End of July 2009 Financial Status

July was a great month for my net worth. The market took my investment funds to 2009 highs. I greatly increased my cash position. I finally think I’m going to be able to refinance my mortgage. I will be closing on my mortgage refinance this month with a 15-year fixed mortgage and a rate of 4.750%. Last month I said I would contribute everything above $10,000 in my cash assets to retirement funds. With closing costs pending, I decided to hold off on investing until I officially close. After that I will begin investing in my retirement accounts.

Cash

Last month I joined the $10,000 club and this month I soared past it. It always helps to have three paychecks instead of two, which happens twice a year. I said that I would start shifting funds into retirement accounts to meet my 2009 financial goals, but I want to make sure everything goes smoothly with my closing before I move any funds. The $10,000 emergency fund will be even more important now that I am refinancing into a 15-year fixed mortgage. My monthly payments will increase by $350, but I will build equity much faster. I initiated the process of signing up for a high interest rewards checking account to take advantage of a 5.51% interest rate. Hopefully that account is opened in the near future.

Retirement

My retirement accounts shot up to a 2009 high. I made no new investments even though I have the cash to spare. As mentioned before I am waiting until I close on my mortgage refinancing. The retirement category consists of my solo 401k and Roth IRA, which are both held at Vanguard.

Non-Retirement

My non-retirement accounts went up by a higher percentage than my retirement accounts. My non-retirement category consists of my Target stock through Schwab, US Growth mutual fund through Vanguard, Sharebuilder account and Lending Club account. I don’t foresee any major contributions to my non-retirement accounts, at least not until my retirement accounts are funded. I am thinking about opening up a TradeKing account for the $50 bonus.

Liabilities

Once again my liabilities only decreased by the standard car and mortgage payment amounts. I will very shortly refinance my mortgage, which will require me to pay down the mortgage until $240,000 is remaining prior to closing to continue not paying PMI. The new mortgage is 15-years instead of 30-years so I should be decreasing my liabilities by a larger margin once I close.

Net Worth

My net worth increased by 4.2%. I hit the trifecta this month with an increase in cash, investments and a decrease in liabilities. Hopefully I will begin making more money through my self-employed projects to drive my net worth even higher.