2014 Financial Goals: One out of Four Years to a House

In 2013, one of the sections I was unable to complete was my Financial goals.  Granted, it was due to unforeseen and unavoidable reasons, but it was left uncompleted nonetheless.  This year, that means that I must take four additional steps to my standard two in order to complete my Financial section.

Some of those steps are easy, such as Maintaining a Budget.  As I mentioned in my last post, I'm sure to see some goals become standard as I continue The Progressive Planner.  This is sure to be one of them.  My husband, Aaron, and I have already created a 2014 Budget.  With his new job and my income increase from last year, we actually have some amazing wiggle room and spending money despite saving like crazy and paying of loans.  In addition, because we actually have a decent chunk of spending money, I do expect to see some of that wander into savings.  Any additional savings we have will go straight to Aaron's student loans as well.

And that's another goal: Paying off 1/4th of Aaron's Student Loans. To begin the paying process, we've selected Aaron's highest interest loan, which is currently held with Chase.  We're matching Aaron's full monthly payments between Sallie Mae and Chase, and pouring it all into his Chase loan.  While we won't be able to get it paid off on this plan until mid-2015, we'll make an impressive dent in it.  And with the potential additional savings heading there, we might even see it paid off sooner!

In addition to paying off a chunk of his student loans, I'd like to also start building on our savings.  I've called this Creating our Year 1 Savings, since I've stretched the plan over four to five years.  This savings is for our future house!  Seriously, I still get giddy saying that.  Before Aaron and I managed to make a bit of a financial shift last year, the best projected date we had for potentially buying a house was 2026, three years after his loans should technically end.  That would have Aaron and I nearing our 40's.  And that was the best case scenario.  Should we ever need to defer or change our payments, we could be looking at even longer.  Sometimes, a house seemed like this absolutely impossible dream that we could never possibly see.

Now, a house looks not only clear and bright, but we might even be able to afford exactly the kind of house we want when it comes time.  Should we not have the proper amount for a down-payment in four years, we plan to stay in the apartment one more year saving the money that would have gone into Aaron's loans plus our savings plan.  That should be more than enough to get a decent house, have it properly inspected and repaired and move on in with a six-month savings should something happen job-wise.  Boom!

Last year, I also had a section I called "Replace Items."  These were things we desperately needed but could never afford to replace, such as the mattress Aaron's had for fifteen years (that was already used when he got it), and my brick of a craphole laptop.  Seriously, lemon city.  My digital camera was on the list as well, though we more than replaced it with an amazing Sony RX100 II.  This camera is spectacular for it's amazing aperture and simple-to-use point-and-shoot flexibility while still being a DSLR.  That means both Aaron and I can take good pictures with it, even though I have a background in photography and Aaron knows how to use a camera about as much as he knows how to draw a caricature. I really, really love that thing.

But I digress.

This year, we're looking towards different purchases, both of which are not replacements but entirely new items we don't own.

The first item is a New Dining Room Table.  Once upon a time, when we lived in an apartment with a dining room, we owned one.  When we moved to an apartment with a bar, I got rid of it.  I don't really regret that. The thing was impressively heavy and bulky, and only sat two people.  Good riddance!  When we moved into the rental house, the house came with its own table.  No need to buy one!

When we moved to our new apartment, we decided to make the dining room an office so I could have my spiritual room in the second bedroom.  That was perfectly okay since we also had a bar.  However, the bar stools are uncomfortable and some of my friends are unable to sit on them.  In addition, we somehow grossly underestimated the size of our bedroom.  The only things we have in that room are our bed and two night stands.  We could easily fit our desks in there, which is exactly what I plan to do in 2014.  Once that happens, we're getting a nice dining table to put in the kitchen.

This will also help with my overeating habit since I'll no longer be facing the kitchen. Booyah!

I'm budgeting $350 for a new dining room table and chairs.  I know that seems low, but we're looking small and used.  I'm certain I can clear it for that amount, if not less.

The second item I want to purchase is a Tent for Camping.  We camped twice last year, once as a date and once for Midsummer.  This year, I'd like to go camping more often.  I really, really enjoyed it!  And so did Artie, who is surprisingly an exceptional outdoor dog.  Particularly since he's now on a regular flea, tick and heartworm pill, I feel a lot better taking him outside for extended periods of time.  We'll have to stick to colder months as he's more a winter breed, which I don't mind that much, but I just remember the excitement and enjoyment he had last time we did take him.  I want to give that to him again.

