Day 174 - Is it possible??

When the hubby and I started this blog we said that we wanted to pay off our debt in 730 days. By looking at the numbers we need to do find a way to bring a lot more money to accomplish this. Is this why we constantly fail?  Is it because we always set unrealistic goals?


Being that today is Day 174; we only have 556 days to go. That means that we need $.20 a second, $12.14 an hour, $291.34 a day or a little over $9,000 a month for debt repayment only. I am starting to become a little discouraged.


For the month of January I have budgeted $1,089.01 for debt repayment, far from the $9,000 we need. It is time to re-evaluate the budget and our goals.

Day 173 - January Goals

Goals for the month of January:

1. Pay off Macy's, Dell and New York and Company Card.
2. Generate $300 of extra income.
3. Apply for community college teaching positions.
4. Study at least 10 hours a week for certification exam.
5. Run at least 3 times a week and select 1st half-marathon date.
6. Clean out pantry and start "shopping" for canning jars and items for the garden.
7. Post at least once a week.
8. Stick to the budget.

Day 173 - January Budget

January Budget

Total Income: I have built in $300 of other income for my Flex spending account for medical expenses.

Vehicles: Includes 3 payments, insurance, fuel and service. (I think I know where I need to cut expense at).

Personal: Life and disability insurance, medical expenses and personal care.

Home: All utilities, rent, and a cord of wood. (I will expand on a later post on our rent).

Credit Card: This only include minimum payments.

Student Loans: Again only minimum payments.

Savings: From experience every time we go on a budget we tend to budget for "big expenses" as they come up. This is where we become discourage and begin to live off the budget. Not this year - every month I will send these funds to ING and we will only use them for our "big expenses". Included in the section are: emergency fund, Christmas and birthday gifts, Halloween party, annual vacation, home insurance and taxes.

Day 173 - 2010 Goals

Financials Goals:

1. Establish a $1,200 Emergency Fund.
2. Eliminate all credit card and vehicle debt by December 31, 2010.
3. Generate $5,000 of extra income ("sell stuff", teach a college course, surveys, online offers)
4. Eat out no more than 12 times this year. (Got this great idea from SS4BC).
5. No clothes or shoe shopping for the whole year!!

Personal Goals:

1. Pass certification exam by August 31, 2010.
2. Run at least 2 half-marathons.
3. Grow a garden.
4. Bake at least once a month.
5. Become a better blogger. (Post at least once a week).

Day 173 - 2009 Re-cap

I have not been the blogger I had hoped to be. Hopefully this year will be different.


2009 Re-cap:

• The hubby has a full-time job. We should see about $1,900 a month - this will go all to debt. With a full-time job he will receive benefits (i.e. - Health insurance), which means that we will not longer pay $96 a month for his health benefits!!


• I managed to re-consolidate my student loans from $260 to $160 - the difference will go to debt.


• I calculated what our taxes will be for next year and have maximized our take home pay.
  

How we ended the year = unfortunately not great!

Here is the breakdown as of 12/31/2009:

Assets
Cash: $94.25
Retirement/Investments: $4,981.67
Total Assets: $5,075.92

Liabilities:
Credit Cards: $22,858.29
Vehicles: $20,649.06
Student Loans: $118,479.82
Total Liabilities: $161,987.17

Net Worth ($156,911.25)

Day 104 - The Numbers

I have finally had an opportunity to establish a very detailed and aggressive budget and I also created a balance sheet. Let's say I am suprised, but not shocked at what "our numbers" really are. When I first started this blog I stated that we had about $150k in debt, well it is a little bit more than that.

Here is the breakdown as of 09/30/2009:

Assets:
Cash $1,656.14
Retirement/Investments:$5309.29
Total Assets: $6,965.43

Liabilities
Credit Cards: $20,688.13
Vehicles: $23,376.21
Student Loans: $118,511.05
Total Liabilities :$162,575.39

Net Worth ($155,609.96)

So today is day 104, 626 days left to be debt free!

Day 84

Were have we been you ask? Why is this journey so hard? We fell off the wagon in August and part of September. Good news is that we are back and at full force.

Goals for the month of October:

1. List vehicle 1 for sale (We co-signed for a vehicle about 2 years ago and our relative did not make payments on it, and now we have been stuck with a $200 payment a month for the last year. We are waiting to get the name change on the registration as soon as that comes in it is up for sale. Note to self: Never co-sign for anyone.)
2. List vehicle 2 for sale (Well it is not a vehicle, but a bike. We should not have purchased it, but both of us were employed at the time and it was purchased as an incentive. Note to self: You purchase things after you have achieved your goal, not before.)
3. Consolidate student loans: I have a Perkins loan that did not make it into the consolidation the first time around, I should be able to reduce my payment by $30-$50 by doing so.
4. Call our satellite provider: and get our monthly service down to $50 a month.
5. Cancel our cell service and sell phones: We never use our cellphones, they are never charged and half the time we do not know where they are at. I listed my phone last night, hopefully I can list the hubby's tonight.
6. De-clutter and sell: The hubby has done some major de-cluttering and we have found about $500+ worth of stuff we can sell. Hopefully, we can get is all listed and sold on EBay and Craigslist.
7. Complete our taxes: We still have not filed our taxes, I know, I know...we are owed a refund from Federal and owe the similar amount to state, so it is a wash. But we have been to lazy to get it done.
8. Complete 2 online offers: I have completed one in the past and would like to complete at least 2 and make $1000.
9. Stick to the budget: Groceries and Household: $200, Gas for vehicles: $200, Entertainment/Eating Out: $100, Blow money: $200, Halloween party: $150.
10. Post at least 3 times a week: We need to be held accountable!!!