October/November PF Goals

Personal finance goals for October:
Pay off balance of small credit card ACCOMPLISHED
Cancel small credit card to avoid annual fee ACCOMPLISHED

Okay, I actually only canceled the credit card today, but I had to make a return on it so I waited a bit longer. I still consider myself having accomplished my goals for October.

On to November!

Personal finance goals for November:
Stick to weekly budget
Pay off at least 1,000 dollars on the large credit card

I really want to try to get the card paid off before January and start 2012 off debt free, but the balance is 3623 currently so I think giving myself 3.5 months is more reasonable.

First Weekly Budget

Here is my budget for this week. Yes, this WEEK. I am going to budget on a weekly basis right now because I get paid weekly and don't have many monthly expenses.

Debt	45.0%
Savings	10.0%
Food	20.0%
Gas	13.0%
Medical	0.0%
Category: Fun	10.0%
Entertainment
Dining Out
Treats
Wants
Books
Clothing	0.0%
Auto	0.0%
Bank Charges	0.0%
Hygiene	2.0%
	100.0%

 

As you can see, certain categories have no percentage allocated to them for now. This is because I am in heavy debt repayment mode. I'm trying to get my last credit card to zero (in 3 months!). Any time I have left over money from the week it goes to debt (except hygiene which rolls over). In case you are wondering about the large percentages to gas in food, keep in mind I'm not making much hourly, but fortunately I am getting off temp status and going to full and it comes with a nice increase in my hourly pay. Expect to see these percentages change!

Spending Week Summary

Debt

Paid 101.00 in advance towards November and December private student loan minimum payments.
Paid 300.00 towards large credit card.

Sunday

186.19 for 2 pairs of 7 for all mankind jeans

70.32 for groceries at Trader Joe's
31.74 on gas

Monday

No spending

Tuesday

39.55 on Amazon for cat fur hood

Wednesday

No spending

Thursday

6.00 for Amazon book
14.73 for groceries including a 4.99 pumpkin pie I should have left in the freezer section

Friday

20.00 co-payment for physical therapy appointment

27.95 on eBay for a Coach wallet
53.09 for mother's 50th birthday present
102.26 for medical charges

Saturday
No spend day

Total: 952.83

The strike outs are where I could have NOT spent money. I'm going to keep my mother's present out of this.


Total strikeouts: 264.68

Which means my weekly spending could have been 688.15 which is still far too high.

I don't bring home nearly that much per week!

Facing reality

Here are my painful stats:

$20,030.76	Federal Student Loan 2	6.80%
$3,349.08	Federal Student Loan 1	4.75%
$2,791.21	Private Student Loans	7.25%
$8,000.00	Personal Debt	0.0%
$3,965.69	Large Credit Card	23.24%
$343.74	Small Credit Card	20.24%
$38,480.48

+1,493.67 in my checking account

No savings.

I make 400 a week take home if I don't miss any hours. I am moving home with the parents, rent free for now. My big dream is to move to San Francisco (well, the area) by the time I turn 26. I turn 26 July of 2013.

Personal finance goals for October:
Pay off balance of small credit card
Cancel small credit card to avoid annual fee

I opened a credit card with a small limit on impulse last month and they sent it to me in the mail. I didn't realize it was a card with an annual fee until I got it. I should never have used it and called the bank immediately. Unfortunately I did use it, and I'm hoping they will waive the fee or reduce it if I cancel the card this month. It's 39$ a month. It's a cash rewards card and I would have to charge 1,300 of gas or 3,900 of regular purchases just to cover the annual fee, which though obtainable is probably best closed.

I doubt closing the card will affect my credit much since it's a very new account (less than 3 months old), but for curiosities sake, my credit score appears to be 628 today. I obtained this information for free at www.creditkarma.com. I will check it again a couple months after the closure.

I understand I should be paying off the credit cards with the largest interest first, but it's easier for me to focus on the smaller card and just be rid of it (and it's horrible annual fee) quickly so I can close the account. After this card I will focus on paying off at least 480.68 of the large card to get the cash advance APR gone. I believe as part of credit card reform under President Obama, the credit issuers now have to take any payments towards the largest APR first so I won't have to pay off the whole card to reduce my cash advance balance. I've already paid over 400 dollars in interest on this large card alone this year. I am determined to make it disappear.