I'm also budgeting $350 for the tent.  We may up that budget with a little money from Aaron's spending money.  Sine the tent will have to be brand new, and I really want one that's easy to set up, waterproof and fairy sturdy for our straight line winds.  Spaciousness really isn't important to me since it's just me, Aaron and Artie, who tends to sleep on my chest or legs.  But I certainly don't want to wake up to a flood of condensation or the roof of it on my face if I can avoid it.

Finally, my last 2014 Financial goal is to begin Exploring Investment and Retirement Options for Freelancers and Independent Contractors.  The bonus of working for yourself?  You're your own boss and you set your own hours.  Plus it pays pretty well too!  The cons?  No health insurance or retirement benefits.  Bummer!  While I now have health insurance through my husband (finally!), what if something happens and we lose that health insurance?  Even more so, what happens when I get to a point where I'm unable to work?  What if my vision goes or I develop psoriatic arthritis in my hands?  Both are feasible.  I can't work forever, no matter how much I love it.  So to combat that, I'd like to research one investment or retirement option each month and begin one of those options by the end of the year.  I don't know how many 25-year-olds are thinking about retirement, but my ISTJ mind says the sooner, the better.

So let's take a look at all of that information condensed into my goal chart for 2014:

Not too bad!  Because many of my goals match or make up for last year, I don't anticipate having any "habit" goals as I did with Career.  Let's go ahead and look at what my monthly goal list template should look like for Finances:

FINANCIAL - 0% Complete

Research one investment or retirement option for freelancers. – 0/1 – 0% complete.

Make monthly additional payment for Aaron’s student loans. – 0% complete.

Make monthly savings deposit. – 0% complete.

Save for a new dining table. – 0/$350 – 0% complete.

Save for a new camping tent. – 0/$350 – 0% complete.

Maintain budget. – 0/x Days – 0% complete.

Some notes:  None.

Not too bad!  Two sections down, six to go!

Next time on The Progressive Planner:

My 2014 Health Goals.

Question for my readers:

What are your 2014 financial goals?

Looking Forward

My husband has been in Michigan all week for training.  In just two short days, he'll be back home, even if "home" is currently the most temporary thing in our lives.  When I asked him how he likes his job so far, he told me he actually really loves it.  Music to my ears, particularly during this chaotic week.

I'm currently sitting here sweating at my desk.  The AC in the rental house is out again for the third time.  I can't wait to live in a place where I can just call a maintenance guy.  And, honestly, even if maintenance isn't fantastic, I can figure an apartment AC out a lot better than the archaic thing we have in the downstairs boiler room.  I honestly wonder if that thing is even powerful enough to cool the house we live in.  Wait, no, I know it isn't because my roommates live on the top floor and it's always sweltering up there.  I think it breaks down so much because it gets overworked.  Despite that, it's significantly cooler tonight.  Not looking forward to packing the kitchen tomorrow in the heat, but I'll cope.

I'm also coping with packing and working at the same time while Aaron's away.  It's tough.  I feel like I need a spare me to get everything done - particularly my commissions, which no doubt are suffering from goingtobelateosis.  I don't like being late on anything.  It makes me feel unprofessional.  Of course, I always give notice and my commissioners have always been so understanding.  Couldn't ask for a better job.

So while I'm in the middle of a bit of chaos, albeit optimistic chaos, I'd like to take a moment to look forward to the future.  Since Aaron's job seems to be working out well, we have some things on a list that we're in desperate need of replacing.  One of them is a part of one of my major goals this year - we need a new mattress, box spring and set of pillows.  Aaron and I have spent the last few years duct taping springs back into his decade old, or maybe even older, mattress.  A couple months ago, I got jabbed to the point of blood.  Never mind that some of the pillows I have came from my grandmother who passed away when I was 12.  You can feel the cotton in them clumped.  I spend many a night sleeping on our futon or my roommate's couch than I do my own bed because it's not comfortable, nor does it feel sanitary given its age.  However, because our previous finances, a mattress just never seemed possible.

Not getting a new mattress was one of the many financial "sacrifices" Aaron and I made every year.  We'd take a look at our budget every year, try to work it in, and then something would explode and we'd scrap the idea.  Not this year.  Instead of moving our old, worn out and broken mattress to the new apartment, we're trashing it and getting a new mattress the first week.  I'm super excited to sleep on a fresh, clean, comfortable mattress!

In addition, my digital camera failed me last December.  This was something I'd had on our list of things to buy this year but scrapped it to pay for car repairs for Aaron.  I'd like to get something decent but still point-and-shoot.  Something that would work great for photographing sabbat celebrations for Witchy Words.

