My Obsession

Last time I wrote, I had lined up an appointment with a financial adviser to help me sort out an asset allocation for my portfolio -- the taxable and tax-deferred accounts.

Well, the purpose of the taxable account has always been in theory to use as a downpayment for an apartment. However, I've been looking for said apartment since 2003. I flip flop all the time about what I think I want. I've looked at co-ops in Queens for $255,000 and more recently 1 bedrooms in Brooklyn for $540,000 and 2 families for $800,000. And in between pondered buying a place in the country (having looked in the Catskills once and online constantly).

So, combined with my belief that there are no fundamentals underlying this recent market rally, I've started to feel like maybe I should just cash out the taxable account and keep it in cash. Someday hopefully within the next year I might actually decide on buying a place and might need that $ to supplement my cash savings. So I'm starting to think going to see the financial adviser might be pointless since a good chunk of my portfolio could be converted into cash.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has problems pulling the trigger on the real estate gun. My hemming and hawing has actually served me well. I missed the whole crazy bubble.

For now I have to decide if I have the courage of my convictions and can actually liquidate my whole taxable account.

Spending & Planning

I just returned from my international vacation. I'm in the process of piecing together the damage. Not too bad, but of course the Euro/dollar exchange rate makes a simple lunch $30. But considering I spent money on almost nothing excepting dining out, it was a relatively inexpensive South of France vacation.

When I returned, I finally outreached to an independent financial adviser. I think it would be great to have professional help in the strategy/planning/asset allocation phase. I think this advice is tax-deductible as well, which is great. I'm going to do a pre-interview on Tuesday with the woman so she can learn more about me and I can find out her rates. I know the standard protocol is supposed to be interviewing several different experts, but I don't know if I'll actually do that if this woman sounds like someone I can trust. Any help is better than the zero advice I'm getting from my ex-boyfriend who is in theory managing my portfolio for me.

Best way to make international purchases

I'm trying to determine this right now. I called two of my credit card companies and they both charge a 3% fee and a mystery exchange rate. To withdraw funds from a non-US ATM, there is a $3.00 charge. I'll probably go to the bank before I go and buy some Euros here, so at least some of my purchases won't have a surcharge. I hate this. Any method feels so non-transparent.

Midyear Budget Update

Each month I scrub the data from Mint.com (Best personal finance tool ever and it's free!) and I enter it into an Excel spreadsheet. Above is what I've spent so far. It's probably pretty difficult to see. I'm going to upload a Word doc version at some point in the future.
Overall, I'm on track. The big standout is the Education category because I had budget of $200 a month, but I made large payments in the early part of the year so my loan is fully paid off. Yay!

In terms of day to day living, there are some areas I'm on track to run over:

Clothing -- I budget the absolute bare minimum. However, as much as I hate buying them, I did need some clothes. Especially because my pants seem to be getting tighter, sadly. And as I mentioned I bought an expensive bathing suit. I'm fine with running over on this. These are items I needed.
Charity -- My day-day Charity budget for the year is $500, but I plan to give $1,000 total, so the fact that I'm running higher is fine.
Fees -- I pride myself on not paying ATM fees, so I budget $0 for this category, however I forgot I have two airline mile cards with annual fees. I don't really have a choice. I need to use miles and I can't cancel these or it will affect my credit score negatively.
Personal Care -- When I budgeted I was really strict and assumed I would by dying my own hair. Hasn't worked out that way. I only feel confident enough to do it myself occasionally and end up going to a salon. I also got a few massages when I was training for my race, because I needed them and they felt good!
Misc. -- Each month I spend about $300 in cash that I don't track. I'm trying to get better about saving receipts for cash purchases. The problem is that they are always such small amounts that it's hard to keep track of them.

Now, the good area. Health care. When I made this budget, I set a limit of $1,000 a year for my health care expenses. However, this budget tracks my post-tax spending. I forgot my health care costs are pre-tax. I put away $1,000 a year in a non-taxable HSA to cover anything not covered by my insurance. Also, I negotiated with my landlord to lower my rent by $150 a month (he is so nice and the market has tanked and I wasn't scared to ask). So as of May, I've been paying $150 less than I budgeted for. That should save me $1,350 this year. Awesome!

Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with where I am. I've been able to keep my restaurant spending under control. I thought I spent more like $500 a month, but I've been really good about keeping it to about $300 a month. Except for March and April. April I was on vacation and ate out a lot so that doesn't count, right? I wish!

Extreme Sports

So I watched my friend compete in the Triathalon yesterday. It is always very inspirational. However, training for the Triathlon is expensive. So is the equipment -- from $200 minimum for a wet suit to $1,000 for a bike. My friend told me that the more hardcore competitors with the fancy bikes spend $10,000 or more on their bikes.

