We ended our October FI update with a net worth of $81k. At the end of November, our net worth has increased to just over $90k for an increase of about $9k or around an increase of 10%.
Student Loans
My student loans increased from $45,618 to $45,729 due to interest. I am in the grace period for my graduate school loans. Instead of paying down my student loans, we are currently saving money for possible fertility treatments next year. I did pay the minimum on my remaining undergrad student loan, and we will have to start paying more in January due to my grace period ending.
Investing
Our retirement investments increased $6,789 with $5,875 due to pre-tax paycheck contributions. This means the additional $914 was from asset growth. The power of compounding interest or watching our money work for itself is exciting to see every month!
Savings
Our cash savings increased by just over $2,000 including earning some nice interest on our savings and checking accounts. Once again, seeing saved money make more money is very rewarding.
Final Verdict
Tracking our net worth has been interesting because it differs from our budget and how I generally see our money from day to day. It is encouraging to see that our budget is working. We are saving more money than we are spending each month. I also had 3 paydays in November which means our positive cash flow was probably greater than it will be in the future. I realize this monthly report does not reflect our day to day cash flow or budgeting Maybe I’ll do an annual or semi-annual breakdown of our budget and spending.
Seeing our money from the net worth point of view is new to me. I’m not sure exactly what to think about it all as far as actionable corrections that we need to make. At the end of November, we are now 6% of the way towards our FI goal. I use a free Personal Capital account to track our net worth and investment progress. It’s been a great tool for us and recommend you check it out, so you can track your own financial goals.