After getting the new mattress and camera, we'll probably batten down the hatches and hold out for late November.  During that time, we'll be able to save up more than I've ever thought possible - in fact, I anticipate having our target savings for the year completed by the time Aaron rounds out his 90 days.  In addition, I really want to make sure this job is a good fit and that his company views Aaron as an asset.  We'll know that by the end of November.  And what better way to celebrate it than participating in our first Black Friday ever!

A few years ago, I invested in a cheap laptop.  The lemon of a thing maybe lasted me 6 months before I was mailing it off for repairs.  When I got it back, it was in even worse shape.  I've taken with me on long trips and dealt with its issues, but it's to the point now where it's not even feasible for me to work on it.  As it is right now, it works to watch workout videos but pretty much nothing else, and that's when you can get the stupid thing to turn on. I desperately need a new laptop.  Being able to work away from home or, hell, even in a different room of the apartment, would be fantastic.  It's something I'm regretting I don't have right now while I sit here in the heat.  I could be downstairs if that damn thing worked.  So there's something I'd like to invest in this year.  This will be my Christmas gift to myself.

Something's wrong with our TV's RCA connection.  Has been for about two years.  We haven't been able to hook up anything that requires it, like a DVD player or some of our game systems, because you don't get sound when you do.  It'd been a problem we've dealt with by simply avoiding it.  This year, I'd like to get a simple, cheap flat screen that actually has working hook-ups!  That will be my Christmas gift to Aaron.

The final thing I'm wanting this year is something I wanted ever since Aaron picked up our first cat, Nyx: a cat tree.  A nice one.  Something tall that Hermes can climb up and hide near the ceiling.  Something that has a stern base so Zeus can take his claws to it.  Something that I can hang toys off of, or drench in catnip.  Artie, my dog, has all the toys in the world and more sweaters than I can even count.  It's time I do something for the cats more than bell balls, feather toys and the occasional catnip dump in the entry way.  That will be my Christmas gift to my fuzzy babies.

And of course there's a few small things sprinkled into all of that.  The pets have their yearly vetting coming up this September/October.  I'd like to find out what I can do for Zeus's asthma and get Hermes a blood test - he hasn't had one since we first got him.  I'd like to go to the Six-Week Slim Down course for the fall session.  I didn't last year and my weight suffered.  I'd also like to invest in some wall shelves for my spiritual room at the apartment.

So quickly and for future reference, here's some items I'd like to have purchased before the year is over:

• Mattress Done!
• Box spring Done!
• Four pillows Done!
• A new sheet and comforter set Done!
• A digital camera
• Laptop Done!
• TV
• Cat tree

The last month of the year will be light.  All the Christmas gifts will be bought and we'll be back to saving again.  Heck, even buying everything I want to buy, we'll still have some spare to save.  At the beginning of the year, I'd like to reassess our finances and our savings.  If we have spare money, I want to throw it at the higher interest student loans Aaron has.

Previously, I made a list of things I want to do next year.  Some ideal goals to achieve for 2014.  I'd like to bring that back and add some things to the list.

Become an active participant in the KC Pagan Community (spiritual).

Attempt to attend all sabbat rituals led by Lushede Grove.

Attend at least four Coffee Covens.

Attend at least two Mystic Treasures classes.

Get my own health insurance, either through Aaron or myself. (health/financial).

Begin looking into investing money and retirement options as a freelancing illustrator (financial/career).

Buy a dining room table (home/financial).

Begin thrift shopping again and update Thrifty Difty (personal).

Make an effort for a weekly post.

Begin a balcony/indoor garden growing the following (health/spiritual).

Herbs: Basil, bay, mint, sage.

Vegetables: Cucumber, carrots, leaf lettuce, tomato, spinach.

Fruit: Blueberries, lemon tree.

Other: Aloe, garlic.

Buy our first tent so we can camp more often (relationship/financial).

Swap all of our storage items and memory boxes from cardboard to tupperware and reorganize (home).

Be able to speak basic Spanish again by taking two courses at the local community college (knowledge).

Spring: Elementary Spanish 1

Fall: Elementary Spanish 2, Latin American Humanities.

Continue in 2015 by taking Intermediate Spanish 1 & 2, and interpreting courses.

Learn how to swim (health).

Attend one convention related to my career (career).

Get a set of armchairs (home/financial).

Maintain savings and add an additional 20% (financial).

Complete a Wreck This Journal (personal).

Pay off 1/3rd of Aaron's student loans, starting with the highest interest (financial).

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!

I'm sure most of you remember reading Crapstorm 2013.  If you haven't, let me save you some time.  About half-way through July, we got notice that we would have to move out of the house we're currently renting.  On top of it, my husband's car died, leaving us -$1400 in the hole. On top of that, our insurance came in just the next day, which took another -$1500 out of us. So broke, homeless and with a massive dent in our savings, things were looking a lot like 2012 all over again.

