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About Me:

Savings Queen

2013- TOTAL SAVINGS NEEDED FOR THIS YEAR: $168,050
TO PAY FOR EXPENSES:
Converting Real Estate IRA into Roth (pay .44% tax on $289K in rental house IRA acct) $130,050
Hubby's Jaw Surgery $15,000
(reduced to $7,000 since it's covered)
Emergency Fund $30,000

WHAT WE HAVE NOW:
7/9/13: $166,804 (including rental house account) OUCH! WE WENT DOWN!!
5/22/13: $168,511 (including rental house account)
5/3/13:$163,755.00 (including rental account)
4/17/13: $160,447.67 (including rental account)
4/1/13: $142,719 (including rental account)
3/17/13: $136,131.38 (including rental house account)
2/24/13: $128,516 in savings

WHERE WE ARE ON APRIL 17, 2013: Still need $14,602.33 to meet $170,050 yearly goal by April 15, 2014 ($1,216 per month - 12 months from April 1, 2012 - April 1, 2013)

Savings Goals:
Hubby's paychecks $2,478 X 26 wks = $64,428
My savings $1,500 mo. X 12 = $18,000
By March 1, 2014 hubby and I should meet our savings goal of $175,050 and have $50,097 in extra savings (this will give us an emergency fund of $80,097). Next year we hope to convert the remaining $100K of the real estate IRA into a roth and will need about $45K to do that. We will easily be able to meet that goal during 2014!

WHO ARE WE (money wise)?
I am a wife and mother of two grown sons. I own a business & my husband has a good job and we have done some things right (pd. off mortgage, pretty good 401Ks, more than $100,000 in savings, 9 mostly paid off rental houses (10 units). Previously we used a VISA card but now we are only using our debit card.

Most people would say we are in great shape which we are, however, I also have a tendency to overspend money at times (sometimes I worry I have a spending problem).

I want to learn to appreciate what I have and stop frittering money away. With me it is usually either wild overspending or total frugality. I want to learn to live a more balanced financial life, in the middle.

SPENDING/SAVINGS GOALS:
* Continue to stay off EBAY!!! DONE
* Write down all expenditures DONE
* Continue to use the debit card, not the charge card GOT RID OF CHARGE CARD! DONE
* FIND OUT WHAT WE NEED TO LIVE EACH MONTH! Develop a spending plan. DONE
* Continue to save my DH�s
paychecks and live on mine
DONE
INVESTMENT GOALS:
* Gather all figures for 401K,
IRAs, banks accounts DONE
* Create a Net Worth Statement DONE
* Use real estate (rentals) to produce income of $7,000 a month in income tax free

GOAL: Turn the rental account into a ROTH in 2013 so all rental income will be tax free. This is a BIG savings goal for us! We need $120-$160K to pay the taxes on this 400K account. (we have have to convert 280K of the account this year and 100K next year so we will still have some emergency fund money left)

INVESTMENT GOALS: Get our 401K invested in safe mututal funds
FEB - Created a plan and are dollar cost averaging to get back in over the next six months.

Staying Off Ebay!!

November 26th, 2012 at 07:33 pm

I have been away from this blog for quite some time (wish I could consistently keep finances as a priority but I guess some attention is better than none).

For the past several months I have been buying too much on Ebay. We have a large income and own everything outright pretty much, but I have frittered away about $750 in Cabi clothing on Ebay. For those of you who don't know, Cabi is designer clothing sold at home parties.

Well, I purchased A LOT of Cabi clothes at several home parties then discovered I could purchase the clothes for less on Ebay.

This was NOT a good discovery as I have an addictive personality and Ebay can become VERY addictive.

I am on Day One of writing down everything I spend and NOT searching for anything on Ebay.

In the last month cehcking for new Cabi items or checking my auctions on Ebay was beginning to consume LOTS of my spare time and the packages were beginning to come in at a fast and furious pace. Even though in our lifestyle $750 is not terrible, I know where all addictions can lead. Therefore I am stopping this Ebay spending today.

I have to admit that I do feel a little emptier today without Ebay. I have been reading some compulsive spender's blogs for inspiration and I plan to try and cultivate a healthier addiction. One of the things I ordered on Ebay was a set of exercise DVDs. Once that comes I plan to make working out my new addiction (that is the one joy of having an addictive bent is that you can also become addicted to positive things).

Has anyone else out there had trouble with Ebay/Home Shopping Chanel or just general spending compulsions? If so, I would appreciate some tips and/or horror stories of what NOT quitting can do.

By the way, I am very into stating things in the positive. so instead of all the above:

"I spend money wisely and plan all purchases." That's my new mantra. From now on my blog entries will be about the positive steps I am taking rather than the negatives I mentioned above.

Posted in Budgeting, Credit Cards, Personal Finance, Retirement, Saving Money, Shopping | 3 Comments »

3 Responses to “Staying Off Ebay!!”

librarylady Says:
November 26th, 2012 at 09:59 pm 1353967173
1353967173

That is awesome! We are all on different levels of the spectrum here. But, you want to come to terms with your bad habits, and admitting them is the number one thing you must do to overcome them. I hope you will keep us posted on your progress.
I was kind of thinking of some volunteer work to take up your ebaying time. If you know of a cause in your area you would want to support you might look in to that.
And exercise is a great way to spend your time.
Makes you feel great!
creditcardfree Says:
November 27th, 2012 at 01:21 am 1353979278
1353979278

Welcome back! Good luck with new positive habits.
Jerry Says:
December 3rd, 2012 at 09:50 am 1354528235
1354528235

It can definitely lead to some major spending when you find something that you love for cheaper on eBay, that is for sure! (Been there...) Good for you in recognizing that problem and taking steps to end the spending cycle. Replacing that pattern with an exercise regimen will offer you some insurance of making positive gains physically, as well.
Jerry

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Savings Queen's Personal Finance Journey

A Spending Queen Learns to Change her Spendthrift Ways...One Day at A Time.

Staying Off Ebay!!

3 Responses to “Staying Off Ebay!!”

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