to him not wanting to use that money frivolously like every other time he has ever had money, so he set a limit to just *not* use that money. Instead, he plans on paying me back monthly, as his income increases.
Ok, so that brings things up to date. Because of those multiple conversations, and my asking questions about his plans for work (in the most non-confrontational/helpful way possible), plus my requests to have him start paying equal shares on rent on multiple recent occasions, his spending habits have changed lately.
This month for the first time, he gave me half the rent. He’s still not paying other things like cable, water, electricity, or gas, but it’s a great start and one I’m very happy with. I can handle the rest. Up until now, when I’ve been frustrated or upset, I’ve looked at my situation as if he is a room mate. If he wasn’t around I’d be paying a lot more out of pocket. Up until now, that has had to suffice, but it hasn’t me feel positive towards him, and I’ve very glad it’s finally changing.
Rent is not the only thing that has changed, either. I’ve previously written about my decision to not go food shopping solo. If I do, I pay 100% and never get his share back, even if I tell him the total. He just doesn’t make the connection between “the total was $80, could you give me $40?” with the action of actually giving me $40. So I only go when I absolutley have to and buy the minimum (“could you pick up a bottle of wine on your way home” equals just that, a bottle of wine and maybe $5 of other stuff, no more, even if we’re out of coffee, butter, olive oil, and if they have a great sale on something we use regularly). I wait to buy all the necessities we are out of when we are together.
Lately, J has started paying for small purchases himself, even when I’m with him, rather than doing the 50/50 thing at checkout. That has been the biggest ease of all the changes. I don’t have bitter, unhappy thoughts when it’s an $8 purchase – not worth the effort to split it, and so I’ll just pay for it. Now I know he frequently gets the small $20 purchases on his own. It’s made me more casual, less angry, and more generous towards him. That financial inequality is becoming more balanced on a daily spending level, and now also with rent. It’s been a huge relief.
Previously, when we would eat out, J would want to get an appetizer and multiple drinks. I’d get less. When the check comes, his portion would be higher. Previously, when I said I was paying my portion (which was less than half), he would be snippy and annoyed and hold a grudge about it. After a bit of this, it became easier to just split it, even with the inequality in our orders. Was I being petty to insist on paying less (since I’m trying to save money here by not getting expensive alcoholic drinks and pay off my debt) over a few dollars? In the past 2-3 months this has become a non-issue. He has started offering to pay more, or leave all of the tip when we do split it. If it’s a few bucks, it’s not worth it. When it’s $10 or more, I let him. Either way, that has also been a really nice change.
If you’ve read all through this you probably have a few choice words to say. Yes, we have a communication issue. I don’t like confrontation. He has serious serious issues with money and doesn’t like discussing them. He gets angry, and shuts down. I try and be forthcoming about my expectations, and he thinks I’m telling him what to do in a dictatorial fashion, and it causes fights (based in money, but actually about communication styles). I’ve become hesitant about the subject, and bring it up obliquely. That allows him to ignore it, not answer, or deflect the subject more easily, and I let him.
Yes, I have a bit of a dysfunctional relationship with money and my boyfriend. But it’s getting better.
The journey continues…
While I haven’t been posting regularly to this blog, I am still fully committed to my debt reduction journey. If you visit regularly, you will notice that I continue to update my stats monthly and keep trying to pay $500-$700 beyond the basic interest charges.
I had been hoping to just magically pull out enough money (from somewhere, I don’t know where) to pay off all my non-SBA debts by the end of the year, but that was not based in reality, it just seemed nice and neat – only one debt left at the start of the new year. Since last summer, I have plotted payoff of all my BECU debts by February 2011, and I am on track to do that. (You’ll note that my BECU debts are only from rolling over debts from my higher rate debts to zero-interest cards, which then ended, so I opened even lower normal loands/cards at my new bank). All of these fussy “shuffle-debts” as I think of them, will be eliminated in just 2-3 months!
I haven’t consciously been doing my budget in a spreadsheet, but I still stick to it. I get paid bi-monthly. The first paycheck goes to rent, and my mini-fund savings (car expenses, pet expenses), and a few bills. The second paycheck I immediately make a several hundred dollar payment towards whatever highest interest rate debt I currently have, and pay a bunch of bills due at the end of the month (internet, netflix, gas, cell phone). If there is extra money left over at the end of the month, I may pay additional towards debt. I still avoid buying big ticket items (which are ones in the $100-$200 range) if I can help it, or at least spread them out so they are not all in the same month, and try to limit my “art” buying to $100-$150/month. I haven’t travelled anywhere, nor made vacation plans.
What I have bought continues to be part of my budget. I have been buying more clothes in the last 3-4 months than I have in a long while, but I typically go to Macy’s and get items ONLY if they are heavily discounted or on sale, or wait to use an in-store discount card. I have also made the rounds of thrift-stores lately, supplementing my wardrobe as needed. I even found an amazing consignment store that has items that fit me (I am just slightly larger than the “normal” sizes, so getting good quality items that fit my style and size can be a most difficult challenge, when not shopping new). I don’t feel like I have been shopping extravegantly. I finally have enough clothes to wear more than the same 5 outfits every week at work before having to do laundry, which *feels* extravegant, but is simply wonderful and reduces a basic stress.
I am an avid and heavy reader and I continue to not buy new books (I do occasionally break down and get one if I’m going on a trip and need something to keep me company), but not very often. And as always, food is my biggest downfall. I eat out more than I should. I don’t scrimp when it comes to shopping – I get quality ingredients, often natural meats and sometimes organic produce. I rarely get packaged food.
So. What I’m trying to explain is that while I may not be visible on this blog as much as I used to be, I still follow the spirit of my journey. I feel like the cost-saving daily acitivities are more instinct now and don’t need as much conscious thought. I may be spending a little more than I should in some areas, but I feel comfortable with my progress and when I’ll get to the end of the road, being debt free!!!
DebtMaven 