Savings Rate Drops

I'm a huge fan of ING Direct. I love that I have sub accounts there. I keep my CD and my Roth IRA there.

But recently, my once wonderful savings rate has dropped to 1.85%. It's very disappointing. I know that ING is usually the first to drop rates and the last to raise them, but I've never seen them this low. It's very disappointing. I'm tempted to move my savings over to another company, but I'm so used to ING and it would be a serious pain to move everything.

So I'll stick it out for now and keep plugging away at building my savings. It's a shame that it's going to take me longer to hit my goals. Even though it is small, passive income interest is one of my favorite things. I guess you can't always have everything!

Spring is in the Air - Time to Attack the Utilities!

Spring is coming soon to Atlanta, which means that it's getting be about time I turn off my central heat and stop using the dryer so much.

My darling husband, whom I adore to distraction, has taken a job out of state that involves him being out of town most weekdays. Since in a few months he'll need to start paying rent elsewhere, we're going to be having an increase in our living expenses. I can tolerate a lot more extremes of heat and cold than he can, so I'm going to be trying to get the utilities as low as I can while he is gone.

So this means no more central heat and air, no more dryer, I'll be back to power stripping everything and I'll try and use less lights. I also need to be a bit more conservative of water.

Last month our utilities were $286.41 and I am determined to cut that by at least 50% if not much much more in the coming month.

So I'm throwing this out there as a challenge. See what percentage you can knock off of your utilities in the next month! I think anything over 20% is a great great step!

Extra money from this for now will go towards paying down a joint debt that my husband and I have. We're looking forward to some serious financial progress this year!

How it Feels to Not Worry

Since I got this new job, I've not found myself worrying about my personal finances. It's uplifting and strange. I had gotten very used to pinching pennies and freaking out all the time.

I know I am still in a lot of debt, and I know that I need to knuckle down and pay it off, but I'm not worried any more.

True, I'm sad that I'm not working full time in my preferred field, but I have to say that this whole decent income this is not half bad.

I know that I need to keep it under control and not let the extra money go to my head.

I think that once I get out of debt all the way I'm going to feel really really good. This is a pretty big win right now. I like that I am not scared all the time about money.

So how are you doing? Have you had any big wins?

All Grown Up

Today I opened a Roth IRA with ING Direct. I can't believe I now have retirement savings. This is a big big step for me. I will be opening a 401(k) with my new company when they implement the program.

I won't be contributing to it very heavily right now, as I'm still working on paying off debt, but once I fully fund my emergency fund I'll be contributing a lot more to that and saving for a house.

Still no news on what my paycheck will be like, so I haven't worked on my new budget yet.

I'm going to be moving out of our loft soon, though, to try and find somewhere more economical.

Big step for me. Big, huge, grown up step.

January Net Worth Update

Sorry this is a little late, but here is my Net Worth Update for January.

I had another standard month, with my Net Worth growing another 2.87%, or $778. This is the strongest increase, but I'm fairly happy with it.

Here is the break down for the month:

Here is the break down for this month:

Assets

Car Value - $2,730 (No change)

Prosper Loans - $219 ($226)

Cash Savings - $620 ($487)

Debts

Student Loans - $23,781 ($23,821

BOA Credit Card - $4,704 ($4, 701)

Scooter Loan - $1,400 ($1,985)

Net Worth

- $26,286 (-$27,064)

So I am doing well with my 2009 goals so far. Since the new job pays more, I am anticipating that I will do a good job of meeting all of my goals.

I confess, I've been a bit splurgy lately. I decided I was going to go ahead and blow my first paycheck before I got into buckling down and paying off my debt. I know that isn't the most responsible thing to do. There is a bit of guilt from it, but it was nice to have fun for a week or two.

I still don't know exactly what my paychecks will be yet. I'm waiting for my first one before I redo my budget. I'll be starting a Roth IRA as well as increasing my savings to 7%, as I give my savings account a raise every time I get one.

I'm anticipating my Net Worth to be pretty similar next month to this month, but after that I am anticipating making some heavy progress!

Here are some past Net Worth reports

Retirement Planning Opinions Needed

I’m 25 and have no retirement savings. I am working diligently on paying off my debt and should have everything interest bearing taken care of by September. I’ve started a job with a new company and they don’t currently offer a 401(k) plan, but are anticipating starting one in 6 months. I’d really like to start working on retirement savings and I’m wondering if I should start a private 401(k), or a Roth IRA, or wait for my company to start their program, or some kind of combination. I would love to know what you recommend and if you also have any companies that you recommend I pursue these accounts with.

I'm hoping that I can get this taken care of by the end of February. 

In other news, the new job is keeping me very busy, but it's going pretty well so far!

I'm Not Dead Yet

Sorry for the silence. New job has a schedule that I'm not used to it yet. I'm a fair bit overwhelmed but should return very soon. Thanks for the patience. I'll be back friday at the latest.