With my recent post of some irregular bills we got in the mail, I've been sitting down looking through the online banking, balancing the checkbook, paying bills and starting to think about the dreaded B word............. BUDGET!
In just the past 2 weeks I came across some things that have come out of our bank accounts, that I probably would NOT have budgeted for. Here's my list:
Parts for the Jeep $175 (this needs to get fixed & sold - one of hubbys projects)
Prom tux for DS $85
Prom dinner & pics for DS $60
Trees from Arbor Day $42.34 (trees for new property)
Bible Study books $87.53 (1/3 of this will be paid back to me)
Parts for lawn mower $91.24 (hubbys needs working mower for his business)
Pressure washer attachment $110 (also for hubbys business)
Electric bill at rental $113 (we usually don't have to pay this)
Carpet cleaning at rental $246 (again, usually we don't have to pay this)
While going through the banking and bills with a fine tooth comb I did find one GOOD THING.....our tax bill of $923 is actually only $478.16 because I paid part of it in April, it just didn't show up on the current bill. We had already paid $1,320.06 in taxes this year for the hubbys business (sales tax and payroll taxes). So an updated version of what we have to pay is this:
Add those that already came out of our account to the extras we have to pay this month and that = STRESS
$1010.11 + $3,127.58 =
$4,137.69 (on top of our regular bills)
And that $1010.11 all came out of our accounts in the past TWO WEEKS! CRAZY!!!! So, I need to do some figuring, juggling, planning, predicting and come up with a solution! Of course we can try and sell more. It seems like we just got the ball rolling our our debt and then we've been thrown a curve ball. Its the things that make you go hmmmmmmm and I guess we need to expect the unexpected! Stay tuned for our plan......that is if we come up with one! I need to work on a budget and we need to do our best to stick to it. We've always had a problem with that!
Saturday, May 10, 2014
being thankful in hard times
As of right now we are still waiting on our ins. company to get back to us. We heard from the body shop who did the estimate and sent that info to our ins. company. They told us that repairs are going to be $4800, which is 94% of the vans value. Which most likely means they will total it out. We are unsure if that is the case and we are also unsure on the amount they will give us for replacement/repair. So we are waiting to hear from them. In the mean time, I've been driving one of hubbys trucks. Which isn't fun considering the size and having to drive around the kids in it. We have started looking at replacement vans on craigslist incase it does get totaled out, but until we know that for sure if/and how much we have to fool with, it makes it hard to know what price range to look in.
On another note, I've still been working and thinking and figuring out our money situation this month with the extra bills we have. Now, add in the towing bill we just paid and when we get a different van, we will have to pay close to $300 for title and plates transfers. It seems like theres always big dollar items that come up and are messing w/ our financial plan. I'd like to keep this debt snowball rolling, but it may have to be put on pause for the time being. We have sold a few more things this week and will update the what we've sold page.
On another note, a sadder one, in the middle of all the stress of money this month, wrecking our van hubbys grandfather passed away this week. We will be traveling over an hour one way for the funeral and visitation and probably eating out quite a bit this coming week.
We are believers that God gives you what you can handle and this week/month he sure is "blessing us". We will get through all these difficult times. We are thankful for what we have, that we have things to sell to make money, that no one was badly injured in the accident and for family and the love and support we give each other during difficult times.
On another note, I've still been working and thinking and figuring out our money situation this month with the extra bills we have. Now, add in the towing bill we just paid and when we get a different van, we will have to pay close to $300 for title and plates transfers. It seems like theres always big dollar items that come up and are messing w/ our financial plan. I'd like to keep this debt snowball rolling, but it may have to be put on pause for the time being. We have sold a few more things this week and will update the what we've sold page.
On another note, a sadder one, in the middle of all the stress of money this month, wrecking our van hubbys grandfather passed away this week. We will be traveling over an hour one way for the funeral and visitation and probably eating out quite a bit this coming week.
We are believers that God gives you what you can handle and this week/month he sure is "blessing us". We will get through all these difficult times. We are thankful for what we have, that we have things to sell to make money, that no one was badly injured in the accident and for family and the love and support we give each other during difficult times.
Thursday, May 8, 2014
a bump in the road
or a dent in our van!
A couple of days ago our van got wrecked. Waiting on the insurance to see if they are fixing or going to total it. If they total it, wondering what to get, what to spend. We paid $225 on the towing bill, our deductible is $250. To be continued...........
A couple of days ago our van got wrecked. Waiting on the insurance to see if they are fixing or going to total it. If they total it, wondering what to get, what to spend. We paid $225 on the towing bill, our deductible is $250. To be continued...........
