Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Investment Results- 2013

Overall, 2013 was a good financial year.  We did not earn as much as we were expecting, but when you don’t have any debt (other than the mortgage), have a fully funded six month emergency fund, and have completed your first full year of investing in retirement, the earnings “not being as much as expected,” doesn’t play as big of a role. 

Below are the rates of return for 2013 for both Julie’s IRA and my Roth 401k at my company.  As you can see below, we’re very happy with the advice Brian Fleetwood gave us.  We’re very pleased with the performance of American Funds.  Brian is no longer with Florida Financial Group, but a special thanks to him for steering us the right direction.  Brian, good luck to you in your future endeavors! 

Below I have also provided the rate of return percentage for my Roth 401k at my company, which I started investing in with Brian’s advice.  There is a 100% company match up to 5% of my gross income, so this year, I contributed 5% (it’s what we could afford at that time).  We hope the contribution amount increases in the future.

                                                  Rate of Return
*American Funds                             33.13%
**Roth 401k (company)                  19.30%

 *IRA invested in 4 funds in the American Funds family of funds (the Growth Fund of America, the Investment Company of America, the New Economy Fund, and New Perspective Fund). 
**Roth 401k invested in T. Rowe Price, Dodge & Cox, Franklin Templeton, Blackrock, and Pimco

Ernie Cave at Florida Financial Group is who we are now working with.  We were confident in Brian and we have no problem placing our confidence in Ernie.  We would not have any problem putting our confidence in any of the financial advisors at Florida Financial Group in Jacksonville, FL. 

Pimco is the only fund that has not performed well in 2013.  Ernie has advised me to rebalance my portfolio and no longer invest in Pimco (as interest rates are set to rise).  This retirement investing thing is not about the returns in present time, but long-term average returns for the next 30-40 years.  Happy investing!

Monday, November 19, 2012

Getting Financially Healthier

As of October 9, 2012, less than 1 year after my wife and I became debt free together, we have reached the next milestone in our financial health. We have completed our 6 month emergency fund. In case we lose one or both incomes, we'll be ok for 6 full months or longer.

With my income having increased at the beginning of 2012, we were projected to have our emergency fund completed by the end of December 2012, just 14 months after becoming debt free. We got to our goal about 3 months early.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, November 21, we will be meeting with Brian Fleetwood of Florida Financial to discuss retirement planning. I am absolutely excited to meet with him to arrange a plan to retire with at least three million dollars. More would be nice, but we really don't need too much more than that.

We give plenty to our church now, but how much will we be able to give to our church and other charitable causes when our pay increases?  How much will we be able to give when we have three million dollars at retirement? How much will we able to leave to our children (No children at this time- sorry)? How much will we be able to leave to our children's children (Again, none at this time- sorry 2x)?   We truly have changed our family tree, financially!

Monday, November 28, 2011

The Debt-Free Life Store

Go to the Debt-FreeLife store now~~~>>> CLICK HERE

Note: My products are simply for motivation. One of the things that kept me motivated when I was getting out of debt was telling everyone where I was headed financially. I was getting out of debt! Those who I talked to wanted to find out how I was going to do it, so they could get out of debt too. With these motivational products, you can tell everyone where you're headed financially without saying a single word.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

My Debt-Free Story

I found myself overwhelmed with the stress and emotions of having over $35,000 of debt.  I felt absolutely hopeless.  Overspending was normal to me and I couldn’t seem to break my habit. When it came time to pay bills, I had more bills to pay than I had money. I was going deeper and deeper in debt. It was horrible! I was over $35,000 in debt and headed toward bankruptcy.

I walked into my friend’s room to hang out one evening and immediately spotted the book. I started reading a story of a family who had completely changed their financial situation. This family was in worse shape than I was, earned less than me, and had more expenses since they had several kids. It didn’t take them long to get out of their money mess. My thought was that if these people were able to change their money situation, I should be able to as well. I realized how sick and tired I was of being bound by the “chains” of debt. When I finished reading the book, I found hope. I wanted to win financially like these people.

I was ready to face the person in my mirror. Right after I got on the plan, my employer gave me a bonus which funded my $1000 starter emergency fund. How awesome is that?!? In the past, I would’ve blown it on stuff, but this time I had a plan. While on the plan, I was paying off debt to the tune of several thousand dollars in good months. Toward the end of 2010, I hit some bumps in the road. Big changes at my job meant I’d be able to work little to no overtime. As a result, the momentum in paying off debt slowed down. Despite the circumstances, my wife and I won together 4 months after our wedding. WE’RE DEBT-FREE!!!

It feels fabulous being debt-free and not have to worry or stress about money. My wife and I were givers long before we got married. One of our goals is to be used by God to meet the needs of others through anonymous giving. How much will we be able to give now that we’re debt-free and on our way to being wealthy? That’s easy, A LOT. Money is just a small piece of the pie, but my goodness that piece is really sweet!

YOU are the answer to your money problems!  Stop looking for a bailout! It starts with a major decision to make “the planYOUR PLAN, and then sticking to it. No matter how bad you think your situation is, you can know how it feels to win with money by changing your habits, which in turn changes your financial direction. I hope my story inspires you to start the process of getting out of debt and to create an even better story than mine.
         
Give hope to others by sharing how my story has impacted you in the comments section below. Email me at jaysonnarag83@gmail.com if you want me to come alongside you and coach you to out of debt and improve your money situation. Don't be ashamed if you are in debt, but it is a shame to stay in debt and do nothing about it.