Last Day Net Worth: March

By tracking my net worth on the last day of the month, I hope to keep the numbers more consistent based on the usual fluctuations of paying bills and stuff like that. Without further ado... MARCH!

ASSETS
Cash (checking, MMA, W2S): $40,539.92
GNMA: $10,580.45
Total Bond Index: $10,747.66
Total Stock Index: $22,394.56
Total Liquid: $84,262.59
Percent Change from Feb: 2.76%

Roth IRA (Target Retirement 2045): $5,610.70
403(b) (S&P 500 Index): $13,995.59
Total Retirement: $19,606.29
Percent Change from Feb: 10.07%


DEBT
none

Total Net worth: $103,868.88
Percent Change: 4.06%

So I broke that 100K barrier. It feels strangely anticlimactic. I'm really proud to be here, but I think it's because the stock market is starting to rebound rather than due to anything special or different that I am doing. And that number doesn't really change anything for me. I'm not going to do anything different. I'm just going to keep on truckin. And maybe start to think about buying that condo...

Today I'm grateful for: the best/most hilarious post on my facebook wall.

Shopping Adventure

I know I have to fess up... but I'm not ashamed! I went shopping this weekend and spent about $200... on 2 items. The first item is practical. Mostly. I've always wanted to buy something at Lululemon, a pretty pricey yoga/athletic clothes store. I went in and tried on a bunch of yoga pants, everything (as usual) was too long, but the very helpful sales associate told me that they do free alterations. And the pants made my butt look awesome and fit well everywhere else besides the length. So I spent $102 on yoga pants. I think that is a little redic, but I've made a commitment to yoga and I might as well look hot while I do it. Right?


I'm still trying to add color to my wardrobe, so when I saw this GORGEOUS Melie Bianco purse, I knew I had to get it. I'm still experimenting with how to wear it, because it is so much color, but I really love it.

I'm fine with spending this month, so it's not a big thing. And I just got my tax refund, so I don't feel guilty at all. Going to visit my parents this weekend, so I'll probably hit up Plato's Closet. Hopefully they have some good designer jeans this time. Spring just makes me want to go shopping!

Today I'm grateful for: friend to have seder with.

March Housekeeping

Thanks to Brian at My Next Buck, I have started tracking stats. It's really cool to see where people are coming from and how many people per day are coming to my site. I want to thank my top 4 referrers for this month (I was hoping to list top 5, but the 5th in the list was so far behind these 4, I didn't think it was fair...):

1. Saving4Later
2. TeacHer Finance
3. Life as a Purse
4. Small Steps for Big Change


You should def visit these awesome sites! And I hope I'm doing my part to refer readers to your blogs as well. Are you on my blogroll? Want to be added? Ask me!

Am I on your blogroll? If not, will you add me? You might very well make it on my list of top 5 referrers next month!

Are we following each other on twitter? If not, will you add me? Or let me know if I need to add you?

Today I'm grateful for: free yoga

February Spending

February spending (reminder for the lateness of this post: I double check my spending spreadsheet when I get my credit card bills which come in the middle of the next month). I think since February is a short month, spending is low and saving is high. Win.

FEBRUARY SNAPSHOT
Total Income: $3,358.74
Total Expenses: $1,708.65
NET (Income - Expenses): $1,650.09

INCOME
Wages: $2,550.46
Extra Income: $808.28 (Substitute teaching, big work project, CVS giftcards)
Monthly Total: $3,358.74

HOME EXPENSES
Rent: $875.00
Electricity: $21.64
Cell: $78.53
Cable/Internet: $94.40

TRANSPORTATION
Gas: $47.57
Bus/Taxi/Metro/Toll Fare: $12.00

DAILY LIVING
Grocery Store: $100.63
Drug Store: $23.03
Dining/Eating Out: $92.48
Clothing: $251.69 (most of this is for a stupid bridesmaid's dress and a stupid tax on a bathing suit. Stupid clothes.)