Saturday, May 3, 2014
BILLS, BILLS, BILLS
I almost can't stand checking the mailbox. And there are some days I don't! I feel like we get so many bills in the mail and it's depressing to get the mail. On the flip side we also get checks. With hubbys business we also get checks in the mail for the work he has done! Now, most would be excited to check the mail in hopes for a check, but me? I still can't stand checking the mail. There are days where hubby asked if I got it and usually the answer is "nope".
In the past week we have received quite a few holy crapola bills in the mail. I posted about our tax preparation bill we got this week, $1100. On top of that we filed our end of year sales tax, hubbys second business has to pay sales tax yearly. That amount is to the tune of $923. WOWZA! On top of those two, we also received our applications for entry fees for some events we do for hubbys second business. Those entry fees are to the tune of $1550! Shocking, I know! But, after those events we usually have some pretty serious moolah to deposit. Its the initial entry fee that is hard to dish out!
So the next question how do we pay those hefty bills this month?
$3,573
Most people, including us, don't have an extra four grand in the safe. We do have $1000 in our EF for emergencies. I'm sure hubby would call this an emergency! I however, don't think so! We probably could get away with paying our accountant next month, the taxes need to be paid and if we don't pay the entry fees, we won't get into the event and won't have the moolah. We could delay paying our debt down and use that money for these bills or hubby could try and get some extra income w/ his business on top of what he usually makes each month. A couple times a month we have events for hubbys second business and have cash sales (with sales tax due at the end of the year). This weekend we may make some extra money with the second business if the weather is nice, we could have nice sales. However the forecast isn't looking great for business. I guess this is one of those "family meetings" hubby and I need to have on Dave Ramsey's plan. So, this post will be TBC.................
Envelope System
The many times we've attempted to do Dave Ramsey's plan we have used the envelope system, but it never seems to stick. Either we run out of money for groceries and begin to debit or we just don't want to be strict. Honestly! It sucks! Living on a budget! Only spending the allowed amount! BOO! Hubby gets paid again on the 13th and I'm going to take money out for groceries. The gas envelope, well I'm just not sure that could work. Who carpools anyway? My kids take the bus, and we don't just drive to town for fun. Usually we have to be somewhere. When I was on Dave Ramsey's blog I read this:
You must remember that the very purpose of the envelope system is to curb your spending and teach you discipline. When you run out of grocery money, you eat leftovers instead of going food shopping. If you see your gas money is slipping away faster than the remaining days of the month, then limit your trips or even carpool.
Dave Ramsey
Since we started selling things and paying off the debt I have become more conscious of my spending. Over the last 2 weeks, I spent $134 on groceries, which is really good for a family of 6. Our pantry and fridge are looking a little empty so I may need to stock up on some things for the week over the weekend. Also, over the last 2 weeks, I've spent $23 on eating out. This also is really good for me ;) Now, the hubby, I've looked at his banking over the last two weeks and he can be sneaky. When he does side work & gets paid in cash he likes to keep it and keep things from me (like eating out or buying something he needs). He also spent about $60 on groceries out of his account. I'm going to work on a grocery budget & get things lined up for a grocery envelope in the next week or so and find out if we can successfully work the system. We have to keep reminding ourselves that we are trying to teach ourselves discipline!
Friday, May 2, 2014
Enemy of Debt
So, like most people who are wanting to change their finances around & do things differently I've been reading a lot on the web. I've found 2 posts on Enemy of Debts blog that I just love.
7 Habits of Debt-Free People
I know managing money is common sense, just like weight loss. I also know it's easier said than done! With that being said, I get to update the "what we've sold" page today adding another $530! can I get a "Whoot" "Whoot"? I'm getting on hubby to list more things on craigslist this weekend, renew some of our postings that haven't sold & maybe lowering the price on those also to move them. Fingers crossing we have a productive weekend of selling & listing.
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
ebay
So, over the past week I've listed 31 items (books, blu-rays & xBox games). I've sold 9 items in a week. I've "earned" $93.93, but after shipping, ebay & paypal fees I'm sitting around $53 profit. Which I think isn't too bad. I still have 2 days left on my unsold items. I'll be searching the house for other ebay worthy items that I think I could make more on ebay than in a garage sale. I'll add the $53 I've made so far in our "what we've sold", however I won't be able to pay toward a debt account yet because it's still sitting in my paypal account for now.
