May 9, 2010
Did I say I’d set up updates on Saturday? I’m all discombobulated!
Cody and Candace reported: $164 of $500, reaching 33% of the goal
Danielle hopped on board with a goal of $1500 in debt reduction
The Lost Goat has joined the Fitness side planning to job 45 minutes, 3 times a week, with a 5K on June 6th.
Ciawy reports her plan to save $250/week and bring lunches to work
I have received three payments for invoices and logged $2030 of $5000 this week.
Notes: It’s a great start, but the rest of the way is going to be quite a bit more challenging. I’m traveling next weekend so I won’t have nearly any time to spend on freelancing.
{————Carnivals and Link Love————}
Weddings in the Blogosphere
Stacking Pennies is back from her mini-moon and raised her rent.
Red is getting married TODAY.
My Thanks…
Thanks to Frugal Scholar for sharing a book review of Possom Living, a book about living frugally in a pretty extreme situation, and noting my attempts to occasionally be possum.
May 6, 2010
I love it, you all are both supportive AND game!
Team $5K/5K
Finance
Frugal Scholar with a goal TBD
Cody and Candace with a goal of $500 for debt reduction
Jersey Mom with a goal TBD MochaTrina with a goal TBD
Serendipity with a goal of $250
Doug with a goal of $500
Divorcing Debt with a goal of saving all Amazon/eBay sales money
Fitness
Single Ma running all five Ks
Chele
nofearingthemoney (no blog)
Tazzee
mzinspiredmind
Funny About Money with a goal to lose 10 lbs
BOTH
Tired of Being Broke with a goal of $5K and losing 7 lbs
Ciawy taking on both with a goal of $500 bringing lunch everyday to work, and signing up for a 5K race
BK Diva
Here’s the plan: I will be updating weekly so send me your updates by email or post a comment, or send me the link to your blogged update on Friday to be included in the post Saturday.
I’m so excited to see how this works out!!
May 4, 2010
Revanche and Single Ma’s $5K/5K Challenge
Yesterday I announced a joint 5K challenge that Single Ma and I are taking on and we’d like you to join us!
The goal:
SHE: Single Ma starts training on May 2nd and hits the race starting lines on June 5th.
ME: I will be saving every penny not needed for expenses and aiming for the highest possible amount by June 5th.
The details: She doesn’t expect a perfect race, and I don’t expect a perfect savings run. I know that $5000 is a huge sum, and I really want to hit that goal, but to make it realistic, I’m setting some ground rules.
First: I won’t cheat by skimping on every day necessities in order to artificially win this challenge. For example, if I owe gifts to people, they won’t be sent late because I’m trying to avoid spending. On the other hand, whenever I can use gift cards to avoid using cash, you can bet I’ll be doing so.
Second: Since I do not make well over $5000 in any given month from my day job, savings money has to come from my freelance income.
Third: (The equivalent of walking) I will allow any invoices for work already performed paid during this timeframe to be counted toward the total. The converse is also true: I will not book any money that has been invoiced but not received. So if you owe me money, please pay me during this time! 😉
Fourth: Accountability! I will be posting weekly updates to my savings regimen.
FAQs
Q: “WHY WHY WHY?
A: Well, it should be obvious why SM is doing the 5K – she’s insane! 😉 Nooooo, it’s a great milestone to achieve. As for me, I have some major savings goals for the year and this is one way to concentrate on reaching at least one more early in the year. The more I bank, the better my position will be in as more family challenges crop up this year.
Q: Why match SM?
A: SM’s always been inspirational and I know many of her readers feel the same way. The symmetry was poetic and I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to “run” with her!
Q: What if I can’t save $5K?
A: Not a problem – set your savings goal wherever makes the most sense for you, but make it more than your usual savings rate. The point is to stretch yourself beyond the normal day to day.
Q: How do I have to save for it to count?
A: You can save however you can so long as you’re not lying, cheating or stealing. Small bits, lump sums, getting your cousin Sally to pay back that quarter you lent her when you were both 7 years old, if it’s ethical, it’s fair game! 🙂 Also, no neglecting your responsibilities!
Q: What if I don’t blog, can I still participate?
A: ABsolutely! If you blog, and you’re taking on the financial challenge, please do post the challenge and weekly updates. If you don’t blog and want to send your numbers to me, you are most welcome to comment and/or email me and I’ll keep a spreadsheet with our progress. This is a team effort!
May 3, 2010
In one month, Single Ma of Fabulous Financials fame is going to take the leap into her first 5K race! Having blazed the trail to financial success in her life, she’s refocused her intensity on a new frontier. If you’ve missed her fabulous (of course) tweets in the past few months, she’s been making major changes in her lifestyle, overhauling her eating habits and kicking the crud out of the Couch to 5K program.
She starts official training for the 5K today, Sunday May 2nd. Starting at the same time, I will be “running” alongside her in the saving spirit – I will aim to save $5000 between May 2nd through June 5th.
