THE PROFESSOR’S END OF Q2 2022 FINANCIAL UPDATE

This is my post showing how we are saving money both in and out of retirement accounts. I always like to read blogs that give real-life examples of those people practicing what they preach. Going forward, I will try and give a quarterly update of our financial position and the thoughts that go into it. I will warn you, I don’t have huge amounts of money socked away anywhere, but I think we have done a solid job in putting money aside. Enter your text here...

Assets:

Cash - $6,155.91 Down $4,444.86

This includes all of our checking and savings account balances. I never was a big believer in the 3-6 months of savings, BUT some life changes forced me to rethink that. We are working our way up to about $25,000 in savings between our checking and savings accounts. I am finding it also gives me piece of mind to have this money just sitting there if a real emergency did arise.

Our goal by the end of this year was $10,000. That goal was reached, BUT then we got hit with a big storm in April and it tore off a bunch of our shingles. That was a bummer. We had that replaced at the end of May. We have insurance, but we have a $2,500 deductible. One positive was that the roof was about 20 years old and probably needed to be replaced in the next 5 years.

Another big expense is gas! We have 4 drivers in the house right now with our oldest back from college for the summer. Our gas bill each month has almost doubled with gas prices at all-time highs. This was a rough quarter on the cash reserves....

TD Ameritrade (taxable) - $1,034.03 Down $324.07

This is an account that I started so I could buy individual dividend growth stocks. I've sold some of my dividend stocks and put more into growth stocks. This account I am slowly selling off to be able to close and consolidate into other accounts that I have created. A common theme that you will see this quarter is DOWN!! The market is REALLY heading down right now!

Vanguard (taxable) - $5,892.47 Down $1,775.98

This is an account that I use to purchase Vanguard index funds. This was going to be my emergency fund, and it kind of is my current "secondary" emergency fund. My plan is to get between $10-15,000 in this account and let it grow and replenish as needed. We are putting in $500/month into this. The market has really crushed this account, BUT money still goes in each month.

M1 Finance (taxable) - $1,839.99

This is an account that I started so I could buy high growth tech stocks. I also added a "slice" that has dividend stocks as well. All in all, there are 98 total stocks in this portfolio now. The best thing about M1 is that it allows you to build a portfolio and put money into it and buy fractional shares instead of having to wait to save enough to build a position for each stock. This account went up because I added more money in this month. The tech stocks are getting hammered though.

Crypto Account (Coinbase) - $111.94 Down $224.02

This is the newest account that we made. It is a cryptocurrency account. Let's not talk about this one. I knew it was a gamble when I bought it, and it has NOT paid off.

My 403(b) - $78,362.89 Down $13,629.96

This is my main retirement account. I have been paying into this since I started teaching. Our district currently matches $800 each year into this account. It is kind of small for having taught for 20 years, but my early years of putting money into this account robbed me of many gains. I was invested in annuities with heavy fees and surrender penalties. It's just been in the last 8-10 years that I have really become more knowledgeable about these accounts. 

My IRA - $389.97 Down $80.55

This is where I will roll over my 403(b) to when I retire. Another casualty of the 2022 market so far.

Wife 401(k) - $187,902.44 Down $35,878.41

My wife has a good job as a nurse. This 401(k) is from the organization that she used to work for. She switched jobs in December, so this account will no longer be receiving any contributions. With the total amount in the account though, it will definitely continue to see big growth as long as the market is doing well, AND big losses when the market tanks!

Wife 403(b) - $1,048.74 Up $455.71

This is her 403(b) from her new job. The new healthcare facility she works for also matches her contributions, but she has to be there for one year before she will see that match. Just keeping on putting in her contributions.

My Health Care Savings Plan (HCSP) - $24,107.97 Down $3,468.12

This is an account through our school that we both contribute to each month. It can only be used for medical expenses AFTER I retire. It has grown nicely the last 5 years. Another account hammered by the current market.

Liabilities:

Clinic - $0 Down $368.80

This is the last month paying on this. I have NOT had my back done for over a year. Maybe I'll never have to do it again? I can hope...