Tax Preparation and Refund
We've already received our tax refund for the year. I surprisingly had all of our things turned into the accountant in February, which is record timing. Our federal refund this year was a whopping $333, however we had to pay the state $329. BUMMER! I'm just so thankful we aren't paying quarterlies.
Our taxes are a bit complicated because hubby has his own business (2 actually), he also has a full time job. We own 2 rental properties and then 2 of our kids are employed family members for the businesses, so our tax preparation are a little too complicated for me to do. We got our bill in the mail today, it actually is $100 less than last years preparations. Nothing has really changed much over the years, we've always paid and arm and a leg for tax preparation and hubby and I both agree it's probably well worth every penny, but, YIKES, that $1,100 bill that came in the mail today still stings!
Our taxes are a bit complicated because hubby has his own business (2 actually), he also has a full time job. We own 2 rental properties and then 2 of our kids are employed family members for the businesses, so our tax preparation are a little too complicated for me to do. We got our bill in the mail today, it actually is $100 less than last years preparations. Nothing has really changed much over the years, we've always paid and arm and a leg for tax preparation and hubby and I both agree it's probably well worth every penny, but, YIKES, that $1,100 bill that came in the mail today still stings!
We also paid $1000 to one of the OD accounts today, so the ball is still rolling! Praise God!
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Our Credit Scores
We recently requested our credit scores/reports and today our credit scores came in the mail. I was curious what they would be with our high outstanding debt. Here's the scores:
Mine- 703
Hubby's - 697
I was googling to see what the numbers meant and here's what I found:
680-740: Good credit. Scores around 700 are considered the threshold to “good” credit. Borrowers in this range will almost always be approved for a loan, and be offered very good interest rates. At this credit score, lenders are comfortable with the borrower, and the decision to extend credit is much easier. According to FICO, the median credit score in the U.S. is in this range, at 723. Borrowers in this range are only delinquent 5% of the time.
Monday, April 28, 2014
Keep the momentum going
Image found on Pinterest
This is one of my favorite sayings. It does make me sick to think about some of the things we have bought with money we didn't technically have. Yesterday I listed about 30 things on eBay and hubby listed a few more on Craigslist. In a 24 hour period I sold 6 items and hubby sold 4. Making our total of items being sold to $3715 in just a week! We are hoping to make another payment to the OD account in the next few days! I'm praying we keep the "sellingitallbutthekids" momentum going, because I'm LOVING the results! Who wouldn't?
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Sensational Sunday
This weekend has been productive in the digging out of debt journey. We spent the weekend listing and selling things, creating the blog, going to church and other misc. things done outside in the yard. We are really starting to feel good about the debt snowball method. I am praying that we keep on keeping on and get this done! Today we sold 2 more things off Craigslist. Hubby really loves to collect things, either buying used to getting freebies that need fixing. We got a few more things on Craigslist and I listed some things on eBay. I leave you with one of my favorite verses about debt, also mentioned in FPU.
Proverbs 22:7
New International Version (NIV)
7 The rich rule over the poor,
and the borrower is slave to the lender.
and the borrower is slave to the lender.
Our Dream House
Since purchasing property in 2011 M & I have gone back and fourth on ideas. One idea was redoing the old farmhouse over time. However we both felt this would take too much time & the foundation is in such poor shape, that we really would like a basement. The next idea was building. This we know would be more costly, however, maybe be a little faster in the long run. The next step was agreeing on a house plan, M loves the idea of a 2 story with a wrap around porch. I love the idea of a small & simply ranch. As you can foresee we may have a little difficulty with building, as we have a little bit of different tastes.....stay tuned for that step ;) So as of now, 3 years later, we have agreed on a small & simple ranch, a plan we found a Menards. I hope and pray that he doesn't change his mind, which he is famous for! We are planning to tweak a few things and buy the blue prints. A few things we will be changing as of today are: making the garage bigger & possibly either doing a mirror image (so the garage is on the right) and/or turning the garage doors so they are now facing the side, making the laundry room a little bigger for a utility sink, and possibly adding a desk, office, command center somewhere between the garage entry and kitchen. Obviously we haven't started and have quite some time to decide.
Our plan, once our debt is paid is to sell our current house. We plan on living with my parents while we build. We do plan on taking out a small loan to build the house, materials only, as hubby is planning on doing about 90-95% of all the work himself w/ the help of myself and our kids (ages from 16-7) and family & friends on occasion. We do plan on being a frugal as we possible, even buying some materials used. I plan on buying used appliances, sinks & bathroom vanities, light fixtures, etc. We already have some things purchased for the new house. One of the biggest expenses is kitchen cabinets, hubby bought those used for $200 and I plan on painting them and making them work. They are high end cabinets, that still have a lot of use let, I just don't like the color. We may need to buy a couple more new cabinets to paint just to fit the layout of the kitchen, but having the majority already will cut down greatly on the amount we burrow from the bank.