I am admittedly a bit of an open book about the difficulties my husband and I face.  A lot of it is because I never want to face three months of depression like I did in 2012.  Letting it out gives me a chance to gain some perspective, get some feedback and learn from my mistakes, even if there's only two people reading this blog. :)

So my primary solution to Crapstorm 2013 was to begin applying for a second job.  I received some interviews and made quite an impression on one company in particular, but it was hard for me.  Getting a second job meant cutting back on my primary job a bit and losing my spare time to do things I loved, such as Circle of Open Traditions, volunteering or exercising.  And, for the first time in my life, I became angry at Aaron for having student loans.  Why should I have to sacrifice my dream job just because my husband decided to go to school and not pay it back when he had the chance?  Why can't he get a second or better job?  I laid all of this out plainly the day of my successful interview.  Aaron began applying for new jobs and second jobs that night.

Apparently, having that argument was the best decision of our lives.

Aaron heard back from one of the companies that he applied for the next morning, asking details about his knowledge in certain areas.  By that afternoon, he had a Skype interview the following morning at 7 AM.  Imagine his surprise when he finds out he's interviewing in Spain.  Yes, Spain.  They gave him a brief abilities test and he passed with flying colors.  Spain loved him!  They gave him a second interview with a plant here in the US at 1 PM.  In this interview, Aaron found out that they'd been searching for someone for this position for months, but everyone that they sent to Spain came back unapproved.  Spain was technically supposed to be the second interview, but they liked Aaron so much they nabbed him before the US could.  Aaron leaves the interview fairly certain he's got the job, but without a job offer letter, we're simply waiting.

Friday, Aaron gets the job offer letter!  In it, it offers him more money than Aaron has ever made.  At the same time, I tell Aaron that his skill set was perfect for the job, that he has an immense amount of experience for his age, and that he is malleable for the company.  "Ask for more," I said.

They took his request.

So Aaron has a new job and flies out to Michigan on August 19th to train.  He's making double what he's making now.  Don't get me wrong; we couldn't be more appreciative of his current job.  Between our jobs, we've managed to pull ourselves out of seemingly impossible scrapes.  That being said, this job feels like Aaron's first official "big boy" job.  It's real, it's happening and it pays enough.

In my Crapstorm 2013 blog entry, I mentioned briefly a metaphor about swimming.  I said that I felt like all we ever do is splash around in the water, barely being able to bob up enough to catch a breath before being pulled under again.  I said I wanted a raft in the flood.  What we just got was a boat.

So I Updated my Goals Sidebar...

Holy crap, what am I doing to myself?  I am a workaholic!  So much crazy.

To give you an idea of what you should be seeing on the right-hand side, this year is roughly 33% over.  Home through Spiritual aligns with that.  I'm right on target there.

But Career through Health... I just... I don't even.

Look at that number - 61% for Career.  That's almost double where I should be.  And Financial's not too far behind at 45%.  Why am I pushing myself so hard when I'm so far ahead?  And Health... poor Health.  It's suffering at a mere 25%.

It's nothing that I didn't already know: I've been sacrificing exercise and diet to produce.  I guess I just didn't realize how much until now.  Out of all of that, I found out that I've made 53% of my target income for the year.  While that sounds spectacular, the fact that I haven't lost weight in two months is the result.

To be fair, I haven't worked since the 1st.  I'm probably going to go ahead and take the upcoming week off as well.  I need some time.  It's one thing to be invested in your job.  It's another thing to live and breathe it 24/7.  That's what I've been doing.  At this point, the only way to keep myself from bending over backwards to overshoot those numbers is to sabotage my chances.  I don't want to think that there's any way possible to get even 100%.  Then I'll just do what I can.  And that's enough at this point.

Taking time off right now is a great idea too, since I've been diving head-first into my exercise and diet regimen.  I hit the elliptical yesterday and pumped out 500 calories there.  And, while I didn't exercise today, I did walk all over four different stores with my mom.  I didn't log it, but I'm sure it registered some calories.  I've also been keeping with a steady diet and logging with MyFitnessPal.com.  Great site by-the-by for keeping track of your calories.  I've went through a lot of online food loggers and MFP has, by far, the largest food database.  Just about anything you could possibly eat has been added at one point or another.  And, if not, you can always add it yourself, though I've maybe only had to do that two or three times during my year's worth of logging.

