Readers: Do you know your net worth? Yeah yeah, I know about you PF bloggers… but what about you other readers (if there are any): Do you know what you are worth?
I remember when I first heard in the finance world to “calculate your net worth” I thought it would be a long, complicated process. Well, it turned out to be super short and simple because I had so little money to calculate. Ever since then, knowing my net worth has really helped me in keeping my eye “on the prize.” (The prize, of course, being financially secure. That’s what this blog is all about, right?).
On my PF spreadsheet, my net worth sheet is named “HOPE” because it always makes me feel hopeful to see my progress since I began tracking. Sure there were months it didn’t increase a lot, but slowly and steadily I’m getting closer to becoming financially secure.
If you’ve never calculated your net worth, I highly encouraged it. It may not be a fun experience or a pretty picture, but if you stick to it, you just may be surprising how hopeful it becomes.
Here’s how you calculate:
Assets – Liabilities = Net Worth
Assets = Anything you own: bank accounts, savings, retirement, cars, etc.
Liabilities = Anything you owe: debts, credit cards, mortgage, etc.
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Now here’s mine for November:
A few notes on my November Net Worth:
- My cash is lower because I paid the rest of the Cruise balance of $225 and also used cash to pay for Christmas presents.
- Saved $125 in the Car Repair Fund.
- I don’t include my car because I don’t plan on ever selling it, but it’s worth about $1500.
- Retirement was pretty standard.
- I pay my credit card each month so that balance was pending payment on Nov. 30th.
- Paid $700 towards my debt. Holla!
- Right now I’m worth $3,713!
Did you design your spreadsheet yourself, or get it from somewhere? I’m interested in doing something like that for myself.
Yes! Click on the picture (or it’s in my sidebar) and it will take you to NetworthIQ, a site where you can create a username/password and update your net worth each month. It’s so easy!
oooh. :/ I should start doing this. I’d be curious of what my progress would look like. I assume I’m super negative networth. ouch!
I still haven’t tracked my net worth. I’m guestimating it right now, but that isn’t legit. I’ll try to do that next year though.
But, congrats on the growth!
YES I DO!
And it is nowhere as awesome as yours. ;)
Congrats on the increase MPP.
I dont have a PF blog but I started tracking my networth when I started working in September.
Quick Question, Why did you decide to put away $100 into a roth as opposed to just contributing it all to a Roth 401k? Where do you keep your Roth? I’d like to do maybe $50 a month for now but I dont have enough $$ to start at vanguard or fidelity. Any tips?
Good questions! I actually give $100 to a Roth IRA and 3% of my salary to my 401k, which is a retirement fund through my company. My company doesn’t offer a Roth 401k, only a basic 401k and I contribute 3% each month towards that (plus a 3% match from my employer).
My suggestion for retirement is this: If your company offers a match of any kind, do it. It’s free money! After that, I would open a Roth IRA, as opposed to a Traditional IRA because it means you contribute money that has already been taxed (so you won’t be taxed later in life when you withdraw). You could beef up your 401k, but I kind of like the idea of having an account that is my own with my own money (not the government’s or a part of my job).
As for where, I opened it with Edward Jones Investments.. and I’m pretty sure I only had $40 when I spoke with my adviser! He wasn’t able to “invest it” until I had reached $250, but I continued to contribute for a few months before I reached that amount. Even if you have $25 to add, it’s better than nothing… and you can never start too soon! Also, I suggest getting it invested in Mutual Funds.
For my personal situation right now, I am focusing primarily on paying off my debt, and after that I hope to get more intense with my savings and retirement contribution.
Not sure if that answered your questions… but thanks for the comment and stopping by on the blog! Good luck with your saving goals! It sounds like you’re going in the right direction. :)
Oh, net worth. I don’t like to put our (new) mortgage in with the calculations, it hurts. Unless I count the equity in the home, lol!
Yeah girl. You’re moving on up! One day we will be millionaires! Keep on keepin’ on :)