Retirement investments revisited: July 2014 Net Worth Update (+1.40%)

STAYING ON TOP OF OUR FINANCES

 

This month we finally sat with our financial advisor to chat about topping up our retirement investments like we’ve been planning on doing once the mortgage was paid in full.

Now that we have told all of you that we are expecting our first child very soon our budget and net worth will change but we will worry about that when the time comes.

Our finances are not just about us anymore so although we are planning our retirement investments we need to start thinking about Baby CBB. We will be setting up an RESP for baby as soon as we can so we don’t fall behind on any important educational investing.

Most of this month’s net worth increase came from our net income because we worked some overtime and combined with last month almost net close to $20,000. The news of us having a baby has really changed our financial mindset but one thing is for sure we will be putting our money to work for us best we can.

No, we don’t invest on our own and I know for some of you that is a big no, no but not everyone knows how to do this. Sometimes if you are playing with your money it’s best to start out small if you want to invest on your own but right now we have an advisor like many people do.

 

Retirement investments

 

You will notice this month that our RRSP, TFSA and Pension categories have gone up. The reason for this is because we topped up one of our TFSA accounts and invested a chunk of money into the RRSP. I will be topping up my TFSA as well but I have more room in my RRSP to deal with at the moment but the goal is to max out my RRSP each year as well as both the TFSA accounts.

I also have a new pension with my new employer so I’ve added those retirement investments to the pension category along with what they match. This pension is a defined benefit pension so once I get hired full-time (I’m being optimistic) we will see an increase but for now it’s just smaller amounts.

Other than that it’s been a quiet month for us besides the bathroom renovations. You will see our net worth dip because I’m doing an almost full renovation and as you know bathrooms are NOT cheap.

I’m not putting in crappy stuff either because I don’t want to be messing about with stuff down the road if I don’t have to. I may be spending a bit more for quality but what we’ve both learned is that quality is sometimes better than saving a buck to have an item replaced or repaired over and over because it’s the cheapest on the market.

It may not be the top of the line imported from overseas but I want something better than crappy builder materials for these cookie cutter type homes. Our next house I’m thinking about just doing a custom build.

The more some homeowners pull down drywall it puts everything into perspective and is essentially is what keeps Mike Holmes in business. I guess some builders feel that if the homeowner can’t see it than it’s no big deal. Luckily we haven’t found anything major but certainly some sloppy work is apparent that should never have been passed.

That’s all I have to report this month so until next month I wish you all the best with your budget, savings and retirement investments.

 

Our net worth

 

We are always looking for ways how to increase our savings and retirement investments. By tracking our net worth these numbers below show us how well we are doing in terms of meeting our target numbers or what areas we should concentrate more on.

You can check out our July 2014 Budget Update to see where the money went in our budget to give you a bit more information.

 

 

Understanding net worth

 

What Does Individual Net Worth Mean?

Net Worth is a snap shot of your financial health sort of like a picture or debt to net assets. In simple terms it’s a total of the value of your assets minus your liabilities.

We credit the growth of our net worth due to patience, perseverance, using a monthly budget and not giving up. Your numbers may go up and down but don’t let the numbers scare you rather understand why and move on.

If you would like to use our budget I offer a FREE downloadable budget which I created and that you can use at home just like we do. I don’t charge for it because I want you to save money not spend more!

Enjoy and let me know what you think… plus there are tonnes of other free printable lists offered at Canadian Budget Binder to help you achieve some of those financial goals and build your net worth. Now… what you need to do is determine just how much net worth you actually have and go from there….

 

Determining net worth

 

How to Determine Net Worth?

Net Worth = Assets – Liabilities 

Figuring out net worth is fairly easy as long as you know your personal numbers or monthly finances which means you need to do your homework. Net Worth is simply adding up all your assets (what you own) then taking away your liabilities (what you owe) which will give you a net worth number.

Understanding your net worth will help you determine if you are on track to meeting or beating your personal financial goals. It doesn’t get any easier than that.

 

Calculate net worth

 

Do you know how to calculate your own Net Worth?

Now you can stop asking yourself the question, how do you find out your net worth? Why? It’s easy to determine. We like to calculate our net worth every month so we know if we are still on track. Some people calculate it yearly or quarterly. It’s really up to you and how informed you want to stay when it comes to your financial health.

Net Worth is essentially an estimate and not everyone uses the same type of figures. Some people don’t include vehicles like we do or they may leave out the assets inside the home like we have. It depends on what you want to calculate or what you can sell today and make money on.

Why not go ahead and calculate your own using our Free Money saving Tool Net worth Calculator (Canadian Budget Binder 2012)

 

Goals

 

Setting goals are the only way we work towards achieving what we want to get done as a couple around the house and in our financial life. I know that without them we would be flying by the seat of our pants which wouldn’t work for us.

Below are our 2014 target goals some of which are the same from 2013 and many which are new for 2014. I don’t like to move on to new goals if I have other goals that are unfinished but I also like breathing room and play time if you know what I mean.

I hope by posting them each month it motivates me like it has this past year to get stuff done and reach our target goals with some form of ease although nothing in life is that simple.

I find it’s much easier to be held accountable when I share what we need to do with all of you. Yes, my wife refers to the list when she asks what I plan to do next. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing for me or not, lol.

Do you set goals for the year?

 

Our short-term goals 2014

 

Every month I update these mini short-term goals as I like to call them where you will see what’s new and exciting in our world but not just financially. These goals are our life goals which include everyday jobs that need to be completed. We like to carry out these goals on a monthly basis although that doesn’t always work out that way.

