Every quarter, I find it helpful to take a step back and reflect on my overall financial status. I think it’s helpful for me to reflect, gauge my own progress and celebrate successes while learning from my failures. I hope you find it helpful too, in an effort to tell some of my own story and maybe inspire you on your path towards financial success. 

Income

It’s been about 5 months since I started my new job, and it’s been great so far. Taking my new job I was able to negotiate and receive a higher salary, both in terms of actual salary and with a quarterly bonus, instead of an annual bonus like my old job. There are also a few other income perks, like the 401(k) matching doubling (from 3% at my old job to 6% at my current one). So, I’m still able to maintain my goal of saving 15% for retirement, while contributing 9% instead of 12% (taking the match into consideration). Mrs. Money also got notice that she’ll be getting her annual raise starting this summer. Although our income is only growing modestly, I’m still pleased with the overall upward trend. It’s cool to see our income grow over time. My Lending Club account’s rate of return has increased from 4% where it was last quarter back up to 6%. Although I don’t have a ton of money in that account, it’s fun to watch that money grow at a fair rate of return!

The other big news in terms of income this quarter is that Mrs. Money and I became landlords. As scary as the prospect of moving into a new house and not selling our old one (2 mortgages), we felt good about attempting to rent our house out. We knew it would take work and effort being a landlord (and it has), but figured it was something we’ve talked about doing for quite some time and that this was a great opportunity to try. It took a lot of work advertising, meeting and interviewing prospective tenants and general landlord type maintenance. Day 6 of being a landlord we got a call that the upstairs tub was leaking into the kitchen, which wasn’t fun (or cheap) to sort out! All in all we’ve still been collecting more in rent than expenses and the mortgage/insurance payment so I’m pleased! I’ll do a more in depth post later on about what it’s like being a landlord but so far we’re cash flow positive! 

It’s good to reflect back and see our income not only remaining steady, but also increasing a bit! 

Expenses

We always knew that Baby Money Finance would come with increased expenses for our household, and we weren’t wrong! We definitely tried to save as much as we could for as long as we could, knowing that it would never be as easier to save as it was back when we were younger. We definitely took time to research and plan out our expenses and we’ve been managing fairly well. We made sure our insurance was in order and that we were in-network as much as possible for the delivery and newborn doctor visits. Our insurance costs have increased as now we have another family member to insure. We are so blessed though with a great community of friends and through our church, and have received a number of meals these first few weeks, which has helped us save time and money (arguably time is more important right now for us). Mrs. Money’s friends were so sweet with baby shower gifts, and my friends were awesome to throw me a diaper party. We haven’t (but are getting close) had to buy diapers yet! 

Our expenses have definitely grown, but I feel like we’re doing a good job keeping them in check! 

Saving/Investments

There are a couple of big changes with my investments in the past few months. One is the fact that after leaving my old job, I now had a 401(k) to figure out what to do with my old 401(k). I chose to roll it into my IRA (individual retirement account) that I have. I did that because I try to limit the places I keep my money and I find an IRA provides more investment options and typically lower fees. 

The other big investment update is that my old company got bought out and is no longer a publically traded company. As such, all the stock I held with them was sold and is in cash. I went back and forth on what to do with the money and ultimately decided to invest it in the stock market. I think I’ll be able to earn a better return than paying down my mortgage or saving it, and I’m a big fan of putting my money where it’ll work the hardest for me. 

Now that Baby Money Finance is here, I’ll also be investing in a 529 plan. A 529 plan allows money you put in it to grow tax-free until your child is ready to pay for college. As long as the money is used for college or education expenses, you don’t have to pay taxes on the growth. 

Aside from those big updates, we’ve continued our overall trend of saving and investing. Some months are definitely better than others, but I always have a goal of saving and investing a certain part of our income. If I can meet the goal 100%, great! If not, I still stay to save/invest some of that money. I’m keeping my general savings in an online bank (2% interest) and my money in the stock market in an index fund. 

Finally, we continue to devote a portion of our income for charitable contributions, either to our church or other causes we are passionate about. I still feel like it’s important to give back to your community and have continued to do so! 

Net worth tracking 

About 9 months ago, I started keeping monthly tabs on all my money in an excel sheet. There are other great tools out there, but I prefer a lower tech solution. Once a month, I sit down with Mrs. Money Finance and we record our balances. It’s encouraging to see our progress and celebrate our success, even if it’s not a huge change from last month. Being financially successful is a marathon, not a sprint; so a little progress every month is the real secret to success! 

Another solid quarter for YoungMoneyFinance. Although it certainly had some ups and downs, we kept a positive attitude, kept an eye on our expenses and focused on the long run for our financial success!