For the month of February, I stuck to my budget and I eventually came well under budget. I’m proud of myself. Tracking my budget on a weekly basis, and adjusting accordingly seems to work best for me. The markets aren’t doing so great, but my net worth increased slightly. Here’s where I stand net worth wise:
| Liquid Assets | Start | End | $ Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash & Checking | $700 | $837 | +$137 |
| Gift Cards | $0 | $45 | +$45 |
| Emergency Fund | $4,100 | $4,995 | +$895 |
| Irregular Bills | $1,185 | $502 | ($683) |
| Savings Goals | $245 | $245 | +$0 |
| Brokerage Accts | $910 | $892 | ($18) |
| Illiquid Assets | Start | End | $ Change |
| Savings Bonds | $1,650 | $863 | ($787) |
| Home Equity | $13,225 | $14,000 | +$775 |
| 401K | $28,517 | $28,444 | ($73) |
| Roth IRA | $21,548 | $21,114 | ($434) |
| Liabilities | Start | End | $ Change |
| Credit Cards | ($636) | ($507) | +$129 |
| Medical | ($735) | ($0) | +$735 |
| Furniture Loan | ($1,687) | ($1,582) | +$105 |
| 401K Loan | ($10,432) | ($10,190) | +$242 |
| Net Worth | $58,590 | $59,658 | +$1,068 |
| % Change | +1.8% | ||
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Liquid Assets
- Cash & Checking – I try to maintain a $500 cash cushion in my checking account.
- Gift Card Balances – This is a new “account” I’ll be tracking in hopes of maximizing my credit card rewards subject to minimizing my online shopping.
- Emergency Fund – I contributed a bit and had some illiquid savings bonds (ibonds) obtained liquidity.
- Irregular Bills – I hold cash for less-than-monthly bills here.
- Short-Term Savings, Long Term Savings, Brokerage #1 & 2 – I saved but no investments this month.
Illiquid Assets
- Savings Bonds – This decreased due to savings bonds (ibonds) becoming liquid assets. But I did buy some new ones.
- Home Equity – I’m gaining equity!
- 401K & Roth IRA – the market went down, but my continued contributions helped cushion the blow a little.
Liabilities
- Credit Cards – I’m carrying over a credit card balance at 0% interest.
- Medical – I finally paid off all my medical bills
- Furniture Loan – A 0% APR loan for furniture
- 401K Loan – Used to finance my condo.
Budget & Spending
| Category | Budgeted | Actual | Remaining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bills & Utilities | $250 | $205 | $45 under |
| Food | $200 | $147 | $53 under |
| Medical | $- | $832 | $- |
| Everything Else | $200 | $180 | $20 under |
| Total | $650 | $532 | $118 under |
I fell $118 under budget. Admittedly, part of the reason for the low food budget was a $40 refund from the month prior. And I did make $50 in online purchase returns.
A Tale of Finances 