06.21.07
Read Debt-Proof Living
I read this in the wee hours of the night last night. I did something to my lower back so couldn’t do much of anything but lie there, so figured it was a good time to read it. 
I’m still mostly following Dave’s plan, but Mary Hunt also has some good things to say. For the most part, they say a lot of the same things. Perhaps far in the future I’ll allow myself that one credit card, but I don’t know. I’m probably best off without one at all and using debit cards for renting cars and such. Even though they usually put some money on hold, if I have my accounts set up the way they should be it won’t be a problem.
I also disagree about student loans. I’m still paying mine, and it’s a pain in the butt. However, I don’t regret getting it, I regret not paying it off sooner. For me, college was more than just getting a degree. It’s a cliché, but I learned a lot more in college than just history and other subjects. Plus, I went to a very small liberal arts school that cost more than the state universities but allowed me to do so much more than I could have done at the big schools. I do what I do for a living now because I had newspaper experience in college and learned design, etc. I never would have been editor-in-chief at the a big state school, as they usually require that you are a journalism major.
However, I like her general views on debt and how freeing it can be to live without it. I also really like the Freedom Account and will be putting that into practice after my debt snowball and $10k in savings are in place. I do like Dave’s idea of paying down debt first and then funding other items as it will get that darn debt out of the way, but I have decided to put whatever raise is coming to me into my retirement plan at work as I don’t like the idea of contributing nothing.
06.12.07
Debating, debating
I had my annual review today and have met or exceeded my goals. Yay! So, I will probably get between a 3% and 4% raise, which will come out to about $110-$125 more a month, gross. I’m not counting it yet because it will be a few weeks before it’s final and she said “probably” at least 3%, but it really depends on the budget and how much others get, etc.
I’m REALLY debating putting that 3% directly into my 403(b) at work, or at least 2% to get the match. I’ll still be bringing home the same amount of money, give or take a few dollars, and I would feel so much better if I was putting something into that account.
I know it’s not Dave’s plan, and if I follow his play and use this to help pay off debts I’ll be able to pay them off a little sooner, start my emergency fund a little sooner, and start funding my retirement accounts the full 15%. Dave’s plan makes sense, but I’m also not keen on waiting a few more years to do this. Now that I’ve been doing well with my bills and am saving money, I feel like this is something I should be doing.
It’s tough to go against what has been ingrained in us for so long — SAVE FOR RETIREMENT! — but I will fight it. I think I’m going to post about this over at the LLNOE board and see how they deal with this.
I already am pretty sure that I never want to own a house and that instead of paying off a mortgage I will have rent payments my life. I know many say that owning a home is a good investment, etc. but I think I’d be a horrible homeowner. Plus, people act like when you own a home and it’s paid for that that’s it, lol. I know better — there are taxes, new roofs, air cooling and heating systems that break, etc. Plus, homeowner’s insurance is much more than renter’s, and then you need to get flood insurance on top of that.
I’ll have to see if Tim and I change our minds by the time we get to that point. It will be a while so I guess I just need to calm down and not worry about it for now.
