1. Start a freelance side job and make at least $5,000
2. Stop buying junk I don't need on line
3. Contribute an extra $5,000 toward my home mortgage
4. Maintain all resolutions I achieved in 2012
My 2013 resolution is to buy no new clothes. I went through my closet last week and got so disgusted with all the things I'd bought on sale and didn't really care about. I can't think of anything that I could possibly need to buy in the next year, so I'm cutting myself off with a hard and fast rule. It will be a stretch, but I hope I can make it.
Good article. It always amazes me how parents who will take a bullet for their child will let them be victimized by the high debt student loan predators. Student loans can certainly make sense in some cases, but many young people don't have sufficient life experience to truly evaluate the choice.
Funny thing about taking on extra household chores or a second job: there are still only 24 hours in a day whether you make $40K or $80K. Who's to say that the $40K job isn't more physically exhausting or stressful? And yet a person must kill herself to even out incomes? Get real. As long as they're not a layabout, the person who makes $40K is better off alone than with a partner who gives them grief about an income disparity.
We plan to save 10k towards emergencies, money for kitchen remodel, car and patio, repay one loan in full, and pay at least $500 extra towards a school loan. Lots of plans, but we think we can do it!
But the biggest thing that makes those extremes easy to deal with for us is having combined finances. Everything that comes in is OURS, not his/hers. It reframes the discussion of earning differentials as a competition to maximizing what you can do together as a team.
When I worked for a bank in college, they offered employees a free premium checking account that you normally need $25k or more to open AND maintain. The maintenance fee of $20 a month was waived, and the account included free checks, free check card with miles (had a $20 fee for non-employees), free cashier's checks, free money orders, free travelers checks, Visa gift cards with a waived activation fee, and -gasp!- interest! (although it was 0.05%...). Those little things reallllllly added up--esp since my rent had to be paid via cashier's check! The company also offered extra discounts such as a 20% discount on our AT&T wireless bill. Since I was on a family plan, they let my parents use the code...~savings: $40 a month. When I stopped working there 4 years ago, AT&T let them continue to use the code! Yay!
Yes, they have inherited it. Whether they worked for it or not, it is not possible to be rich without caring less and less about poverty. Why??? because if it broke your heart, than you would automatically commit most of your time and money to doing something about it. When you go to work, you are going to a dictatorship daily. when we could rearrange things so that everyone is a contributor and all get equal benefits. The earth has more than enough resources to house and feed and clothe everyone on it. Why we don't?? Because the rich don't want it.
We've been chipping away at medical and student loan and other debt for some time now, but we actually put numbers to that debt for our financial goals this year. And we created savings goals to take care of some needed repairs around the house that we otherwise might not save up for. Using budgeting software, we have budgets and have decided that when we have money left in one or more of them at the end of the month, we will roll that over into our savings account. And we also created a savings goal using the budgeting software to help us track how much progress we're making on the goal too.
My resolution is to get our emergency fund up higher, pay all the medical bills as they come in for our baby due next month, and communicate better with my husband about the big upcoming expenses we will have in the next few years (larger car, house, saving for college, etc.). Also, we are going to max out our Roth IRAs for 2013.
Planning to put more toward my IRA/403B in 2013. Just haven't decided which one would be the best fit. I also need to wait to see what the fiscal cliff will do to the pay check.
My sister has cronic fluid on the ears and takes script after script of antibiotics; she has for years (she is 56). A friend told me about adding 10 drops of witch hazel to distilled water and boil this - then add 10 drops to each ear twice daily. Are you familiar with this treatment for fluid on the ears/chronic sinus infection, etc? Thanks, kathy in Mt Juliet, TN
So true. Our son works at the local already discounted bump and dent grocer. Their line to us, "As long as he eats at your table you get the discount". So for the time being we get the benefits.
1. Start a freelance side job and make at least $5,000
2. Stop buying junk I don't need on line
3. Contribute an extra $5,000 toward my home mortgage
4. Maintain all resolutions I achieved in 2012
My 2013 resolution is to buy no new clothes. I went through my closet last week and got so disgusted with all the things I'd bought on sale and didn't really care about. I can't think of anything that I could possibly need to buy in the next year, so I'm cutting myself off with a hard and fast rule. It will be a stretch, but I hope I can make it.
