Comments on: Net Worth Update: $284,665.99 (Down $16k and Hating it)

By: J. Money

J. Money — Wed, 04 Jul 2012 20:09:59 +0000

@Emily – Thanks!! It’s so hard to do that, huh? I always feel like I’m failing if I don’t get it PERFECT like that, but you’re totally right – Something IS usally better than nothing. Thanks for the reminder!
@Randall – COOL!! I’m so glad to hear it my friend – that totally makes me happy :)
@Jennifer Lissette – Haha, there you go :) I’d tend to go w/ the appraisal as the closest to value on the site too – so hopefully it goes in your favor!
@Jenna, Adaptu Community Manager – Indeed! As long as it has plenty of toys and shiny things he’ll be one happy little boy ;)
@BryanM – You could have a point there. Though I think it’s the first time I’ve changed it in like 3 years, haha… I only do it when I get super good intel on it ;)

By: BryanM

BryanM — Wed, 04 Jul 2012 00:48:00 +0000

J, I don’t think you should track the monthly value of your home in these calculations since home values are not an exact science and the market is pretty volatile right now. I would just maintain a conservative price and keep it through out the year, evaluating it annually. Either way, you are way ahead of the curve to begin with.

By: Jenna, Adaptu Community Manager

Jenna, Adaptu Community Manager — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 21:43:26 +0000

Just think soon, you’ll have a new baby and they won’t care that the house they come home too is worth $15,000 less than last month :)

By: Jennifer Lissette

Jennifer Lissette — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 21:18:24 +0000

Up 15k this month! However, we’re trying to refinance our house and had an official appraisal last week. So I think next month’s number will be much more accurate as we’re finally going to know the value after spending the last five years watching it sink like a stone on zillow.

By: Randall

Randall — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:47:42 +0000

Hey J$! Reading your blogs inspired me to do some better net worth tracking too. I’ve been watching it on mint.com for the past couple years, but decided to make a spreadsheet so I can see the trends a little more clearly. In my first month of “official” tracking, my net worth went up $2500! Yay! It’s really encouraging to see that number and stay focused on my financial goals. Thank you!

By: Emily

Emily — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:35:25 +0000

Sorry to hear about the home appraisal, but you’re in excellent company with most of us I think these days. :)

I wanted to say good for you on continuing to do the mortgage payoff despite the fact that it wasn’t as much as you wanted to. Doing anything is better than nothing (as my partner would tell me every time *I* would whine about it not being the exact same amount each month). You’re still chipping away at that interest and getting closer to mortgage freedom!

Take care!

By: J. Money

J. Money — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:31:18 +0000

Thanks for all the support guys! It always helps hearing from y’all :)

@Lance@MoneyLife&More – You know it bro! Nothing like a good decrease to wake my ass up!
@Devan – Good!!! I’m so glad you’re tracking it too :) And so far that means you’ve only seen my net worth go DOWN! haha… I think it’s on a record now ever since starting to track it all 4+ years ago. But a comeback it shall be!! Thanks for all the support and kind words too, appreciate it. As far as 529 stuff – yup, we’re waiting for the ss# too and will then start filling it right up. I’ve already got $350 earmarked for it from a contest I won 2 months ago :) Congrats on your new baby too!
@Jake – Yeah, who knows… it usually follows suit, but every now and then it’s a lot higher or lower – I’ll have to get a re-check on everything sometime in the next few months to make sure I’m still where I should be with those.
@Laura Brown – You know, I’ve never thought of just doing them every 3 months anyways – that’s not a bad idea? I guess it would work out too since you’d be paying that first one earlier, I’m gonna think about that one, thanks :) And hopefully both our homes go up too by the time we want to get out of them! I have faith that they will, just a matter of time.
@Jennifer Lynn – Yup! You’re right – I have a 1 oz gold coin I picked up a few months ago to diversify a bit (and to keep something in PHYSICAL form over electrnic). I do plan on picking up more metals in the future, but next on the list is silver. Probably another $1,500 worth or so and then I’ll call it quits from there for a while. I just wanted a few thousand in something “real” in case of a crazy apocolypse ;)
@Michelle – Thanks, us too!
@Edward Antrobus – Aww, well you keep your yead up too, good sir! Maybe it’s better if you look at them every quarter instead of every month? Maybe that’ll make you feel better?
@Financial Independence – Thanks, appreciate that :) I have faith in myself longterm, but I do let it get to me every now and then. Guess it’s a part of life, eh?
@RichUncle EL – Haha, I cannot WAIT until I don’t need to mess w/ a mortgage anymore :) Whether that means we’ve sold it or that we’ve paid it off 100% – which I’m equally excited about, it’s just a matter of what happens first. Though it’s true I’m not the biggest fan of home ownership just in general – too much responsibility for me.
@Joe @ Retire By 40 – Oh yeah, get in a good habit of it too so you don’t make stupid mistakes like me! Although I will say they do kick your ass in gear too ;)
@Kevin @ Thousandaire.com – Yeah, I def. need to re-look at it all here sometime soon just to double check I’m at where I should be still. It’s on the to-do list in the next few months :)
@Kurt @ Money Counselor – Thanks Kurt! It’s too bad you don’t live closer cuz I’d totally treat you to some beers to get more of those pep talks when I need them! Haha… thanks for always looking out :)
@Jen @ Master the Art of Saving – I know, the stuff out of your control is always the hardest to deal with but it’s gotta be done! That’s how the world works :)
@Adam Hathaway – That is frustrating! I don’t track every penny any more (not worth the time to me at this point), but I’m sure you remember a lot more about that kinda stuff than I do “generally” overseeing everything. I’ve been known to forget bills worth $200+ sometimes, haha… but then I figure out a system to not let it happen again in the future. Always tweaking!
@Miriam – That’s the FUN part of budgeting – when you have less debt and more cash flow to apply towards new goals! You def. gotta adjust your budget for that :)
@Financial Samurai – Thanks man, and you’re right! I know the market and real estate will be up long term for sure (or else I’d never be investing in either), so right now it’s just all fluff numbers giving me a run for my sanity. In the end we’ll all be winners! :)

By: Financial Samurai

Financial Samurai — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:00:52 +0000

Tough month J, but out of your control.

The good thing is, the stock markets are EN FUEGO again w/ the Dow back to 12,900! 50% of your NW should therefore by loving it!

Budgets aren’t hard. Just the output is hard during rough months. Set it and forget it!

By: Miriam

Miriam — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 15:21:11 +0000

Budgets ARE hard! Especially sticking to them when the unknown oopsies come in. I haven’t redone our budget yet now that the truck and loan are paid off. I should probably get around to doing that one of these days.

By: Adam Hathaway

Adam Hathaway — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:47:40 +0000

For those of us who track our budgets to the most minute detail I do have to say that any loss is a serious aggravation. I was a bit bothered by the fact that I did not remember that we had our $80 AAA membership due nevermind a 2k loss in taxes and a 15k housing drop in value. However, you are still beating that debt down and have a much higher net worth than most so you will get through this pretty easily.