Image from Simon Welsh at FlickrAssuming I’m feeling better (I’m recovering from strep throat) and that hubby isn’t terribly late getting home from work, the plan is to go out tonight for milkshakes and to discuss our financial goals for 2010. We did this last year and it set us up with a solid plan to follow. Then we looked back at the end of each quarter to see how we were doing, separate from our monthly budget meetings where we look at where and how our monthly money is being spent (more on that later). Here’s the info I’ve gathered for tonight:
- Current bank info; balances in checking, saving, emergency fund, etc.
- Estimated net income for 2010
- Current debt amounts with interest rates and monthly payment amounts
- Copy of Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps (this is a great place to start if you don’t have a plan already in place from a financial advisor or otherwise)
- Copy of last year’s financial goals
We’ve talked around the house a bit about what we plan to do differently this next year, but tonight is the night to hash it out, with numbers, and get it on paper. Once we’ve decided how much savings and debt payment to take out of that net income, we can go over last year’s month-by-month budget and see if any adjustments need to be made to our expenses (like the $400/month I have for groceries and household). I prefer to put the extra we make each year, between raises and my income , into debt repayment while my husband prefers to spend it on “fun.” That’s why we meet monthly and yearly to focus on our finances. I’m thinking milkshakes will help.
If you have not tried this before, I encourage you to sit down with your partner/spouse and talk about:
- How much debt do you have? What is your plan to make a dent or pay it off during 2010?
- What are your short- and long-term financial goals? Are you considering retirement or education savings, or are you still working on your emergency fund?
- What are some ways both of you can cut back your monthly expenses during 2010? What small steps can you take each month to put extra funds into savings or towards debt?
I’ll post our financial goals for 2010 after we solidify them, and then in January we can talk about the month-to-month budgeting. If you don’t know what you’re spending each month, it makes these big-picture discussions futile.
Hubby and I had a meeting today over lunch. We have been following Dave Ramsey for sometime now, but really just started the envelope system in Aug. It has made a big difference. This past month, we have strayed alittle.
We went through Financial Peace University in Jan 2007 and as of this past Nov we are debt free except for the house. Now we are setting money aside for our adoption, which we hope happens this year.
We will be making new envelopes starting next week and decreasing the amounts that was going into some of the envelopes.
Good luck tonight with your meeting.
My husband and I were just saying how we need to sit down and discuss our financial plans. I am a HUGE Dave Ramsey fan, and we have resolved to pay off our debt ASAP so I have been planning how we will do that.
I love that you posted all this. It's great to realize that it ACTUALLY helps to write things down. That was actually my goal for tonight. So I'll hash out the numbers, sit down with my DH and we'll discuss. He spends ZERO per month aside from gas…so it's all pretty much on me. He's very supportive and we're working on paying off student loans this year. With our first income EVER since school,(and now our first mortgage!!) this should be fun to sit down and go through the numbers!! We do a monthly informal discussion on how things went at the end of each month and how our budget is going. It's helpful to keep us on track.
No, we have a difficult time with talking financial matters. Hubby just graduated recently, we just bought a house. I am a HUGE Dave Ramsey fan. My husband refuses to read his information. I am struggling with this. We try to sit down together but the tension gets to be overwhelming and we end up "taking a break" and never reconvine. Excuse the venting but I hope and pray we can get through it together soon. I like that you meet with a milkshake!
I think I will go gather my envelopes again. Thanks for the inspiration. Wish me luck!
Thanks for sharing Gina! Hope your annual financial review meeting over milk shakes went well. I had to smile when you wrote that you prefer to put extra income toward paying down debts and your hubby prefers to spend it on fun; that is exactly how it is in my household too. But having meetings and discussing/planning where our money goes each month definitely helps keep everyone on the same page, and allows us some fun (so I'm not being too stingy) and insures that we won't be frivolous in rewarding ourselves for saving money by turning around and splurging it.
By the way, we love Dave Ramsey too!
Laura
Thanks for sharing Gina! Hope your annual financial review meeting over milk shakes went well. I had to smile when you wrote that you prefer to put extra income toward paying down debts and your hubby prefers to spend it on fun; that is exactly how it is in my household too. But having meetings and discussing/planning where our money goes each month definitely helps keep everyone on the same page, and allows us some fun (so I'm not being too stingy) and insures that we won't be frivolous in rewarding ourselves for saving money by turning around and splurging it.
By the way, we love Dave Ramsey too!
Laura
That is fantastic! I love reading your blog posts it is so inspirational.
I mentioned this to my hubby and we are going to talk in the next week. Sit down and get a milkshake too and chat about our 2010 goals. We've done so well recently. We are really blessed! I think we can do even better and get to the Dave Ramsey last step now. (We like Dave but we also like Rick Edleman and not paying the mortgage down. Even though we refinanced and saved 9% per month with no closing costs! That is like a 9% raise each month. Who knew?!
Can you post a blog about the pros and cons of paying a mortgage down?
Also, do you think it's too much or too little for your husband to give you $220 a week for groceries, household items, and 100taken out a month for savings. I'm a homemaker and he works full time.
We only have mortgage debt and we live modestly.
Asking because I feel like it's never enough. We are a family of 4and groceries are at least 150 a week. Am I being too greedy? Thanks for your time!
Susan–one of my plans for the blog this year is to have some "case studies" to help readers see how others are managing. If you'd like me to tackle your $220/week issue, I can promise you anonymity. Please email me or use the form on my Contact Me page. Thanks!