So far we have done a few little things to cut back!
* Cut out data and texting off our phones to save $55.00 a month!
* Cut down Direct TV by 20 dollars a month by calling and threatening to cancel and all the sudden a non advertised special arose!
* We are going to watch our water bill as it keeps sneaking up each month to around 25 a month which annoys me as it used to be around 65 every 3 months!
* Continue to use the wood stove! We have yet to turn on our basement heat and in return we have saved 118 from Oct-Dec which isn't much but these are not freezing cold months! So it should be interesting to see what using it all winter long will do!
Baby Step 1 $1,000 to start an Emergency Fund
An emergency fund is for those unexpected events in life that you can’t plan for: the loss of a job, an unexpected pregnancy, a faulty car transmission, and the list goes on and on. It’s not a matter of if these events will happen; it’s simply a matter of when they will happen.
Baby Step 2 Pay off all debt using the Debt Snowball
List your debts, excluding the house, in order. The smallest balance should be your number one priority. Don’t worry about interest rates unless two debts have similar payoffs. If that’s the case, then list the higher interest rate debt first.
Baby Step 3 3 to 6 months of expenses in savings
Once you complete the first two baby steps, you will have built serious momentum. But don’t start throwing all your “extra” money into investments quite yet. It’s time to build your full emergency fund.
Baby Step 4 Invest 15% of household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement
When you reach this step, you’ll have no payments—except the house—and a fully funded emergency fund. Now it’s time to get serious about building wealth.
Baby Step 5 College funding for children
By this point, you should have already started
Baby Step 4—investing 15% of your income—before saving for college.
Whether you are saving for you or your child to go to college, you need to start now.
Baby Step 6 Pay off home early
Now it’s time to begin chunking all of your extra money toward the mortgage. You are getting closer to realizing the dream of a life with no house payments. Baby Step 7 Build wealth and give! It’s time to build wealth and give like never before. Leave an inheritance for future generations, and bless others now with your excess. It's really the only way to live!
This year our plan is to get:
a Baby Emergency Fund(1000)
pay off Department of Education Loan(614.00)
1 months expenses into a savings account(2600)
Total: 4214 or 81 a week!
I also want a special account for the yearly expenses!
clothing 500
car registration 500
christmas 1000
birthdays 500
parties 250
Total 2750 or 52 a week!