Our plan, once our debt is paid is to sell our current house. We plan on living with my parents while we build. We do plan on taking out a small loan to build the house, materials only, as hubby is planning on doing about 90-95% of all the work himself w/ the help of myself and our kids (ages from 16-7) and family & friends on occasion. We do plan on being a frugal as we possible, even buying some materials used. I plan on buying used appliances, sinks & bathroom vanities, light fixtures, etc. We already have some things purchased for the new house. One of the biggest expenses is kitchen cabinets, hubby bought those used for $200 and I plan on painting them and making them work. They are high end cabinets, that still have a lot of use let, I just don't like the color. We may need to buy a couple more new cabinets to paint just to fit the layout of the kitchen, but having the majority already will cut down greatly on the amount we burrow from the bank.
Selling it all, but the kids
In Dave Ramsey's plan to pay off our debt with his debt snowball technique, we are "selling everything we can, so that the kids think they are next". (A quote from his program) We are going to keep track of what we sell and of course a running total. We will be listing things on Craigslist, eBay and having a garage sale.
We will keep a list of our current amount we have made selling our things & what we have sold here:
April 2014
$50 chain saw
$65 table saw
$500 gas tank
$2100 enclosed utility trailer
$25 pressure washer
$70 snap on tool cart
$50 outdoor swing
$2810 GRAND TOTAL
Our Current Debt
Our Current Debt
Our starting debt listed from lowest balance to highest. These balances reflect our April 2014 statements. Our balance and % of interest on that account. We will also update these on a weekly basis as we pay down the accounts.
4/24/14 PAID IN FULL
4/24/14 PAID IN FULL
4/24/14 PAID IN FULL
4/24/14 PAID IN FULL
Over Draft Protection account #3 - $2506 @ 20.99%
4/24/14 PAID $470 - BALANCE $2036.41
BP Gas Card - $3710 @ 15.24%
US Bank Loan - $5688 @ 11.75%
US Bank Visa Card - $9166 @ 23.99%
US Bank 2nd Mtg- $15,114 @ 7.24%
That is a GRAND TOTAL of $38,389
Hello blog world!
Hello blog world! We have decided to document our journey of digging our way out of debt before digging a foundation on our new house. In the past week we have come up with a plan and have starting working and getting our "ducks in a row". We are also learning the blog world and hoping to document our journey. Not only for us, but also to help inspire others. We will just be using our first initials to keep our identity private for now, this may change later. Now, for a little background info:
Hubby, M, and myself, A, have been married for 17 years. We have 4 kids. Hubby has a full time job, plus runs his own business on the side. I work part time in the public schools. Over the years, we have accumulated various credit card debts and a second mortgage on the home we live in. Once our debts are paid, we plan to sell our house and begin to build. We have been making mortgage payments on the land (which has an old farm house, out buildings and 3 acres) where we will build. We purchased this in March 2011. We also still own our first home, which we have been renting out, successfully, for 10 years now.
Hubby and I have taken Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University class at our church and believe in his system. Which is the technique we are using. We already have $1000 in our emergency fund and are now paying down debt by selling it all, but the kids ;)
In my next post I will list our debt we have to pay. And then we will begin to document how we are paying if off/what we are selling etc.
So, I hope you pull up a seat and join us on our journey. We hope this will encourage you to become financially free, because that is our goal also!
Hubby, M, and myself, A, have been married for 17 years. We have 4 kids. Hubby has a full time job, plus runs his own business on the side. I work part time in the public schools. Over the years, we have accumulated various credit card debts and a second mortgage on the home we live in. Once our debts are paid, we plan to sell our house and begin to build. We have been making mortgage payments on the land (which has an old farm house, out buildings and 3 acres) where we will build. We purchased this in March 2011. We also still own our first home, which we have been renting out, successfully, for 10 years now.
Hubby and I have taken Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University class at our church and believe in his system. Which is the technique we are using. We already have $1000 in our emergency fund and are now paying down debt by selling it all, but the kids ;)
In my next post I will list our debt we have to pay. And then we will begin to document how we are paying if off/what we are selling etc.
So, I hope you pull up a seat and join us on our journey. We hope this will encourage you to become financially free, because that is our goal also!
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