RAV4 Loan - $8,172.31 Down $1,079.33

Just plugging along on this!

Corolla Loan - $0 Down $0

This is the loan for the vehicle to replace our previous car that was totaled. It's a nice fuel efficient vehicle. My goal is to have it paid off in the next 12 months. ACHIEVED! Used part of our most recent stimulus check to completely pay this off! One yearly goal accomplished.

My Student Loan - $5,559 Unchanged

This is what's left of my loan for my Master's degree. With the pandemic, I was given forbearance on this loan.

PLUS Loan - $20,220 Up $10,206

And so it begins. This is the parent loan for our oldest daughter's first year in college. This is a loan that we will work to pay off over time, but it will definitely go up each semester that she is in college. Kids.... I heard back from PSLF and I did NOT qualify at this point. I'm hoping it's just because they are so back-logged and I did a consolidation. They did say qualifying payments will be updated over time.

Mortgage - $98,489.51 Down $1,589.19

This is the mortgage that we have on our home. The house currently appraises for about $207,000, so we do have some equity in it. We signed on our refinance at 15 years and 2.5%. It's under $100k! We will have the house paid off just as I am ready to retire from teaching. Great timing!

HELOC - $17,069

Made one payment. We need to start really paying this off with rising interest rates.

Net worth (assets-liabilities) - $156,967.77 Down $66,678.35

Key Points:

You'll notice that I don't have assets linked for our major liabilities. I do NOT believe that you should include the value of your house or vehicles as assets for your net worth. You only realize those assets if you sell them, and I don't plan on ever selling those things, but I DO have to pay off those loans. I think it gives a clearer picture of how much money you actually have. 

Goals for 2022:

I'm going to keep a couple of goals here. I definitely want to get that clinic bill paid off  (COMPLETE) and also fund a Roth IRA ($6,000) for the year. I was able to continue to grow the Vanguard Index account. I am planning to continue watching the current rental properties available in my area. If I can get one at a fair deal, I will definitely pull the trigger. I want to continue to diversify our portfolio by investing in growth stocks, dividend stocks, and crypto. Consolidating the student loans and applying for PSLF is another big step. COMPLETE

Another goal that I have for 2022 is creating another stream of income. I have plans in place to move forward with a pretty big project in the spring of 2022. As you all know, education is currently one of the areas that is seeing some major burnout, and unfortunately, I find myself in that category. I have no plans on leaving the profession currently, but I want to create something that could bring in some money and give me options. Well, I did it. I have started my side-gig to try and create another stream of income. I have created a Facebook page that talks about what this is. If you want, you can check it out at:

https://www.facebook.com/Scrappers.Detailing

It's definitely not a sure thing, but I've already put in some good work on it. Of course, like any small business, it has taken a lot more money to get it started than it's currently bringing in. I'm hoping to turn that around this summer. It's a side-gig that I can work at my own pace and do what I want when I want. It's something that I would like to get started and be able to do a little bit when I retire. That's a few years off, BUT the state legislature has at least introduced bringing back Rule of 90. It didn't pass this year, but IF it ever does, I'll only have 9 years left.

I've been able to bring in a few hundred dollars in details so far, but I still have a little ways to go. The YouTube side of it is steadily climbing, but you can't monetize your channel until you have 1,000 subscribers. I'm at 340 as of today, so I am making steady progress towards that. You can find the YouTube channel here:

https://www.youtube.com/c/ScrappersDetailing

Quarterly Comments:

Well, the economy is pretty much moving into a recession. It's not surprising with the massive bull market we saw for over 10 years. We were due for one. Hopefully it doesn't last for more than a couple of years and then starts to correct. Inflation is another big problem. Our gas expense is ridiculous and we are spending more and more for food each month. What can you do other than continue to accumulate assets as much as possible?

We are STILL trying to begin saving up money for a rental property, BUT the housing market is just too damn hot right now. There are no deals out there that aren't gobbled up before they even get on the market. I would love to have a rental property or two for the cash flow, but it's just not in the cards at this point. Someday......