Managinglife's Personal Finance Blog

I have been going back and forward with this decision. I have decided to pursue my graduate degree in health care management/education to increase my salary potential. I would use my military educational benefits to pay for the degree. My DH and sons are 100% behind me with this goal. This would aid me to finding a better employment position.

I am a little apprehensive about the immense amount of time this would involve especially with a full time job. I feel good about this decision but a little guilty about the time it would take from my family. The 2 year program starts in January 2009 which involves one weekend a month with a part time internship at a hospital. I can accomplish this goal with a lot of family support, running and coffee! Yeah me!!

I get paid by direct deposit bimonthly on the 7th and 22nd into my checking account. Unfortunately, my pay check didn't get deposited until today. This was caused by our company's financial institution error. This would have caused me major cash flow anxiety. I have learned from this finance blog about padding your checking account to avoid potential bank overdrafts and utilizing online banking. It works! I was able to immediately changed payment dates for my bank online payments (still ahead of their payment schedules). We had enough money just in case this lasted longer. I wasn't forced to use credit cards to pay for basic living expenses. Our CEO made emergency contingencies for those employees who had financial difficulties from this accounting error. One young lady had an bank overdraft fee of $250!

Thank you to all for the great advice about being financially prepared for Murphy's Law!

I received my first Pinecone check! It was $3.00 that I didn't have and will put to good use. I decided to donate my survey checks to a local food bank. I came to this decision due to so many folks on a fixed income having a hard time making ends meet. Especially our retired seniors who are forced to make a choice between paying their expenses or eating. I know this doesn't seem like a lot of money but every little bit helps.

I also had to readjust my $100 bi-weekly gas budget to $120. This will get me prepared for the higher summer gas prices. I will also car pool with DH at least two days a week to reduce costs. I was able to negotiate with my supervisor to work one day a week at home. This will be on a month trial period with an option to do this at least two days a week!

I do have good news about our $158 gararge door repair bill. DH complained to the owner who promptly re-billed us for $54. It seems that the repair person (repair bandit) overcharged us and thought we would pay the $158 bill. The owner apologized profusely about the repair bandit. Apology accepted but no love for the repair bandit!

I spent $158.00 for a service call for the garage door. I came home last night from my weekly beauty treat (using my personal allowance budget) and the garage door didn't want to electronically close. I had to close it manually. DH checked it out and he couldn't fix it. Which meant that we had to make service call. The garage repairman came and made a few minor adjustments that took only 5 minutes maximum. Then promptly gave us a bill for $158.00 ($50 emergency service call and $108 repair).

I am proud that my family is doing our civic duty to stimulate the U.S. economy. Yeesh!!! $158 for a garage door service repair! DH and I must have sucker written on our foreheads!!

Okay, here is the latest on my BIL's identity theft problem. BIL and his wife received good news about their pending home foreclosure. It was found that the bank loan documents containing the wife's SSN was incorrectly entered. In other words the bank screwed up and used my SIL's identity info by mistake for another individual with the same first and last name with the exception of a different middle name. We still do not understand how this could have happen without the proper checks and balances. Truly scary!!

The bank made formal apologies to BIL and will pay the cost of his legal and court fees. Needless to say that he and his wife are still traumatized by this major mistake that almost cost him the lost of their home.

Morale to this story. Check your credit report a least once a year for discrepancies that could impact your credit. My BIL is now a convert on protecting family's information and finances. Can I get an Amen!

I got up at 5:30 today to go for a morning run with my running group. We are preparing for a 5K in June. Very lively and fun group! The pace was perfect for a 2 mile run. No one fell out due to lack of oxygen. There was intense discussions about popping Advil after our run.

I am finally going to cash in our change jar at the bank for our quarterly treat. We have been collecting our change for the past 4 months. It looks like we have at least $20 - $30! I plan to use it for a date with DH. We can get discount movie tickets (AMC, Regal or Lowes movie theatre chains) from the military base, get an inexpensive meal (using coupons) at a local restaurant or go out for a Sunday morning coffee at Starbucks after a long walk. I am leaning toward the Sunday morning coffee (much more intimate and we get to exercise).

My BIL#2 is still working to resolve his ID theft drama. The FBI has spoke to him and his wife yesterday. He also working to retrieve the documents on the HELOC (obtained by identity theft using BIL#2 wife info) from Wells Fargo with his lawyer. It looks like some progress with this disaster.

We received a call from my SIL#1 about my BIL#2 last night. BIL#2 notices a storage unit being delivered to his Detroit home one morning (last week). He runs out to ask why was this storage unit being delivered in front of his yard. He was told by a bank representative that the storage unit was for my BIL#2 personal belongings. His house was being foreclosed. This was a major shock because he pays his mortgage with an extra principal payment a month ahead!

He contacted his church's lawyer who investigated the foreclosure. The lawyer with a church member who is realtor pulled up information on the home. It was found that the house had a $120,000.00 equity line of credit fraudently taken out in 2006 with a second financial institution (Wells Fargo)! Someone or a group of theives (mortgage officer, finance company, title company and financial institution) stole his wife's identity! (The house is in her name.) She and he are of course are angry, violated and totally devasted!