HEALTH
Rx/OTC: $15.00
Co-pays: $20.00

ENTERTAINMENT
Netflix: $9.44
Education/Lessons: $20.00 (for the Moneytalk class)
Books/Magazines/Electronics: $47.24 (I got a mouse for my computer)

Total Spent $1,708.65
Total Saved $1,650.09

I'm really proud of how well I'm doing with bringing in extra income. I don't think March is going to be quite as stellar, but April is shaping up to be a good month. I'm right on track with food, eating out and drug stores again this month. Sadly, I was hoping this would be a no spend on clothes month, but a bridesmaid's dress and an emergency bathing suit killed that plan. Don't know when the next no spend on clothes month will be because when the spring comes, I just want to go shopping!

I feel like my credit card company has been pushing back the day that I get the bills and I'd prefer to get them earlier in the month. Maybe that way I'd actually remember where some of the money went. Has anyone ever tried to get their bill to come earlier in the month? Do I just call and ask?

Today I'm looking forward to: happy hour today, hanging out in Clarendon on Friday, Smithsonian Kite Festival on Saturday and free yoga on Sunday. And not having to work at all this weekend!

Yoga, Life and Money

I spent 16 hours this past weekend learning about how to be a yoga instructor. And then I need to do 8 hours of community service teaching (basically bringing yoga to populations that might not be exposed to it) before I get a certificate saying that I can teach. Nevermind whether or not I'm actually planning on teaching... I haven't decided that yet. Let's go right on back to yesterday's post about not knowing what I want. *sigh*

It was a almost $400 for the teacher training class, but I think it was money well spent. And time well spent too. I was completely physically and emotionally exhausted by Sunday night, but in such a good way.

I feel strong. Indecisive, but strong. I feel little baby muscles where I've never had them before. I have new thoughts and ideas about things I've never thought about before.

Yoga is all about listening to yourself, listening to your body, and not pushing your body too far. It's a little touchy-feely-new age-y-zen for my taste. I'm more of a straight shooter, more of a tell it like it is, doesn't talk about my feelings sort of girl. But I love the feeling I get after doing yoga. I'm so focused on doing the poses and on my breath, that my mind is clear of anything else. When I'm finished a class, I feel lighter. But I wonder how well I'm actually listening to myself.

Some people embrace the more spiritual side of yoga, but that's not my thing. Meditation doesn't do it for me. I'm a little too cynical, too type-A, too unable to just let go. But I want to push myself a little further. I want to see if or how I will change with more regular and frequent yoga in my life. Will teaching yoga help me get there faster or will I feel like a phony? Will more yoga make me calmer, less stressed and bring good things into my life?

I think it's worth the investment to find out.


Today I'm grateful for: Arlington Public Library

Un-Goals

As I sat with the DC PF Bloggers the other night, one thing became more and more apparent to me:

I don't know what I want.

I'm kind of in a rut... just waiting for something to happen to make that big change, but I don't really know what.

I don't know where I want to take this blog. I felt like some of the other local bloggers have this vision for where they see their blogs going. I'm just trucking along. Found a few little ways to monetize better which is a nice little bonus. Found out how to track my stats which is kinda cool. Joined Twitter which has exposed me to more people/bloggers. And slowly being convinced to move over to Wordpress.

But I still feel like I'm moving forward without a plan. In life. In the blog. And it's all because I don't know what I want. Or maybe I do know what I want, I just don't really have a way to make it there.

I'm the type of girl who likes to have a plan. And it feels kind of unsettling to just not know.


Today I'm grateful for: spring ipod walks

DC PF Blogger HH ~ Part 2

I was so excited for the DC PF Blogger HH until I got to RFD a hair after 6, walked around and saw no one I recognized. Then I freaked out. I texted Brian who assured me that he was on his way. So I went shopping. I didn't wind up with anything on my list but I killed some time. When I finally walked back to the bar, J. Money and Brian were waiting outside. Whew!

