*The Dave Ramsey 'Baby Steps' Thread*

[Sadeesmom]

November budgets and Thanksgiving!!

And don't forget the separate "Black Friday" category!

 

[barkley]

Up next...November budgets and Thanksgiving!!

after watching food prices go UP, UP, UP i'm glad that for the past several months i've snagged pretty much everything i need except for the turkey. seems like long gone are the days of waiting till the couple of weeks before thanksgiving to take advantage of the boxed and canned good items to go on sale

And don't forget the separate "Black Friday" category!

my budget is set up to throw a bit each month into a separate 'christmas fund' (noone does christmas club accounts around me anymore) so those sales hurt allot less (if i manage to underspend-it rolls over to the next year).

 

[afan]

after watching food prices go UP, UP, UP i'm glad that for the past several months i've snagged pretty much everything i need except for the turkey. seems like long gone are the days of waiting till the couple of weeks before thanksgiving to take advantage of the boxed and canned good items to go on sale

We are boring, plus there's just two of us. I got a can of corn on sale a few weeks ago. I've yet to see turkeys on sale, just need a breast. Last year I caught a good sale in June and got it, so I'm frustrated no one has had it in the add. Only other stuff we need is potatoes and rolls which I'll get that week.

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

Wrapping up November.

No changes in the Baby Steps. Spent a lot this month, but continued saving as well.

December budgets are set. Now we're just focused on staying intentional through the end of the year!

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

Time for end-of-year or beginning-of-year financial snapshots!

Here's a link to net worth (consumer equity) worksheets:

Useful Forms

If you filled one out last year, now's a good time to see how you did! Did you pay down existing debt? Acquire new debt? Did your assets decrease or increase in value? This isn't about comparing your financial situation to others, but rather giving yourself a year-over-year assessment of how things are going.

If you like what you see, make plans to continue your progress! If things could have gone better, make tweaks in certain areas. The overall goal is to eliminate all debt, stay out of debt, and then build wealth.

Next year is a month away. Stay steady or finish strong through the end of this year, and then get ready for 2024!

 

[barkley]

december is the month i take a good look back at our year to date expenses and figure out where i need to make tweeks to our budget. i look at how much certain categories increased in cost from the prior year and adjust them accordingly for the next year. i also look at what anticipated repair/maintainance/desired improvements we want to do so i can earmark funds. we spent allot more in 2023 than we had planned for but in one major case it was entirely unanticipated AND by bundling a repair into an improvement we saved tremendously in the long run so i can offset what was taken from savings.

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

As everyone contemplates their financial goals for next year, here is some encouragement: the Baby Steps will work for you! Why?

The power of focus!

So many people water down their own efforts by throwing a little money at debt, a little money at savings, and a little money at investments. Another year starts, they are still in debt, they have minimal savings or investments, and they have no idea where their money went.

With the Baby Steps, you focus on one step at a time, in order, and don't work on a future step until the current step is done. The plan is that easy! Now, it will require hard work of fully focusing your money and attention on each step, but over time, you will have eliminated debt and built wealth. Here's a quick rundown!

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

Did you know there are Baby Steps for teens? Yes! It's called The Five Foundations (you can learn more from the Foundations in Personal Finance course or the book Smart Money Smart Kids). If you're wondering how to teach your children money management in the new year, here's a quick rundown!

1. Save a $500 Emergency Fund.
2. Get and stay out of debt.
3. Pay cash for your car.
4. Pay cash for college.
5. Build wealth and give.

5 Money Habits to Teach Your Students This Year

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

Well, I was going to post an end-of-year update, and then my computer went wonky on Sunday morning. After working on it over the past couple of days, it's finally up and running. Whew!

So, no changes in the Baby Steps for December, but I just ran all of our numbers to close out the year, and it's encouraging!

We will continue stockpiling cash in January, but since work is stabilizing, this should be the last month for that. Planning for big progress in this new year!

 

[Sadeesmom]

Well, I was going to post an end-of-year update, and then my computer went wonky on Sunday morning. After working on it over the past couple of days, it's finally up and running. Whew!

So, no changes in the Baby Steps for December, but I just ran all of our numbers to close out the year, and it's encouraging!

We will continue stockpiling cash in January, but since work is stabilizing, this should be the last month for that. Planning for big progress in this new year!

I think you have done GREAT this year, both with personal finance & with updating this thread. With regards to my personal finances, net worth increased by 24.8% for 2023 - best growth rate I have had since starting to track NW. A lot of that was an increase in income, so for next year, I aim to look more at the expenses side - probably cutting back on dining out. That's mostly financial, but also because we need to eat healthier. My last annual physical came with blood work that isn't alarming ("red") yet, but more "yellow" than "green".

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

I think you have done GREAT this year, both with personal finance & with updating this thread. With regards to my personal finances, net worth increased by 24.8% for 2023 - best growth rate I have had since starting to track NW. A lot of that was an increase in income, so for next year, I aim to look more at the expenses side - probably cutting back on dining out. That's mostly financial, but also because we need to eat healthier. My last annual physical came with blood work that isn't alarming ("red") yet, but more "yellow" than "green".

Haha, thanks! Yeah, we're still clawing back from emptying our emergency fund in 2022. Then, college started in 2023, and it just makes any progress so slow.

That's a huge increase, congrats! Best wishes for a successful health journey in 2024!

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

End of January update. Goodbye extra-paycheck-month! See you again in May!

Baby Steps have been paused since August, but work has finally finished their layoffs and reorganization, so we are moving forward!

