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Saturday, July 24, 2010

Home Renovations

As of now, for our home renovations, we have
- ripped out the carpet and kitchen (3 person days)
- bought laminate floor and underpad (approx. $1000)
- bought paint and accessories (approx. $200)
- painted one coat on the main floor (2.5 person days)

We will still have to put down the laminate floor, paint the kitchen cabinets, paint the rest of the kitchen and possibly put another layer on the main floor.

The plan is that when we look to sell, be it next summer or whenever, that the house has been improved so that it is ready to go. Even if we decide to stay for a few years, it would be much more livable. Financially, doing cosmetic house renovations always increases the value of your house when you go to sell.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Net Worth Update - July 17th, 2010

frugala and I have finally decided to combine our finances...on the spreadsheet at least. So this is my final individual net worth update. frugala's numbers are in there, but the relative totals for mine will be this week alone.

Every time I get paid (every two weeks), I update my net worth. The idea behind this is that my goals are that my liabilities drop every two weeks, and by tracking them in this way, I am able to get a nice picture of where I stand financially. Its not a perfect balance sheet that I have (because of student loans I have a negative net worth), but the progress is what I am looking for.


ASSETS:
- up 647.55 from July 3rd, 2010
- up $6938.09 from July 17th, 2009 (one year ago)

Slow and steady wins the race, and I have made nice consistent progress on this front since I have started recording. Even without frugala's numbers in there, my assets are at an all time high!

LIABILITIES:
- better $799.99 from July 3rd, 2010
- better $16,453.74 from July 17th, 2009 (one year ago)

Because of the three pay month and the way that the numbers fell, I had two major loans come off this pay period thus the nice liabilities numbers fall. Even without Frugala's numbers, my liabilities are easily at the lowest point since I bought my house. Steady progress!

NET WORTH:
- better $1447.54 since July 3rd, 2010
- better $23,391.83 from July 17th, 2009(one year ago)


The last thing I am going to track is the value of the TSX. I have some asset allocation goals that are dependent on the value of the TSX.

TSX Graph
Current Value: 11,569.65
Highest Value in Last 2 Years: 13771.25 (August 29th, 2008)

We are exactly two years from the high within the two years. The market hasn't been over 12,000 consistently since September, 2008. For these purposes, the stock market was about 13000 in mid September 2008, so I will either rebalance when the TSX hits 13000 or 12500 after September (once I get my raise).

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Net Worth Update - July 3rd, 2010

Every time I get paid (every two weeks), I update my net worth. The idea behind this is that my goals are that my liabilities drop every two weeks, and by tracking them in this way, I am able to get a nice picture of where I stand financially. Its not a perfect balance sheet that I have (because of student loans I have a negative net worth), but the progress is what I am looking for.


ASSETS:
- down 349.00 from June 19th, 2010
- up $6571.09 from July 3rd, 2009 (one year ago)
These assets include my house (I give it 1% appreciation each year in my appreciation), my RRSP and my TFSA. The stock market took a dip this week and thus my assets dropped for this week.  In the next net worth update, frugala's assets will join mine on paper so these will rise significantly!

LIABILITIES:
- better $3.27 from June 19th, 2010
- better $16,957.30 from July 3rd, 2009 (one year ago)
These liabilities include my mortgage, student loans and a consolidation loan (mainly for my Masters Degree for teaching). Even though this was my three pay month, things didn't go quite as nicely as I had hoped.  On my next update, I will have all my bills coming off so there will be a huge decrease here.
NET WORTH:
- worse $345.72 from June 19th, 2010
- better $23,528.39 from July 3rd, 2010 (one year ago)
You have to ignore the slight bumps and look at the long term progress.  We are going on vacation (which I have saved up for throughout the year so it won't be affecting my assets/liabilities) so we'll see how this affects me in the upcoming weeks.

The last thing I am going to track is the value of the TSX. I have some asset allocation goals that are dependent on the value of the TSX.

TSX Graph
Current Value: 11,196.06
Highest Value in Last 2 Years: 14153.57 (July 3rd, 2008)

We are exactly two years from the high within the two years. The market hasn't been over 12,000 consistently since September, 2008. For these purposes, the stock market was about 13000 in mid September 2008, so I will either rebalance when the TSX hits 13000 or 12500 after September (once I get my raise).