Who was there:
J. Money of Budgets are Sexy ~ when people talk about his 'hawk, they aren't kidding. It's breathtaking. And he is very warm and friendly. On the metro on the way I home, I got to briefly meet his wife, which answered my question "who would marry that guy?" ;) She seemed very nice.
Brian of My Next Buck ~ is my new BFF. We spent quite a bit of time hilariously texting each other. Hope I don't go over my texting limit this month or I will blame him :)
Stephen Popick of Coffee Cents ~ wasn't at the last HH I went to, so it was nice to meet him. He had a lot of interesting things to say.
Stephanie of Poorer than You ~ got there awhile after the 3 guys and I had been sitting there. It was nice to finally not be the only girl! She was just as nice as I remember from last time and it was good to get to talk to her a little bit more. And the awesome hair is now awesomely short. Looks lovely.
Paranoid Asteroid ~ also got there superlate. Seems like work has been totally crazy for her lately. I'm glad she made it though. She had the prettiest headband. It was so sparkly!
Me

All in all, a good time. Much smaller than the last HH I went to, which was both good and bad. I got to chat with everyone, but there weren't as many new faces or new ideas. However, I still feel like I absorbed so much new stuff just from sitting among these very smart bloggy people.


Today I'm grateful for: Loft. My favorite store and a good place to wait while you debate whether or not you are being stood up by a bunch of people from the internet.

Spring Shopping Lists

Spring is here... kinda. And that makes me want to go shopping. Since lists = love, here are some for your enjoyment. Suggestions welcome!

Things I need to buy
Black purse
Black closed toe heels
Colorful spring purse
Wear with anything flats
Mousse for my curls

Things I don’t need to buy, but probably will anyway
Flip flops
Solid ribbed tank tops
Jeans

Things I need to buy, but probably won't
Paper shredder
Necklace stand
New yoga mat
Hangers (esp. skirt ones)

Things I should never buy
Magazines

Today I'm grateful for: a weekend of yoga :)

Financial Fear

My new DC blogger buddy J. Money wrote a post awhile back about financial fears that got me thinking. I commented that my biggest fear was failure, but I didn't really even know what that meant. And now I'm thinking about that more. What am I scared of?

There are so many terrible thing that could happen to get me off track. And maybe I'm taking things too lightly, but I don't think most of them can happen to me right now. I guess I'm in a pretty lucky position, I don't have kids or a husband who depend on me. I don't own property. I don't own much of anything really.

So what am I scared of then?

Being poor? No. I'll never be poor because I know I have a good financial base and my family to lean on.

Having my identity stolen? Not really. It would suck majorly, but I'm really careful about who I give my information to and I have Lifelock which would totally help me out in case of a bad situation.

Losing my money? Maybe. I'm really conservative with my money and I just realized why. I read a Suze Orman book a long time ago (I think it was 9 Steps to Financial Freedom?) which one of the first chapters is about how our early encounters with money shape our future view and future spending habits.

I just recalled a memory... when we were little my sister and I pooled our money into what we called "the fund." I was basically just a shoebox where we kept change that we were saving for something bigger. One of our neighbors came to us with a great plan about how he and another neighbor were going to build this amazing playhouse. He showed us pictures that they drew of what it would look like and me and my sister, being the nice and naive girls we were, gave them a whole bunch of our money. Now "a whole bunch" is probably relative since we were pretty young at the time. I recall it was mostly dimes and nickels and pennies (the bigger money... quarters and dollars went to the ice cream man). Regardless, my sister and I made an investment in our friends and nothing ever came of it.

It was a childhood game... design an item and pretend like it might actually be built. But it was our actual money that was taken for services that were never rendered. I don't recall what the actual outcome was, besides the fact that there was no playhouse. Did we ever get that money back? Did we tell our parents? What did those boys wind up thinking of us? And what did they use that money for if we never got the money back?


How did your early experiences with money shape how you relate to money today?

Today I'm grateful for: lazy days.

Real Housewives of OC Make Me ANGRY!

ROAR!

I just caught up a little on some trashy reality tv on my DVR. I'm not going to claim to have great taste, but The Real Housewives franchise is damn entertaining. I can't wait for when they come to DC! Anyway, I watched several episodes back to back and just kept getting more and more horrified. Here's the lowdown on the hot financial mess that is Real Housewives of Orange County.

