End of October 2009 Financial Status

Time continues to fly and October was a very interesting month. I haven’t posted as much as I wanted to because I’ve been traveling for work, which has been fun, tiring and time consuming. My net worth increased marginally and was largely driven by decreasing my liabilities. My 15-year mortgage is already paying dividends. I finally invested some fresh funds into my retirement funds, although I hope to do so much more in November.

Cash

In October I had my first mortgage payment after refinancing and it really shows in my mortgage liability. I also transferred everything above $10,000 at the end of September into my solo 401k, which is why my cash asset decreased this month. The goal is to have over $10,000 in cash assets at the end of every month. Normally I would roll over the extra amount ($338.71) into my retirement funds, but I made a couple major purchases in October that will be paid for in November. I bought a shelving unit and blinds, both of which improve the appearance of my condo significantly, as well as add some awesome functionality. I can now watch TV between 5 and 7 pm. I will be very happy if I still have over $10,000 for my emergency fund.

Retirement

My retirement funds increased because of the added funds, however, the stock market dropped for the first time in three months. During the month of November I hope to sell my Target stock (non-retirement asset) and put the money into my retirement funds. The idea is to convert non-tax sheltered assets into tax sheltered assets.

Non-Retirement

My non-retirement account increased as Target stock increased, while the overall stock market decreased. My non-retirement accounts consist of my Target stock through Schwab (for only a little longer), US Growth mutual fund through Vanguard, Sharebuilder account and Lending Club account. I don’t foresee any major contributions to my non-retirement accounts. I would like to start adding $25 into my Lending Club account every month, I might start doing this in November.

Liabilities

My car payment decreased by the standard amount and my mortgage liability decreased for the first time under my new refinanced mortgage. Adding $850 to the equity in my condo feels great. It takes the sting out of making such a large mortgage payment. I’m anxious to automate my mortgage payments again. It really is a burden to have to remember to make this payment on time every month.

Net Worth

My net worth increased by 0.9%. I’ve increased my net worth in many ways since I started tracking it. I suppose now it was time for my liabilities to do the heavy lifting. Next month will be interesting as I have to pay off two large purchases, plus I should have a rather large expense check coming in from all of my traveling. The nice part about traveling for work is getting all of your meals paid for. I should continue traveling through the end of the year, which should help me save some money.