I started running competitively (i use that term loosely) this spring. I thought it would be a relatively inexpensive sport, but its amazing how when you start something it's so easy to get sucked in and find things you need. So far I've bought:
$120 running sneakers - I could have gotten them cheaper but went to a boutique story so I could have an expert check out my gait and make a recommendation. Now that I know, I'll buy them online.
$40 fuel belt (so I can run and not have to carry water in my hand)
$100+ on driwick clothing -- cotton really does not cut it when you are sweating like I sweat. Luckily I buy on eBay (new with tags) because running clothes are pretty expensive considering how little fabric they are. Just like bathing suits.
$100 roughly on entry fees for races. All of them have been local so far, so no travel costs.

I could spend even more. I'd like to take classes or get a running coach. Personal training to build up my strength would be nice too.

And there's the threat of injury. Getting injured could add up to serious costs. On the other hand, there's great value to building strength and cardiovascular training.

The list goes on and on! Of course, I don't have to buy everything at once. Just like running, one step at a time.

it's no coincidance that money is green

So today I noticed that my electric bill was a lot more than usual. Usually it's about $25 a month (haha, eat your heart out McMansion owners), but today it was $37. I wondered if it was maybe a projected use instead of actual with the electric company assuming that I would use more electricity in June than I actually did. When I called, the customer service rep told me that I did indeed use more electricity last month. While we were talking, he kept asking me questions about my lifestyle because he said my usage was SO low. This reminded me of a previous, less frugal time in my life when the gas company sent me a "notice of non-usage" saying they were going to turn off the gas because I basically never used it. The only gas appliance in the house was the stove, so you can imagine how much cooking/eating at home I was doing. I think I stored clothes in the oven for a while.

Anyway, this time it's not cause I'm always out and about or travelling that my electricity bills are so low. Granted, I work all day and am only home for about 3 waking hours a day, but when I am home, I try my best to conserve energy. When I leave I do as well, unplugging those appliances that create phantom energy.

I make other "green" lifestyle choices in my house and life, for a mixture of reasons, both wanting to be environmentally responsible and frugal. So, what kind of things?

1. I minimize use of paper products -- No paper napkins, plates, paper towels and my toilet paper is made from recycled paper, not trees. I also use a handkerchief instead of tissues, which is kinda gross, but I'm used to it now.
2. I make my own cleaning supplies -- For the most part. Or I use naturally occurring compounds that are cheap and green like Borax, baking soda, corn stratch and vinegar.
3. I reuse plastic -- Both bags from the grocery (when I don't bring my own canvas) and plastic containers that food comes in to carry my lunch to work everyday.
4. I eat low on the food chain -- Beans and veggies are the mainstay of my diet. Occasionally some chicken and some small fish. When I do use chicken or fish, I use it as an accompaniment and not the main ingredient.
5. I do my laundry in cold water, I don't use fabric softener or sheets and I make my own detergent (I have sensitive skin) and I only do full loads. (not that any laundry-doing occurs in my apartmen;t sadly I have to leave for that)
6. The biggest one is not owning a car. I walk to do all my errands, or I take the subway or bus. I rarely take cabs, both because I get car sick and because they are expensive and polluting.

I think that's about all I do. I've become so used to my lifestyle (not that I'm doing anything that dramatic) that I have to stop and think about the things I do to be green/frugal. I've gotten a lot of tips from other blogs on how to live green and be frugal. I'll post more when I find some.

NetworthIQ

I added the handy NetworthIQ widget. Note: I am lazy and just threw all my stocks and bonds into the stocks line item.

So, how am I doing? Big hit late last year due to stock market, but then I got my bonus and paid off my Sallie Mae debt. The leftover student loan debt is interest free on one of my mother's credit cards. I could pay it off, but why bother? I'm earning interest on the money in the bank.

Same principle applies for my credit card debt. Not only am I earning 4% interest on my cash, but I get 2% cash back on the card. Total return from credit card spending = 6%. I know everyone says credit card arbitrage is risky, etc. but I think it's awesome. If I could get a balance transfer check without the 3% I would move the debt again when my 0% teaser interest rate is up in October.

My ultimate goal is to have $100,000 in cash. It's such a nice neat number. As of the end of June, I've got about $57,000. Almost 60% of the way to my goal. In a perfect world, I'd have this much by January 2010, but for those who don't know what happens when you plan for something, consider a line from one of my favorite poems:

"The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men
Gang aft agley,
An'lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promis'd joy!