The economy is tanking and nowhere is it more evident than in Orange County where people take great pride in living beyond their means to keep up with their neighbors who are also living beyond their means. Pretty much no one saved any money during the years when the economy was doing well and now the ladies of the OC are paying the price. Seeing their troubles makes me feel good on some sick level because in past seasons I was sort of coveting that lifestyle. Now I realize it was a complete lie and I don't feel quite so bad.

Let's meet the cast of characters:
There's Tamara whose family is getting ready to move out of their house in a short sale, meaning their house is now worth less than the mortgage that they can't afford anymore. As they get ready to move, they are cleaning out all of their stuff. And man, is there a lot of stuff! I kept thinking, sell off that stuff and you'll be able to make some of those mortgage payments, sweetie! She's trying to get it together by going back to work in real estate, but her husband doesn't like that so much. They've cut back a lot in all of their household help, which used to be much more extensive.

Speaking of extensive household help, there's Alexis who talks about family values while she has 2 nannies raising her 3 children, plus a housekeeper. WHILE SHE IS A STAY HOME MOM. She is your very traditional housewife, while her hubby goes out and earns a living. Now I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with being a SAHM, but I feel like there's something wrong with the way Alexis does it. In the name of having a Christian family, she is the subservient wife to her breadwinner (and kind of sleazy) husband. Talk about your inequality in a relationship... yuck.

And speaking of yuck, there's Lynne who decided to spend her money on having a bunch of plastic surgery this season. Her face is so taught that I could barely sense any emotion when she finds out her family is getting evicted from their rental home that they juuust moved into after her husband, who handles all of the finances, can't pay the security deposit of $10,000. And then she drives away in her Mercedes Benz to go on a trip with her girlfriends and go shopping. Lynne is now an entrepreneur with her own bracelet cuff line. Hey Lynne, I'm sure being a "business woman" is going to help the mountain of debt you and your spoiled brats of children are accumulating.

Speaking of business women (without quotations this time), Vicki is the only one who has her head on straight with her finances. Even though she is a little loco. At least this one can run a business, take care of her children and isn't broke. If anything, Vicki is guilty of working too hard and being too independent, but her insurance business is flourishing despite the poor economy. She also seems to be working things out with her marriage which was suffering before due to lack of effort on (I think) both sides. My only concern with this one is that she's trying to teach her kids about money a little too late. I don't think her kids (and her son especially) really get how to manage their money.

Another housewife who wants to be a "business woman" (note the use of quotes this time) is Gretchen who decides to launch a make up line. She goes to Vicki to get some advice from a successful businesswoman. Vicki tries to talk some sense into her, but Gretchen ain't listening. If you have to put out thousands and thousands of dollars without any possibility of making a profit... well you're setting yourself up for some failure. It always annoys me how all of these reality stars attempt to transfer their "fame" into clothing and jewelry and make up lines. Just because they are things YOU like, doesn't mean that they are things that other people are going to buy. And in order to recoup the thousands of dollars you put in to launch these endeavors, other people have to buy your stuff.


Here's what it comes down to ladies... LIVE WITHIN YOUR MEANS. Don't spend money you don't have to make money that ain't coming in. It's better to actually be the richest person on the block than to have to pretend to be the richest person on the block. And just because your peers look like they have money, doesn't mean they actually do.

Today I'm grateful for: warmer weather around the corner!

Tax Time!

After seeing all of the million articles in the PF world about how to do your taxes and reading about everyone sighing in relief for being done with theirs, I finally got around to doing mine. I started out by using My Next Buck's estimating method for the single professional just to get an idea of how scared I should be. Sorry Brian, your method didn't work for me even though I fit your criteria. I went in VERY scared and it turned out I only should've been moderately scared.

I used TurboTax, as I have for the previous 2 years (since I started doing my own taxes), which makes it really easy, especially since my tax situation is very uncomplicated. I just have W-2s and 1099-INT and 1099-DIV. The real reason why I like TurboTax is because I've lived in the same place for 3 years and worked at the same place for about 4 years, so I don't have to type in most of my information. Lazy? Yes thank you.

According to Turbotax:
My income: $3,015 More Than Last Year
My withholdings: $210 More Than Last Year
My deductions: $1,217 More Than Last Year
My overall tax situation: $13 Less Than Last Year

I suppose those things makes sense since my income is slightly higher than last year.

