nw-apr-08

April of 2008 has come and gone, for better or worse.  With regard to my net worth, I’d say it was a pretty solid month.  Nothing spectacular, mind you, but a move in the right direction just the same.  What went right, and what went wrong?  Let’s dig around and see:

Liquid Assets

Though my liquid assets increased ever so slightly, it was less than a 1% gain ( that’s why my nifty spreadsheet says 0%. )  Less cash and a small dip in my brokerage account were balanced out by a slightly larger precious metals position.  My credit card debt is still headed downward too, just not quickly enough.

My Cars

Ugh.  Way back in November, I was nearly at the $-10k in car equity mark.  Today that number has fallen to $-11.6k.  The depreciation in my cars is going faster than the loans are being paid off.  Not really the end of the world since I plan on keeping these cars for awhile… just a big, intimidating number.

My House

1% is the magic number here.  I’m not rushing into paying down my mortgage, because I have other priorities right now.  The rate is so low that it’s almost not worth the trouble anyway. 

Retirement

Finally - I broke through the $10,000 mark for retirement savings.  It’s about time, too.  My 401(k) led the way, with some solid gains.  My wife’s 401(k) shows up for the first time too - though it only has $41 in it so far.  No worries, it will grow with time.

Overall

All those funny numbers add up to a 4% net worth increase over March.  If only I could earn 4% per month in every area of my financial world.  That just boggles my mind - I wish it were that easy! 

That 4% gain works out to $1262.01 - not a bad gain by any stretch.  I do need to kick things up a notch if I’m going to hit my goals for 2008.  No time to waste - it’s May and it’s time to put some more money on the books.

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