Good article. It always amazes me how parents who will take a bullet for their child will let them be victimized by the high debt student loan predators. Student loans can certainly make sense in some cases, but many young people don't have sufficient life experience to truly evaluate the choice.
Funny thing about taking on extra household chores or a second job: there are still only 24 hours in a day whether you make $40K or $80K. Who's to say that the $40K job isn't more physically exhausting or stressful? And yet a person must kill herself to even out incomes? Get real. As long as they're not a layabout, the person who makes $40K is better off alone than with a partner who gives them grief about an income disparity.
We plan to save 10k towards emergencies, money for kitchen remodel, car and patio, repay one loan in full, and pay at least $500 extra towards a school loan. Lots of plans, but we think we can do it!
Budget an emergency fund.
My resolution is to stop spending money online. Someday it will be the death of me!
We've been at very different extremes when it comes to income inequality in our marriage. We actually wrote about it here - http://www.plantingourpennies.com/2012/10/31/income-inequality-in-relati...
But the biggest thing that makes those extremes easy to deal with for us is having combined finances. Everything that comes in is OURS, not his/hers. It reframes the discussion of earning differentials as a competition to maximizing what you can do together as a team.
Would have to be save for future expenses. Running out of money is never good.
I'm planning to concentrate on paying down my mortgage. It's the only debt I have, and I owe approximately $45K.
When I worked for a bank in college, they offered employees a free premium checking account that you normally need $25k or more to open AND maintain. The maintenance fee of $20 a month was waived, and the account included free checks, free check card with miles (had a $20 fee for non-employees), free cashier's checks, free money orders, free travelers checks, Visa gift cards with a waived activation fee, and -gasp!- interest! (although it was 0.05%...). Those little things reallllllly added up--esp since my rent had to be paid via cashier's check! The company also offered extra discounts such as a 20% discount on our AT&T wireless bill. Since I was on a family plan, they let my parents use the code...~savings: $40 a month. When I stopped working there 4 years ago, AT&T let them continue to use the code! Yay!
Yes, we want to save up enough for a cross-country move.
Yes, they have inherited it. Whether they worked for it or not, it is not possible to be rich without caring less and less about poverty. Why??? because if it broke your heart, than you would automatically commit most of your time and money to doing something about it. When you go to work, you are going to a dictatorship daily. when we could rearrange things so that everyone is a contributor and all get equal benefits. The earth has more than enough resources to house and feed and clothe everyone on it. Why we don't?? Because the rich don't want it.
yes. i would like to fully fund our emergency fund.
We've been chipping away at medical and student loan and other debt for some time now, but we actually put numbers to that debt for our financial goals this year. And we created savings goals to take care of some needed repairs around the house that we otherwise might not save up for. Using budgeting software, we have budgets and have decided that when we have money left in one or more of them at the end of the month, we will roll that over into our savings account. And we also created a savings goal using the budgeting software to help us track how much progress we're making on the goal too.
I want to increase my contribution to my retirement account and put more money toward my new car fund. My goal is to buy my next car with cash.
I'm planning to review my retirement fund investments and look for any other alternatives for long term financial growth.
To save more than I spend!
My resolution is to get our emergency fund up higher, pay all the medical bills as they come in for our baby due next month, and communicate better with my husband about the big upcoming expenses we will have in the next few years (larger car, house, saving for college, etc.). Also, we are going to max out our Roth IRAs for 2013.
Planning to put more toward my IRA/403B in 2013. Just haven't decided which one would be the best fit. I also need to wait to see what the fiscal cliff will do to the pay check.
Hi Penny and George,
My sister has cronic fluid on the ears and takes script after script of antibiotics; she has for years (she is 56). A friend told me about adding 10 drops of witch hazel to distilled water and boil this - then add 10 drops to each ear twice daily. Are you familiar with this treatment for fluid on the ears/chronic sinus infection, etc? Thanks, kathy in Mt Juliet, TN
I would love to make a profit on the stock market this year and save it towards putting a down payment on a house.
I'm planning to pay off one of our loans this year and boost our emergency fund
I want to pay off credit card so that I am able to move to a new home in a new city and state!
So true. Our son works at the local already discounted bump and dent grocer. Their line to us, "As long as he eats at your table you get the discount". So for the time being we get the benefits.