As usual, I wound up getting a federal refund (of $452 this year) and owing the state money ($110 this year). People complain about giving the government an interest free loan because they do their withholdings wrong, but mine is just about correct. I usually get a little bit back from the federal governement and owe a little to the state. It's not an amount that I consider significant, so I'm not worried about changing my withholdings.

I'm thinking that using some sort of personal finance software might be helpful for future tax time. Do you use something? Is it helpful?

Today I'm grateful for: not having to worry about my taxes anymore this year!

Monetizing

I'm having some conflicting emotions and I wanted to work them out on here and get your advice. Right now I use AdSense on my blog for a little (emphasis on little) extra income. So far I've earned all of $7.22. I don't get to cash out that money until I get to $100, so there is quite a ways to go. After going to the DC Bloggers Happy Hour, I learned a lot more about how to not suck at blogging. I had no idea about how many opportunities there were for adding some extra income, tracking stats and just generally not being an epic failure as a blogger.

Here's my concern, I'd like to earn some more money (as in, more than $7.22 for 11 months or so of work), but I don't want to cheapen the "me in millions" experience. I'd like to explore getting paid for links to other sites, banner ads, getting free stuff to review and/or give away, a sponsored post every now and again, and things along those lines (potential advertisers, email me!!!). I don't want to turn into a corporate whore, but I also would love to get some form of compensation for all of the time I put into the blog.

In an ideal world, I would someday earn enough blogging to quit my full time job and just write about myself as I have my manslave feed me grapes on an exotic beach somewhere. In real life, it would be nice to earn a few thousand dollars a year.

So here's where I ask, what are your thoughts on this? Would you keep reading my blog? Would you hate me forever?

Today I'm grateful for: a night out in Georgetown.

Moneytalk Class #3: Planning for Future Life Events

I'm so late in posting this, but two Wednesdays ago was my 3rd Moneytalk Class (I skipped the one two weeks ago about insurance). This week we talked about "Planning for Future Life Events." I'll update soon about this past Wednesday's class about investing.

I knew a lot of the stuff, but it was a nice review because it's stuff that isn't talked about as frequently on the blogs. We talked about estate planning, probate, intestate, property titling, estate planning documents, and trusts. Basically, we covered all the end of life planning biggies. Sadly, the reason I know so much about this is from my grandfather's death. I've always had an interest in personal finance, so I really took his passing as an opportunity to learn about how that whole process works.

I'm going to go over some of the high points of the class here, especially mentioning things that I didn't know too much about beforehand (because you probably don't know too much about it either!). I'll try to give personal examples when I can to keep it interesting.

Estate
Your estate is EVERYTHING you own and what will get passed on to your descendants when you die. Right now my estate is pretty much just money, my car and my "stuff." I don't have any property or a business or anything like that. It was a little more complicated for my grandpa because he had a house and a ton of different investments in different places.

Probate
Probate is the process when the will gets validated by a court. It involves inventory of assets and debts, notice to creditors to file claim, and notice to heirs. When probate occurred with my grandpa's will, I got a certified letter in the mail from his lawyer and I freaked out for about a minute before I realized what it was. The letter basically informed me that I was an heir, but it didn't give any other information. Probate is a pretty long process and it was probably about two months after getting that letter before I received the next certified letter which included my inheritance check.

Intestate
I had no idea what this was before class, probably because all of my grandparents and family members who have died have had their financial house in order. Basically, if you die without a will or with a will that is declared invalid during probate, you estate is distributed based on your state's law. Each state has a specific order that the estate gets distributed, for example, it would be first to your spouse, and if there was no spouse then it would go to your children, then if there were no children it would go to your parents, then if there were no parents it would go to... and so on down the line. So basically, your estate could wind up with someone you really don't want to have it if you don't plan properly.

