Do you keep score? By keeping score it just might motivate you to save money save for goals, become debt free, and pay your house off. If you are a gamer you might be motivated by turning it all into a game. But the game is only fun if we are winning, do you have a winning plan? (If not please read my getting out of debt article.) Have you been taught to stay away from debt, save for retirement or as I call it make your money work harder work for you.
Each month I make a habit to look at our families financial statement to see if the balance improving.
Then I take a furturistic look at my next goal.. which is paying off my home mortgage. I really like the what the cost website. I plug in all my numbers and see how long it will take to get to my goal by doing what I am currently doing. It tells me that I will have my home paid off in 13 years. Then I plug in paying double payments it says 6 years and my home will be paid off. Just seeing the numbers and having a writing plan (or map) Really motivates me. So if I aim for 6 years and don't quite make it I am better off than if I never played the game at all. My prize if I sacrafice my income now is that I could help my children with college and their weddings. Then save for retirement for the rest of the years that I work. Plus have freedoms to take vacations, travel and more time to help others with their money. I keep thinking keep my eye on the prize. Or in other words what is my WHY. Each month can be the budget game and each month I can play again and maybe get a better score by not spending as much and paying more down on the house and in about 6 years I will beat this game. Then I get to try onther game save for retirement and learning to invest.
good luck everyone
Your debt freedom coach
Gina
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
What is your financial foot print
What is your financial foot print? Are you taking steps forward or going backwards or are you at a stand still.
I know that before we refinanced our home loan we were owning our house more each month by $80.00. Now that we are at a shorter term and a smaller interest rate we are owning our house by $200.00 each time I make a minimum monthly payment. My foot print forward is bigger now. Another item that would add to your financial foot print forward is how much you are putting into our 401k and IRAs each month. Because we are trying to get out or debt we are only putting 300.00 away each month towards saving products.
Another piece of your financial foot print forward is how much debt you are paying off.
To really see how much your equity is increasing put together your financial statement, then up date it every three to six months. I just updated my financial statement and just running the numbers of how much less debt we have now compared to January really has motivated me to keep on with my financial goals. I can see progress and if I keep going at this same rate I can see the light at the end of my getting completely out of debt tunnel. I can also see that if I save and invest this same money that is now being used to get us out of debt it can fund our retirement. Retirement is another place that seems very hard to do when starting out. I now feel like I can do it now I have a plan or should I say a map to follow.
I always remember the quote that if you fail to plan you plan to fail. Please just think about planning your financial life. Map out where you are at now then make a goal then make a map on how to get where you want to go financially. You can always adjust it when life throws something your way good or bad.
Like a raise you can choose to put it all away for retirement. If you get a windfall you can pay down you debt or save it in your emergency fund. Another quote I just have to share with you is that if you plan for bad times you will only see good times. I think of this quote every time I fill my food storage pantry. And every time I strive through a short on money time without getting into my emergency fund money. I try not to use that emergency money until the last last last resort. I kind of pretend it doesn't exist. That way it can stay saved.
I hope this article keeps you motivated to run the numbers in your families financial statement to see if you are stepping forward and how big of steps you are taking and how to improve your financial foot print to make it the biggest step possible in your financial life.
I know that before we refinanced our home loan we were owning our house more each month by $80.00. Now that we are at a shorter term and a smaller interest rate we are owning our house by $200.00 each time I make a minimum monthly payment. My foot print forward is bigger now. Another item that would add to your financial foot print forward is how much you are putting into our 401k and IRAs each month. Because we are trying to get out or debt we are only putting 300.00 away each month towards saving products.
Another piece of your financial foot print forward is how much debt you are paying off.
To really see how much your equity is increasing put together your financial statement, then up date it every three to six months. I just updated my financial statement and just running the numbers of how much less debt we have now compared to January really has motivated me to keep on with my financial goals. I can see progress and if I keep going at this same rate I can see the light at the end of my getting completely out of debt tunnel. I can also see that if I save and invest this same money that is now being used to get us out of debt it can fund our retirement. Retirement is another place that seems very hard to do when starting out. I now feel like I can do it now I have a plan or should I say a map to follow.
