Net Worth Review: December 2009

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It's time to do our monthly net worth review on Couple Money. Come see how progress we made this past month as we work towards financial freedom

Moved to a New Apartment!

We have moved into the new apartment. After unpacking much stuff for a guest who came over, we're slowly adjusting.

We don't plan on unpacking everything though. I'm unpacking based on immediate needs now, so we're seeing if we really need all this stuff or can we move some clutter in our lives.

Cash Savings and Emergency Funds (+$4007)

This category includes our checking and savings accounts. Our joint savings includes our emergency fund and our house down payment fund.

The biggest reason for this jump is the yearly bonus that my husband received from his job.

I started a temporary job and the focus is to direct 80% of my paychecks into joint savings. 

ING Direct may not have the highest rates of savings right now, but they have much better than average interest rates compared to many banks and we’ve had solid customer service from them.

Retirement Accounts ($27)

This month my husband saw a decline in one of his retirement accounts, but his 401(k) improve so it's a pretty much a wash this month.

My husband has continued his 401(k)contributions to get his company’s match. 

I’m slowly increasing my contributions to my Roth IRA while directing money towards the joint savings account for a bigger emergency fund. Once we figure out what we're doing with this house hunt and filled our emergency fund, I’ll contribute more towards my Roth IRA.

Auto Property ($-620)

In case you’re wondering how I got the numbers, I’ve got the prices from Kelly Blue Book. We no longer have car loans, so they are assets.

Every quarter I’ll update them to account for depreciation. I went to Kelly Blue Book this month and new amount reflects the depreciation.

If you’re looking at paying off your car loan faster, we shared our own family's plan.

Student Loans (-$115)

It's been another month and another payment. Not much to report, but I’m planning on consolidating the loans to lower the interest rates soon after we move to the new apartment.

Currently consolidating student loans can lower them, which is a great deal and would decrease the monthly payment a bit.

Credit Cards ($0)

We pay off the balance on the card every month. I have a monthly subscription taken out on my card to keep it active.

We use the credit card for vacations and then pay it off when we come home.

Net Worth Thoughts

So we’re in the positive with our net worth, which is great, considering we had just finished our car loan earlier this year.

We're still over $10,000, so I'm happy with the small increase.  We have to sit down and see if there are any goals we'd like to set for improving our net worth.

I'd love to hear from you about your progress. How did you two do in 2009 with your finances? What money goals do you have for 2010?