They went to court yesterday and the judge gave them two weeks to prove that this was an identity theft case. BIL#2 has reported this to the police, FBI, his original mortgage company, Wells Fargo, and all 3 credit bureaus. This is a financial nightmare with the potential of losing their home!! They owned their home for over 10 years.

I did some investigation and found that this is the common incident in Detroit. It is also spreading throughout the United States. This is an easy white collar crime with minimal sentencing of 3 years maximum jail time. This is why so many criminals are switching from selling drugs because of the easy money without the lengthy jail time if they get caught. It is very easy to be a mortgage officer in Michigan. This is due to no state or federal oversight of the lending industry. There are no criminal background checks conducted on Michigan's lenders.

Yes, I know that they could have avoided this disaster early if they were vigilantly checking their credit histories with all three credit bureaus. But, they are like a majority of Americans who are God fearing, hard working, pay their bills on time and trying to better their lives for their two young sons. My BIL#2 and wife didn't deserve this. My DH's family are pooling their money together to help them pay for a lawyer to get them out of this mess.

The positive side of this was that my DH finally acknowledged that my persistent checking our credit histories (even our sons) was not a waste of money. He gave me a hug and thanked me! I am really so sad and angry this happened to my BIL#2.

One of my reasons on starting this blog is my DS#1 progress with financial independence. He is gainfully employed part time college sophomore living at home. He is responsible for paying for his books, 25% of his tution, car insurance, gas, misc. expenses and a nominal fee for rent. DH and I came to a conclusion that paying for rent is important to his financial development. He asked me for help with developing a budget for living on his own after he graduates in two years. Well, after I pick up my mouth off the floor. We are developing a plan on how much he needs to save. He is now researching on how much a studio apartment or sharing an apartment with a roommate would cost. He is also looking to start buying furniture via Craiglist, store and yard sales. His first purchase will be a new mattress at the end of this month (he decided he wanted to buy a full size vice queen because he wanted to stay within a $200 budget). We also discussed that he needed to establish a credit history to apply for apartments. After the bank took out $60 in overdraft fees the young man is now in control of his debit card. He wants to learn the proper way of handling credit. DH feels that we should to teach DS#1 how to use credit properly but also show how it can be mismanaged. It's great that DS#1 is receptive to managing money. I know he will be able to accomplish his goals!

Hurray!! I went through our March budget and noted that we are on budget! We were $125 under budget!! $50 extra to 0% credit card and $75 to short term emergency fund.

We received a letter yesterday from BOA stating that our equity line of credit was suspended due to declining home values in our community. It's funny, we never used our equity line of credit! We pay our mortgage one month ahead and put extra for the principal. I have been using all of the helpful advice from this pf blog and pf books to prepare our family finances. We saved to build our patio and garage storage units. We are saving for new carpets and wood floors. We are also in process of saving for our house emergency fund. At first I was bothered by BOA sudden suspension announcement. But, my DH reminded me that a lot of people have been using their home equity like piggy banks. He noted that we took the time to educated ourselves on not using our home equity. He also stated that we are not upside down on our mortgage and we are employed. Many folks are not as lucky and are going through a rough period. I still feel a little po with BOA but DH is right. He is a laid back guy whose approach about taking life as it comes balances my anxieties. I really do feel that we are better prepared just in case Murphy happens.

I had every intention not to spend my personal money without a plan. Every payday I give myself $160 in cash to last for two weeks. This allowance would be used for gas, a beauty fix (okay, I will come clean about this habit. I love to get my hair done = $40 a week habit!), and for ocassional lunches at work. I ended up spending $32 for lunch with a friend #1 who need to be cheered up (great time and wonderful conversation!).

The second unplanned event was for a friend #2 who was call up for deployment at the last minute (She is leaving in early April). Me and friend #3 treated friend #2 to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory (friend #2's favorite!). My portion of the bill was $44.84 (Lots of laughter and funny insights about our military experiences).

Okay, all of this unplanned spending meant that my beauty fix was going to be postponed until my next pay period. Until my luck or forgetfulness saved me from having a bad hair day. I found $80 in one of my money envelopes that was collected from several pay periods that I didn't utilize. I think I had days where I didn't spend it for lunch. Anyway my hair is now fierce!

Lesson learned from this story is that I need to allocate a bit of funding for the unplanned friend needing cheering up. A better method is to find a cheaper way to boost up their morale!

My friends and DH completed the National Marathon with outstanding running times of under 8 minutes per mile! ! I hope they don't need to go out to a restaurant to celebrate!

One of my goals for 2008 was to volunteer in my community. I volunteered to participate as an election judge for the Maryland Republican and Democratic Primaries in February. It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed meeting new people in the area. I really was proud to see the excitement from young adults who were voting for the first time. Regardless of their choice of political party they all felt empowered and wanted to make a difference.