--We re-evaluated our emergency fund and officially added the money we've been stockpiling to it. We previously had a bare bones 6 months, now it's a little more padded. Our current goal is to also add our tax refund to it. Either way, Baby Step 3 is still considered complete.

--Work has reinstated retirement matching, so we restarted our contributions. Hello, Baby Step 4...again!

--College is in full swing, so we have officially timed out of this pre-planning step. We saved as much as we could for the first year, and the rest will have to be cash flowed. Goodbye, Baby Step 5!

Our focus is now on getting our retirement contributions up to a full 15% of gross pay. Hopefully, little increases at a time (while also paying for college and life in general) will get us there!

Step 1: Done!
Step 2: Done!
Step 3: Done!
Step 4: In progress
Step 5: Done!
Step 6: Done!
Step 7: Anticipated 2024??

 

[Sadeesmom]

Before & after BS2, we have tended to do "Frugal February". It has always kind of been a wind down from the holidays and gear up for spring/summer. The weather is kind of crummy in general, so that makes it easier to stay in. It works as a bit of a refresher on what is important.

We purchase nothing except necessities. We keep a list of things we want / want to do, and if we still want them in March, then go ahead, but rarely does that happen. Most often, we realize that desire was temporary. Then that reminder carries over for the next several months.

For those in BS2, this should be every day life. For those who have completed BS2, it's a nice reminder of how far we have come & what we have to be grateful for.

 

[barkley]

"Frugal February"

i like that!! i just did a 'judicious january' by going through the freezer and using up allot of the stuff that accumulated over the fall (i tend to make extras of some foods for future meals, it's no more effort to double a recipie and convenient to have it on hand). there's still stuff out there along with some new additions from january so i'm hoping to match if not better my grocery savings (saved about 25% of what i have budgeted)-it will stay in the bank account i have designated for household expenses month to month so i'll just let it roll over and if we have a more costly month down the line/i find a great deal to stock up on-it's there.

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

Before & after BS2, we have tended to do "Frugal February". It has always kind of been a wind down from the holidays and gear up for spring/summer. The weather is kind of crummy in general, so that makes it easier to stay in. It works as a bit of a refresher on what is important.

We purchase nothing except necessities. We keep a list of things we want / want to do, and if we still want them in March, then go ahead, but rarely does that happen. Most often, we realize that desire was temporary. Then that reminder carries over for the next several months.

For those in BS2, this should be every day life. For those who have completed BS2, it's a nice reminder of how far we have come & what we have to be grateful for.

I love it. This makes so much sense!

January was way more expensive than we were planning due to extra college expenses, so we are regrouping in February. Over the past couple of years, we have put off so many purchases while we rebuilt our emergency fund. Now, we need to start saving for those items!

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

By law, you are entitled to one free credit report from each of the 3 major credit bureaus (per year) from this official website: https://www.annualcreditreport.com.

Due to the pandemic, you are currently allowed to check your credit report with each of these bureaus once a week for free. This program is set to expire in December 2023.

Just letting everyone know that the weekly availability of credit reports has been made permanent. You no longer have to wait a whole year to pull another free credit report from the three credit agencies--just one week!

FTC.gov: You now have permanent access to free weekly credit reports

Also, here is an article on how long information remains on your report:

Wallethub.com: How Long Does Something Stay On Your Credit Report?

Generally speaking, negative items remain for up to 7 years (i.e., each new late payment will restart the clock), and positive items last for up to 10 years.

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

End of February wrap-up!

--No changes in the Baby Steps.

--We filed our taxes, got our federal refund, and added it to our emergency fund. The emergency fund will also double as a car replacement fund until we have a separate car fund again.

--We joined AARP and got a 2-year rate bump on our HYSA. Woohoo!

--We pulled our credit reports.

--We started some savings funds.

Nothing overly exciting, but progress is being made!

 

[Sadeesmom]

End of February wrap-up!

--No changes in the Baby Steps.

--We filed our taxes, got our federal refund, and added it to our emergency fund. The emergency fund will also double as a car replacement fund until we have a separate car fund again.

--We joined AARP and got a 2-year rate bump on our HYSA. Woohoo!

--We pulled our credit reports.

--We started some savings funds.

Nothing overly exciting, but progress is being made!

I love that you consistently update - it is wonderful encouragement for some, and I am betting it helps you to stay accountable. You are doing GREAT!

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

I love that you consistently update - it is wonderful encouragement for some, and I am betting it helps you to stay accountable. You are doing GREAT!

Thanks! It does help me stay focused, and hopefully, it shows others how to navigate the Baby Steps through life's twists and turns.

Honestly, though, Baby Step 4 and saving for retirement is soooo hard for me mentally, and we'll probably be parked here for awhile. There are so many things we need or want in the present. It's hard to put away retirement money that can't be withdrawn for years and could potentially go down in value. Ugh.

I know, I know. Over time investments historically outperform savings accounts, and certain amounts (like Roth contributions) can be pulled back out in a pinch. But, when you're trying to avoid debt, I'd prefer to have a lot of savings on hand like an emergency fund, a car replacement fund, a healthcare deductible fund, a roof fund, a well and septic fund, an HVAC fund...and on and on!

We were thinking March would be the month to get our retirement contributions up to 15%, but now it's looking like we'll wait until the end of 2024 or beginning of 2025. We'll get there....someday!!

 

[barkley]

We joined AARP and got a 2-year rate bump on our HYSA. Woohoo!

if you have at&t as your carrier check into the aarp discount. we get something like $10 per line for it and another $10 per line for doing direct pay from our checking account-it adds up.