I always remember the quote that if you fail to plan you plan to fail. Please just think about planning your financial life. Map out where you are at now then make a goal then make a map on how to get where you want to go financially. You can always adjust it when life throws something your way good or bad.
Like a raise you can choose to put it all away for retirement. If you get a windfall you can pay down you debt or save it in your emergency fund. Another quote I just have to share with you is that if you plan for bad times you will only see good times. I think of this quote every time I fill my food storage pantry. And every time I strive through a short on money time without getting into my emergency fund money. I try not to use that emergency money until the last last last resort. I kind of pretend it doesn't exist. That way it can stay saved.
I hope this article keeps you motivated to run the numbers in your families financial statement to see if you are stepping forward and how big of steps you are taking and how to improve your financial foot print to make it the biggest step possible in your financial life.
Debt Freedom Calulator link
New tool to track your debt
As your debt freedom coach everyday I am reading blogs, I listening to Dave Ramsey helping others on his radio show. I am trying to find the best information to save money and use it wisely. Every time I leave my 22 month old daughter to work a long day I pray that I can use the money I earn in the best way possible and not waste any of it. I want to provide the best for her and my other children.
I want to teach them as well as everyone who reads my blog about money so they can start early and not make very many money mistakes. As with anything mistakes are made they are sometime a big part of learning. My personality is, if I read about money mistakes I learn form them as well. We should always learn from every mistake, openly tell others about them and how you learned from them this way your mistake could benefit so many others in my personality type. I hope they is more people like me out there.
Well I just have to tell you about a new debt tracking tool I found on line your just plug in your debts ( your balances interest rates and min payments)and it makes your personal debt freedom plan. It is soo cool!
After entering in all my information I could plan to have my all my debt including my house paid off in 5 to 6 years. That would be awesome!!
You have got to try it…
Her is the link
http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx?country=us
It the top just remember to put in the all the minimums you are paying plus the extra you are putting into getting out of debt.
Example car payment 190.00 house payment 550.00 credit card 50.00 plus the 200.00 extra you are snowballing in to the smallest debt.
So the top number would be 990.00 in this case
I also made the error of putting my house payment including the escrow so I had to refigure it again with the correct figures.
After you put in all your info print it out and track every payment you make that what I am going to do.
If you have any questions or comment just let me know.
Thanks for reading.
As your debt freedom coach everyday I am reading blogs, I listening to Dave Ramsey helping others on his radio show. I am trying to find the best information to save money and use it wisely. Every time I leave my 22 month old daughter to work a long day I pray that I can use the money I earn in the best way possible and not waste any of it. I want to provide the best for her and my other children.
I want to teach them as well as everyone who reads my blog about money so they can start early and not make very many money mistakes. As with anything mistakes are made they are sometime a big part of learning. My personality is, if I read about money mistakes I learn form them as well. We should always learn from every mistake, openly tell others about them and how you learned from them this way your mistake could benefit so many others in my personality type. I hope they is more people like me out there.
Well I just have to tell you about a new debt tracking tool I found on line your just plug in your debts ( your balances interest rates and min payments)and it makes your personal debt freedom plan. It is soo cool!
After entering in all my information I could plan to have my all my debt including my house paid off in 5 to 6 years. That would be awesome!!
You have got to try it…
Her is the link
http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx?country=us
It the top just remember to put in the all the minimums you are paying plus the extra you are putting into getting out of debt.
Example car payment 190.00 house payment 550.00 credit card 50.00 plus the 200.00 extra you are snowballing in to the smallest debt.
So the top number would be 990.00 in this case
I also made the error of putting my house payment including the escrow so I had to refigure it again with the correct figures.
After you put in all your info print it out and track every payment you make that what I am going to do.
If you have any questions or comment just let me know.
Thanks for reading.
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