The hours were long and it was very fulfilling! Plus the upside was I earned $155 for my efforts! Here is where the money went:

$15.50 - Charity Fund
$100 - Credit Card
$39.50 - Movie Night for DH and I

Tomorrow, I am volunteering to provide (free) basic medical care at the National Marathon. Also to cheer on friends and DH who are running it.

We began a spending plan this month for our household to hold us more accountable. Our main goal is to stay within the spending plan with some degree of flexiblity. Here are some of our goals for 2008.

Pay $125 a month ($75 is the minimum at 0%) for $4200 credit card. (We plan to pay this by Feb 2011 or earlier. Any excess house funds left at the end of the month will be added to the monthly payment.)

$174 a month for ($2088) extra principle payment for the mortgage at the end of 2008.

$218 a month ($2616) to the emergency house fund (our goal is to maintain $5000).

$400 a month grocery budget. (We spend approximately $50 - $80 a week by shopping at the military base. I may have to readjust this due to rising food prices)

$60 a month ($720) for house maintenance fund.

$50 a month ($600) for vacation fund.

We plan to reassess this spending plan at the end of April 2008. I hope this will get us on the right track.

I am going through a major withdrawal! There are so many cute clothes this season that I have an urgent need to spend. I gave my credit card to my husband to lock away. I know this sounds weak but I can't resist the call of new clothes! I went through my closet to remind myself that I have plenty of outfits that I haven't worn yet. I coordinated different looks using my existing clothes for the spring and summer season. I found new uses to my belts, scarves and costume jewelry giving my clothes an updated look. The spending urge is slowly passing but I need to stay away from magazine and TV ads. I don't dare go to a mall or boutique! I am so weak but I noted that I haven't brought any new outfits in 2 months!

I am getting ready to rant about about AMT!! I truly hate AMT!!!! We are squeezing our funds down to the penny! We are doing the right thing by paying our bills on time, not using credit, saving for a rainy day, putting money aside for retirement and college educations. I received a pay raise last year at new job plus receive my military annuity pay (I recently retired from the military), and my DH was promoted to a higher military rank. All factors put our income at a higher tax bracket which means we owe IRS. (By no means we are not rich living on a military income!)

I am trying to look on the positive side of life because we are blessed to have paychecks. The good thing is that we are able to pay the money. We now are looking into reducing our pay deductions or pay quarterly estimated taxes for 2008. I really hate AMT!

Our house budget for March is looking a little tight. I projected that we will have an excess of $10.84 at the end of the month. We scheduled our periodic spring heat and air maintenance which cost us $254 ($95 to blow out air vents and $159 for periodic maintenance agreement). Okay, I knew this was much cheaper than waiting for the system to break down in the middle of a muggy Washington D.C summer. DH handled the maintenance guy because I am a push-over. The guy started nickle and diming us that we needed our air conditioner unit pressure wash for an additional $69 because he had special cleaning solutions! DH told the guy no thanks and that we can pressure wash the unit on our own. Found out that the damper handle needed repair but everything else is fine. The guy will order the part and reinstall at later date for an additional $69. (Note to self: maintenance guy loves the price of $69) Just thankful that this not a $1,000 repair job!

My 20 y/o son is in college full time and gainfully employed part time (great benefits including free health insurance) while living in our home. I am paying for 75% of his tution. He is responsible for his 25% tution, books, miscellaneous expenses, clothes, car insurance and a nominal share of rent. His part time job consists of 23 - 34 hours a week at $12 in hr plus monthly sales commissions. His monthly sales commissions has been averaging about $1000 - $1800 a month. He contributes to his employer's 401K of 5% and a $25 a month Roth IRA (plus an extra 10% from commission check is placed in Roth).

The problem is that he has no control of his debit card! He has overdrawn his checking account 3 times last month (a total of $60 overdraft fees). I lent him the money and he paid me during his next payday. We had a long discussion about his love of the debit card. He said it was easier to pull out the card to spend without thinking about how much was in his account. I had him set up e-mail notifications for his checking and savings accounts. I also assisted him with a spending plan and set up the envelope method for his money.

I think it's working because he actually had money for his spring break trip this week without raiding his savings account. He even left his debit card at home so he wouldn't be tempted. Maybe, I should of had this discussion with him prior to the overdraft mess. Oh, the joys of parenthood!

My husband and I both noted that the American Express and debit cards was doing a lot of overtime for us in 2006. Our entertainment and clothing expenses were out of control. Our checking and saving accounts were at an all time low! (Honestly, we played like we both had amnesia! Blaming each other for the financial damage.) We finally decided to live within our income and make saving a bigger priority.

I have been reading and using all of the great advice from this finance blog for the past 18 months. (I guess you can say I am shy.) I have opened an ING emergency fund and several sub-accounts that earned over $700 in interest for 2007! We did this by setting up a spending plan that we actually followed for the entire year. This was due to my husband and I being sick and tired of living paycheck to paycheck without any financial results. I now feel that my family is more prepared if Murphy's Law occurs. We still like to have fun and dress well. Only this time we have a plan that leave more money in the bank.