On Starting My Nest Egg

As of today, I am eligible to take part in my company's Profit Sharing and 401(k) plans. At 22, I was certainly the youngest person the the small new-hire retirement meeting this afternoon, however I am very excited to start (slowly) contributing to my future! In the personal finance world, it is never too early to start young.

Profit Sharing Plan: 15% of gross income automatically invested per year

401(k): Traditional/Roth options, maximum company match of 3% if you invest 6%, all company-managed funds with average annual returns from 10-15% (though we all know that past performance is not indicative of future results) and no fees/expenses

Starting with my first paycheck in October, I will be contributing 6% of my income to the Roth 401(k) in order to receive the full match. I look forward to investing at a very low-point in the markets when everything is very cheap/"at the bottom", and seeing where it takes me over the next 1, 3, 5, 10 years. My portfolio will begin in 100% equities, though I have not yet figured out my allocation of that between the fund options.

I am young, healthy, debt-free and saving for retirement!

*Note that both plans have vesting periods of 6 years, however I hope/plan to stay with this company until at least then.

A Pricey Weekend!

Why is it that the weekends always go by so fast and the weeks much slower - at least most of the time?? I had a very fun weekend with friends and a lot of "me" time on Saturday. This has by FAR been my most expensive weekend since I started working full-time in June, but too be honest I don't think it was that much. (I can justify it by saying that I have had many inexpensive weekends, though!)

Dinner/drinks at amazing local pizza joint (inc a drink for a friend/old roommate) on Friday, $20
Haircut + tip, $60
Car wash, $7.95
Pedicure + tip, $26
Lunch at Nordstrom Cafe on Saturday, $7
Eyebrow waxing + tip, $18.22 (I used the remainder on a gift card, otherwise this would have been $35*.)
Dinner/drinks at a local bar on Saturday, $18
Groceries, $23.42

Total: $180.59

*Yes, it's a lot for an eyebrow waxing. However, I am very picky about how my eyebrows are done and I only trust the women at a particular place. The woman who did my brows this time spent 20 minutes on them, which is almost unheard of and she was extremely thorough. For my petite brows, it is completely worth it. This is one of my splurges! :)

August Month-End (Part II)

I finally went through and reconciled my budget from August, and I was able to add $350 to my E-fund! Of it, $300 came from budgeted leftovers and I threw in an additional $50 just because. (Thanks to the cushion I keep in my checking account.)

As you will notice, I have increased my E-fund savings goal from $2,500 to an even $3,000. From my calculations, I believe the least I could live on per month would be $1,250... which would pay for the basic necessities of food/rent/utilities/gas. If I can meet this $3k goal by the end of the year, I would have just under 2.5 months of expenses saved up! It's certainly not a lot, but it's something and it is certainly a good start. :)

I still can't believe it's September! It is very strange to not be in college and going to class... though it's also nice to be earning money and starting my career. Where has 2008 gone?!

On Libraries

On my half-day last Friday, I decided to go to the library down the road from the apartment. I applied for a library card and wandered through all the books and came out with 2 DVDs and 2 books. (Their DVD collection is quite expansive, as is the TV show selection.)

It was all free! I had not been to a library in a while and was pleasantly surprised to find this one very modern and up-to-date, even with its rather small selection of books. (It's a small local branch.) Also, I've already put a few books on hold and all my notifications for upcoming due dates are e-mailed to me! It is fantastic to live so close to such an amazing resource. I know the library will become one of my favorite places as I start to increase my reading habits again. :)

September Goals

This is another weird month in terms of spending for me. I owe the rest of the security deposit plus my roommates and I are planning a party, so we'll see how that works out at the end of the month! I am also doing some personal things such as getting a haircut ($50+tip), pedicure ($23+tip) and eyebrow waxing ($30+tip). However, all of these costs have been budgeted for in prior months and gone unused, so now I can't wait!

Side-tracked. Onto my goals for September:

1. Stay within September budget, not including remaining security deposit.
2. Save $400 towards E-fund/Roth IRA fund/other sub-accounts.
3. Work out 2x per week.
4. Learn to cook one new meal.
5. Join a local alumni chapter and/or a charitable organization
6. Finish reading A Random Walk Down Wall Street

Can you believe it's already September??

Labor Day Spending... or not?

This is what happens when my parents (or, in this case, just my Mom) come to visit me. They pay for everything. This weekend, my Mom wouldn't let me use my money - but I did drive her everywhere!

In terms of shopping, we bought a lot of stuff for the apartment. A bazillion cleaning supplies, 2 lamps, some pictures and a side table from Ikea and Target. For my room, we bought a shoe rack, an alarm clock and... a bed! I am really excited - it arrives tomorrow, along with our new (working!) dishwasher. Finally. I also purchased new makeup from Nordstrom - using my giftcards, the total came to $62.35 and I still have $14.92 left! All in all, a great weekend. Even if I didn't buy any clothes or shoes.

I love my parents. "We just hope you do this for your children one day. You want to give them everything and pay for everything because they are your life!" :)

August Month-End (Part I)

Let's see how I did with my goals for the month of August:

1. Keep moving expenses under $100. Goal met! On the day of the move itself, I spent $63.25 and since then I paid my share of the start-up costs for cable/internet which came to $30.10 for a total of $93.35.
2. Stay within August budget, not including moving expenses. Goal met! This will be discussed in an upcoming post.
3. Work out 3x per week. 1/2 success. I worked out 4x last week and 3x the week before using my own DVDs. If I don't do this the second I come home, it won't get done... like today.
4. Save $400 towards E-fund/Roth IRA fund/other sub-accounts. Goal met! This will be discussed in an upcoming post.
5. Spend more time with friends. Goal met! I spent many nights with my roommates and some of our mutual friends, I had a friend who works nearby over for drinks one night and I went out to dinner with another friend. I would like to do better, though!

Now it's time to reconcile my budget from August and think about September! How did you fair with your August goals?