I also have to give my mom credit.  She had a knee replacement surgery in early December 2012.  The doctors told her at that time that she needed to lose weight, particularly for the health of the replacement knee.  My mom went from weighing 320 lbs to 243 (weigh-in today!).  That's 77 pounds and she's still working it off!  Super proud, Mom.  Keep up the good work!

If my mom can lose 77 lbs+ with a gimp knee, I can work this last 20-something off, surely.

Goals for the month of January 2013

Today, I'm dividing up my goals into achievable steps for this month.  Fairly short and sweet!  Making it a single post will make it easier to access and, come the end of the month, I can tally up my successes as well as not-so-successes.  Expect this post to be updated regularly as I work on these goals.  They will now be updated on weekly check-ins!

JANUARY 2013 GOALS

Month is currently 42% over.

CAREER

Hit target number of monthly illustrations. - 43% complete.

Make target income for the month. - 72% complete.

Draw one illustration for myself. - 100% complete.

FINANCIAL

Make target income for the month. - 72% complete.

Keep budget. - 48% complete.

HEALTH

Begin taking thyroid meds - continue for entire month. - 48% complete.

Lose 3 pounds by eating a salad every day and avoiding take-out. - 47% complete.

HOME

Organize my computer. - 100% complete.

KNOWLEDGE

Begin taking thyroid meds - continue for entire month. - 48% complete.

Begin taking supplements - continue for entire month. - 48% complete.

Begin daily mental exercises. - 25% complete.

Read one book. - 35% complete.

PERSONAL

Begin taking thyroid meds - continue for entire month. - 28% complete.

Begin meditating. - 15% complete.

Draw one illustration for myself. - 100% complete.

Lose 3 pounds by eating a salad every day and avoiding take-out. - 47% complete.

Adhere to my planner schedule. - 48% complete.

RELATIONSHIP

Do one date night: Watch movies in. - 100% complete.

SPIRITUAL

Begin meditating. - 15% complete.

Next time: What happens at Girls' Night most certainly doesn't stay at Girls' Night.

What is one goal you have to be completed in January?

2013 Financial Goals: Making a Budget

Looking at my Wheel (or Table?) of Life, one section jumped out at me in particular: finances. This year was a hard hit for us.  Between cars, vet bills, and my husband losing his job temporarily, we experienced some extreme set backs that depleted any savings we had.

Finances would take seven goals to make us completely happy with our current status.  But I had no idea what these seven goals should be.  Because of this, I decided to create a budget.  I highly suggest that anyone looking to make any financial goals should start the same way.  By doing a quick search, there are a plethora of budget worksheets online - in fact, there's one right here.  Nabbing one, I began sorting out my family finances.  

The first thing I looked at was all of our monthly and yearly bills.  This included everything from rent and utilities, to groceries and our once-a-year auto insurance bill.  I even factored in things like vet bills, even though some of our pets won't need to be vaccinated next year, and left a huge budget for car repairs since that's what devastated us last year.  On top of it, I factored in a miscellaneous expenses category and a monthly spending box so we weren't living penny to penny.  This budget had plenty of wiggle room if things went wrong and we still had money to spare!

The next step was looking at some things that needed to be fixed or replaced.  My husband needs two new tires on his car.  We could desperately use a new mattress and box spring for our bed.  I'm currently illustrating on a refurbished very basic Wacom Bamboo.  I could really use a better tablet that won't die on me every few days.  And this month, our digital camera went out.  We could stand to get a replacement if money allowed, which it did.  I tallied all of these in and split that total between 12 months.  We now had an idea of how much we needed to be saving every month to be able to replace all of the above by December.

Sorting this out also helped me to see how many commissions I, as a freelancing illustrator, would need to take on this year.  This would later contribute to my Career goals.  I was already starting to see goals for other sections just by tackling one item for the biggest area of my life that needed some attention.  This was working out well!

In the end, this all severely depended on us keeping that budget every month.  So that became my first goal.  My second goal was to make my target income - without that, staying on the budget wouldn't be possible.

From the budget, I took the idea of replacing items and put that in as one of the goals.  If we could get everything I listed replaced, I would feel much better about our finances.

I then looked at how much money we had left over.  It was quite a bit more than I had ever anticipated.  Enough that we could rebuild the emergency savings we lost in 2012 in just one year.  I split that into three chunks and created three more goals for my finances sheet.

Finally, I looked at my husband's student loans.  We're desperate to get them off our backs.  After rebuilding our savings, we had enough left over that we could pay off his smallest student loan.  That became my final financial goal of this year.

Amounts Removed for Privacy

Next time on The Progressive Planner: My Health Goals for 2013

What is one financial goal you'd like to make for yourself in 2013?