Will you join us in Financial and Physical Fitness?
Stay tuned for the details!
April 26, 2010
This is probably the most important detail in the whole process of budget-making: how do I ensure that I have saved a substantial amount by the end of the year, even on an incredibly tight budget?
Step One was establishing my bottom-line expenses. I know that they will increase but for now, I need to know the precise minimum I *must* have.
Step Two was establishing my savings wish list. This is what I want and mean to have. On a meta-level, I know that I have a priority list and can switch priorities as necessary.
*Investing in a 401(k) will be automatic and basically invisible.
Step Three was re-establishing my time commitments. I rely on alternate income to make up the difference between the regular income and the goals and that requires careful time management so that I don’t drop the ball on either side.
Step Four was setting up tracking spreadsheets for the income generated so I stay abreast of the tax implications of freelance work.
Step Five is pulling it all together: as income is earned after the month of April, a set amount will go towards the expense fund and the rest will go to savings. All alternate income goes toward the savings goals as well.
My priorities
Providing for my family
Rebuilding my portfolio of savings and investments
Making time to enjoy my new life
The numbers
Expenses: A very conservative $2,800 per month
Savings: I aim to average $400-500 per month on freelancing = $4950-5850/this year. That takes care of my debt to self which is the same as 50% of my Emergency Fund rebuild goal. I would then take the rest and stash it in the insurance and maintenance funds.
It’s a little disappointing to see the numbers are so low, but any other windfall gigs aren’t included in that total. It’s ok, this is a work in progress.
{———-Bonus Round———}
And we now know that I have to budget in extra money for further medical treatment and therapies for my mom (to be determined) as well as to move them. Look forward to Budgeting, Redux!
April 22, 2010
[This budget was developed before
Sunday and
Monday‘s situations, so of course it’ll have to change to accommodate the new developments. But I worked hard on it, so this series is going up anyway!]
These goals are beyond stretch goals since my disposable income doesn’t actually cover saving an average of $2900/month from the end of July through year-end. That’s fine, I prefer to set high goals and find ways to meet most of them than settle. Some of these are overlapping from the previous post so they’ll look familiar, or they might have been expanded. Until my benefits and paychecks settle out, which they will by the end of May, these goals will remain soft.
Long term Savings Goals
Emergency Fund: Doesn’t need too much work. I’d like to ratchet this up to $40,000 by next year so that I can roll $20,000 into any decent interest-bearing, mid-term CDs.
[Need: $5,400]
Expense Account: It’s less than half its former glory. Let’s take it back up to $10,000.
[Need: $5,000]
ROTH IRA: Haven’t made a contribution in years. Let’s fix that by April 2011.
[Need: $4,000]
Short term Spending Budgets
Taxes: If I earn enough freelance income this year, taking no exemptions throughout the year may not cover my 2010 tax liability. If that starts to look iffy, I will restart this savings account and put away 30% of all freelance invoices.
[TBD]
Auto Maintenance:
Credit card rewards alone won’t be enough to cover this category of expenses. I should have at least $1000/car per year.
[Annual Need: $2,000]
Insurance: Car insurance costs $1200/6 months for two cars. I’ll be canceling my current -very costly- private life insurance because my employer-sponsored version has become active at $9/month and “save” $41/month. Renter’s insurance is another $500/year.
[Annual Need: $2,900; current policies are paid through to October or this time next year]
Travel: Oh for an endless travel fund! Realistically, I should save for the two trips I’ve already committed to (San Diego and going home for a graduation). And maybe two more trips back home this year.
[Need: $2,000; have some travel credit on hand already]
Clothing: I must have a budget for 2011. The budget strings will simply be too tight for me to steal a little bit here and a little there from the Expense fund like I used to do (shhh!).
[Need: TBD]
April 21, 2010
New job, new salary, new savings goals
Ever since landing the job I’ve been on fire to write up a new budget and set my savings goals for the year. With a new set of demands on my income, I had no idea how much I’d be able to save but I’m bound and determined to work it out.
Let’s look at my major obligations
In a nutshell, the graph shows these items:
$2700/mo – allocated for all household expenses (my parents + mine) [SPEND]
$668.75/mo ($2675 total) – Debt to self to be repaid by July [SAVE]
$200/mo ($2000 total) – total amount needed to pay next 6-month auto policy and the monthly savings amount to pay annual insurances. This estimate might be a little on the high side but I need to replenish my insurance fund. [SAVE to SPEND]
$150/mo ($600 total) – travel fund minimum by July [SAVE to SPEND]
Those monthly totals are more than my salary alone can provide, so it’s good to know how much more I need to earn through freelancing. It’s stressful seeing a shortfall, but better to know than not! To be honest, none of that’s actual debt either, what I’m really planning are my short-term savings goals above.
[This budget was developed before
Sunday and
Monday‘s situations, so of course it’ll have to change to accommodate the new developments. But I worked hard on it, so this series is going up anyway!]
{————-CARNIVALS————-}