I’ll continue to update this list for those that enjoy reading this net worth post each month but like most of you know, a list is never-ending. (Especially when your wife keeps adding to it,  lol)

 

• Mortgage is now paid in full
  
• To renovate the upstairs bathroom- Renovations started but still need to purchase products.
  
• Clean up the basement- I need to get rid of junk and have a garage sale or just give it away for free.
• Re-model the spare bedroom (i.e. decor, furniture)– Almost done.. this will be the BABY ROOM 🙂
  
• Start working on putting in the new flooring in the living and dining room- Haven’t even started this yet
• Purchase all new kitchen appliances- So far all we have is a new stove and an extractor fan (range hood) but they are not installed. We are on the hunt for a kitchen sink, tap and pot-filler.
  
• Purchase a new freezer- We are buying one medium sized freezer and donating our large freezer. July Update: Almost done eating the food in the freezer. We want to eat it all up before getting a new freezer.
  
• Finish the landscaping in the front and back yards- I still have to put the lighting and I’m done. Next year though I’m not putting flowers in the hanging baskets just greenery.
  
• Invest more in our TFSA, RRSP etc. – July Update: We topped up one TFSA so it’s been maxed out. Now we are working on the other but will max out RRSP then transfer returns to TFSA.
  
• Continue to meal plan, create new homemade meals- I’m always whipping up something new in the kitchen (check out the all new recipe index on the blog)
  
• To grow more vegetables/herbs in the garden-  Herbs turned out great minus the basil dying on us but we have a new bucket from my father-in-law. The fig tree has almost 40 figs on it.
  
• Learn more about passive income- I’ve been reading about earning extra income on the blog but to be honest I’ve been focusing more on my new career which is more important to me.
  
• To read a new personal finance book- Let’s be honest and say I might be lucky to read a chapter from now until the end of the year unless I find some quiet time. I wish I had more time to read books as I enjoy reading.
  
• Learn more about Search Engine Optimization and blogging and how to manage my blog- I’ve learned quite a bit about SEO and can confidently say that I can see the results of my efforts on the blog. There is always something new to learn though so never stop educating yourself as a blogger.
  

 

Our long-term goals 2014

 

I will do a yearly update on these goals so you know how we made out with them. The long-term goals are goals spread out over the year(s) as we are not in a huge rush to accomplish them but they are always on the top of our mind.

You can also follow our monthly budget update to find out how we made out with some other short-term goals we’ve been working on.

• Finish remodel of the entire kitchen- This may or may not get done this year with all the new surprises that have popped up but we are still thinking about it. We know where we are buying the cabinets and have some of the appliances.
• Purchase a new washer and dryer- We will likely only buy a new set if we find an amazing deal but for now our second-hand units that were free are working fine.
  
• Sort out the deck lights (garbage and I’d never buy them again and not in a huge rush to fix them) Don’t ever buy those little deck lights or you will regret it, trust me.
• Fix the fence in the back garden (not a huge priority but I need to get it done before winter)
• Look into buying a pressure washer (not a huge priority but if I can find a good deal over the course of the year I’ll grab it)
• Update the garage (man cave) not really a man cave but I like to keep it neat and tidy. I’ve took some time to organize it but with the bathroom renovations there are days it looks like a bomb went off.
• Save up to purchase a new vehicle (well, second-hand)
• Save for a holiday to anywhere that is not where we live
• Start planning basement renovations (bathroom, bedroom, family room, laundry room, office, storage area.
• Look at new ways to invest our money i.e. rental units
• Continuing to educate ourselves on personal finance and investments
• Continue to network with other like-minded people
• Continue in my new career in hopes of it becoming long-term permanent

 

Our financial numbers

 

When budgeting anything is possible, we are proof of that although we still have a long way to go in our journey. These are our numbers and our goals, not a means of comparison towards your own goals to others target goals.

We don’t care how much money others make or if they have a high net worth or if it is lower than ours as it’s not a competition. I hope our experiences perhaps will help guide you along your financial path working towards debt freedom.

 

Different paths

 

Not everyone has the same path in life. Some of you may have had to start over like I did or go to school a second time and now have OSAP loans to pay back.

Others may have divorced, lost money in the stock market or other investments, suffered job loss, fell ill or was injured on the job etc. but you can’t let that stop you from achieving your financial goals.

Some of you may have been given trust funds, paid-for homes, paid educations or perks in life that give you a financial kick-start and that’s OK too. Remember what I said, “It’s not about how much money you make, it’s how you save it”.

Focus on you and don’t let the evil eye of money jealousy or keeping up with the Joneses cloud your vision. No one cares about your money as much as you do so don’t waste your energy trying.

The only reason people accumulate wealth is because they know how to save or invest it wisely even if they did inherit money or win the lottery. The smallest improvements should mean big strides in working towards reaching your goals.

Sometimes we have to fail in order to learn and we’ve all been there. Money can be an evil force for some people especially those who have a negative attitude towards their own financial situation.

I urge you to be optimistic and little by little with determination you too should see improvements, if you want that to happen.

 

Net worth updates 2014

 

Below you can click the links to read past net worth updates to see if we were on target or if we struggled with some of our numbers. In the last year since July 2013 our net worth according to our figures has grown $92,696.60

July 2014 $601,107.25- June 2013 $508,410.65= +$92,696.60

You will notice two Jan 2014 figures and shows where we had our house valued leading to an increase in our assets. I purposely left both Jan 2014 figures in so you can see the increase visually.

 

 

• January 2014 +3.80%
• February 2014 +1.25%
• March 2014 +0.75%
• April 2014 +0.31%
• May 2014 +1.15%
• June 2014 +1.31%

 

That’s all for this month’s Net Worth update but please check in at the beginning of August to see how we made out in July and what has happened to our finances since.

~Mr.CBB

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