Thriftism

The process of leaving or separating from your previous employer is wrought with complexities and important decisions that can have major impacts down the road. Add to this the emotional baggage that may come from an involuntary departure and the situation can become overwhelming. I hope to make one of these components, 401k rollovers or retirement rollovers, a bit simpler with some basic advice based on my experience during this transaction.   Rules and Regulations It is important to understand the rules and regulation surrounding company sponsored retirement plans. As a general rule the IRS allows 60 days for you to rollover or transfer your retirement to an individual account (IRA) or even into another company's (your new employer) retirement plan. What happens after 60 days will vary by company, but will typically involve additional costs or tax penalties depending on the retirement account. My Experience For me, after 60 days, my company would allow my retirement fun...

When I think of fall recipes, I think of pumpkin pie, soups and apple crisp. Apple Crisp is so delicious and so simple to make that I've decided it will now be a year-round recipe. Just freeze some apples from your fall harvest to freeze or if you're buying apples anyway- enjoy whenever!  Apple Crisp is tasty, much more simple than pie - no rolling crusts, and a bit healthier than pie as well. Think of it as a form of crustless apple pie! While you may not want your children cutting up the apples for this one, all the remaining steps are super simple (and safe - beware of hot oven) that you kids can join in the baking fun! For a printable recipe, scroll to the bottom.  What You'll Need: Apples (Filling) 10 Cups Apple Slices (Use your favorite - we like granny smith or homegrown pie apples) 1 Cup Sugar 1-2 tsp Cinnamon 1 Tbsp Flour 1/4 Cup Water*** Topping (Crisp) 1 Cup Flour 1 Cup Pack Brown Sugar 1 Cup Oats 1/4 tsp Baking Soda 1/...

Happy May! With a new month rolling around, that means we need another budget update. For a quick reminder, we run our budget solely on my income of $2,400/month which gives us a gross income of $31,200. We do not include health insurance in our budget as ours is currently covered by our jobs, but if this was our household income we would also be taken care of by insurance subsidies. We do not include all discretionary spending such as traveling or major home renovations, but we do include all entertainment, grocery, dining out, and every day expenses. It is our essentials budget that we live on before adding in trips! If we can do it, so can you! The Budget Our goal budget is balanced with total income minus expenses equal to zero. Numbers in red are expenditures, while black is income. The green background indicates under budget. Red squares point out our overspending.  We did change up the budget a bit to reflect that the student loan is paid off. We split t...

Hard to believe we're already 1/3 through 2018 and that it's time for another Goals Report. Here is our update from April. Financial Goals Gain Employment (Race) 🗹 Done-Race started working in February.  Save 50% of our income We have been trying to stay on track with this one, but tax season was not favorable for us this year. Race's previous company had many mix-ups regarding tax withholding and also withheld money from his final check. So after months long battle, I think we are finally through with them. That being said, we didn't save as much in April, but we were still able to make extra payments on the mortgage. We are currently saving 52% with mortgage, 17% without, and are on track for 52% with mortgage and 6% without. We changed this goal slightly to be aimed at paying off the mortgage rather than putting money into an investment account.  Increase passive dividend income by 25% Right on track for 25% increase. Apri...

Going out for pizza is a favorite pastime for couples, families, friends - pretty much everyone! It can get fairly expensive at times and may end up cutting into your budget. For a thrifty alternative, try a DIY pizza for your next gathering. We estimate that you can save at least 50% making your pizza at home over going out for pizza, even at the most affordable eateries. While saving money is great, it isn't the only reason to make your own pizza dough. This is also an easy way to custumize your pizza to fit every dietary need one's dietary needs/wants (half vegetarian, extra mushrooms on one piece, meat only, etc.) without spending extra or driving your server crazy. Lastly, it is a fun way to get everyone involved. Want to have a family night? Get the kids involved in adding toppings or kneading the dough. Some kids might even have fun watching the dough mix in the bread machine. It will turn dinner prep into a fun family-oriented activity. Another option that we...

As, promised, we are back checking in on our yearly goals to stay accountable. Here is our March Goals Report.  Financial Goals Gain Employment (Race) ☑ Accomplished in February.  Save 50% of our income At the end of March, we are at 65% if you include the mortgage or 35% if you don't include the mortgage. We have been counting the mortgage as we are trying to pay off the house to allow us greater financial flexibility and allow us to save more money in the future.  Increase passive dividend income by 25% Year over year for March, our dividend income has increased by 37.4%. This is a major increase compared to the first two months of the year, but still not the best indicator. Our goal is to increase dividend income for the entire year and thus a YOY analysis is not the best estimate. We have earned 22% of the total amount needed to hit our goal this year. This is almost on track for 1/4 of the year having passed. If we do not contribute an...

It's time for another monthly budget update!! We missed doing a YouTube video on this so far, but we made it happen this month. For a quick reminder, we run our budget solely on my income of $2,400/ month or $1,200 every other week. This would be a gross income of $31,200. We do not include health insurance costs on here as we are currently covered by our jobs, but we also don't include potential costs as if you were a married couple making $31,200/ year, you would qualify for free or nearly free health insurance. This budget also doesn't include most of our discretionary spending such as travel and home renovations, but does include all of our entertainment and eating out costs. It is our essentials budget that we could live on without any additional spending. The Budget Our goal budget is balanced with total income minus expenses equal to zero. Numbers in red are spending, while black is income. The green background indicates under on within the budget. Red fil...