Property Titling
I had no real clue about the different ways you can title a property and the different implications upon death of each type. The major types we talked about were:
Sole ownership ~ One owner of the entire property. At death, property passes based on the will or intestacy law.
Tenancy in common ~ Two or more owners. Can have unequal ownership (like one owns 40% and the other owns 60%). At death, the owner's portion transfers based on the will or intestacy law.
Joint Tenants with right of survivorship ~ Two or more owners. Must have equal ownership. At death, the owner's portion transfers to the other owners.
Tenants by the entirety ~ Like JTWROS above, but only between a husband and wife.
Keep in mind that these things vary by state and I am not a lawyer!

Estate Planning Documents
Will ~ Specifies how your estate that is subject to probate will be divided and appoints an executor to carry out your wishes. The most important thing I got out of discussing this is that if you have a significant estate, you should definitely talk to a lawyer. If you mess up your will, it probably won't be realized until after you are dead and that's a problem...
Durable Power of Attorney ~ Legal right for a specified person to handle your financial affairs if you cannot (for whatever reason). You can get one that is effective for only a certain date range or for if you become incapacitated. And obviously this should be someone super trustworthy since they have access to your entire estate!
Advance medical directive ~ (1) Power of Attorney for Health care is similar to Durable Power of Attorney above, but it is just for health care issues should you not be able to make them yourself (2) Living will gives instructions for what lifesaving measures you approve of happening to you in an emergency situation. I'm feeling like these are two things I really need to make...

Trust
I think Trusts sometimes get a bad rap. Ya know, Trust Fund babies and all that... A Trust is really just a safety vehicle for holding your assets. The way my dad explained it to me (and the way that has made the most sense to me) is that you put your assets in the trust so the trust owns yours assets and then you own the trust. That way, in case you get sued you don't technically own the assets anymore, the trust does. You specify in the trust documents the conditions for the money to be distributed (example: trust fund baby gets X amount when turning 18 or at my death the money is to be distributed equally to my children). A major benefit of a trust is that the assets inside do not have to go through probate. There are some more technicalities and different types, but those are the basics.


So those are a lot of things to think about and most people don't really think about them until they get married or have children. I have some assets now... should I be thinking about them? I mean, anything can happen at any time. I'm young and healthy today, but who knows what tomorrow will bring. Do you have any or all of those things? When did you start thinking about it?

And if I'm wrong on any of these things or you want to get more specific... correct me in the comments!

Today I'm grateful for: learning and growing.

Twitter

I caved and I blame J. Money. I just joined Twitter. Find me. I'm "meinmillions." I've already found a number of the bloggers I read, but there are so many!

Another thing I realized is that I need a logo/picture of some variety. How did you find yours? And where should I go to find one for me?

Today I'm grateful for: Thin Mints waiting for me on my desk at work.

Condo Shopping

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been telling myself that when I reached a $100K net worth, I'd start looking at places to buy. I don't know where that $100K idea came from, but it sounds like a good number. I just didn't think I would get there so quickly... not that I'm complaining!

I got some good questions in the last post and I thought I'd answer them here:

Small Steps 4 Big Change asked:
Condos huh? That's a big step! Are you sure you are where you want to be for a while?
I love Arlington and I'd love to live here forever. It's a good area and if I decided that I wanted to move, I could probably rent the property out.

Investing Newbie asks:
Are you looking for condos to live or to rent? I think investment property would be a great move for you at this point!
I'm looking for a condo to live in for a few years, then I'd probably move up and rent the original condo. In an ideal world, I would buy this first condo live in it for 2-3 years, get married, then buy a town home-type deal and keep the original condo as a rental property. Then every few years I would buy a new rental property. Who knows if that is a scenario that will ever happen though...

Here is my thinking:
I'd put somewhere in the neighborhood of $30-$45,000 down myself and then my parents would help with a little bit more. Real estate here is very pricey, so a decent place in a decent location would probably be (at the low end) $250,000. I just need to be careful because my monthly mortgage payment could/will be significantly higher than what I am paying now. That bump in expenses will definitely hinder my savings. I think I need a little more time and a little more savings to really make this a feasible thing. And I think that I will be spending months looking for a place that will fit my criteria at the right price. This dream is still soo in the beginning stages, it's crazy!

Today I'm grateful for: a fun and silly and crazy weekend.