Personal Finance 101

Not to get all political up in here, but every second that Donald Trump continues to be anywhere near the top of the polls is yet another painful reminder of how ignorant this country can be.  Unfortunately, for many of us, that ignorance often rears its ugly head when it comes to personal finances.

This is a topic that is rarely talked about, and people just end up taking on the same spending/saving habits as their parents did, for better or worse.  So today I just want to touch on 10 quick-hitters related to personal finance.  If this helps even one person out there become a better steward of their money, then I'll be thrilled.

(And at the risk of sounding too preachy for the rest of this blog post, let me just start out by saying that I am not a perfect financial guru by any stretch of the imagination -- I've made mistakes with my money just like everybody else, and this is just a way for me to share some of what I've learned.  If nothing else, this will help me get some of my thoughts onto paper and get me back into the swing of this whole blogging thing.)

1. Any debt is a priority

I was fortunate enough to have a few scholarships and college savings help from my parents to walk away from college debt-free, but I know that is not the case for most of the nation.  ANY interest you pay on debt is STEALING money from you that you could be using on yourself/others.  That's the way you have to think.  You should cut out any discretionary spending until you get this paid off.  I could go on and on about this, but I think my man Mr. Money Mustache sums it up rather nicely here.

2. Budget monthly

The easiest way for you to lose money is for you to not keep track of your spending.  You gotta know your numbers!  At the end of every month, I break up all of my family's expenses into 4 main categories: tithe, bills, food, and discretionary.  Then I subtract these out from our income to see our net savings for the month.  I also have three more categories for insurance/taxes, vacations, and miscellaneous expenses, but the important thing is that you have to know where your money is going.  If you are reading this and would like a budget template, just let me know.

3. Load up on your 401K and Roth IRA

Now that you know where your money is going and how much you really spend every month, it's time to calculate how much you can put away into your 401K.  Of course, the bare minimum you should contribute is whatever your company matches -- that's just free money.  The maximum annual contribution is currently $18,000, and I suggest working your way towards that max.  After that, you should also max out your Roth IRA account with $5,500.  The difference between these two?  401K is pre-tax, which means you pay taxes later when you take out the money during retirement, when your tax bracket will likely be lower than it is currently.  So as a bonus, you lower your current taxable income and pay less taxes now.  For the Roth IRA, the money is already taxed before you put it in the account, and the income is tax-free from that point forward.

4. Pay extra principle on your house monthly

If you're currently renting, you should be saving up for a house downpayment, unless you live in an area where prices are ridiculous and it actually makes more sense to rent indefinitely.  If you're about to buy a house, see if you can afford the 15-year mortgage; compare the amount of interest between a 15-year and a 30-year, and you'll see why.  If you're already a homeowner, consider making extra principle payments monthly.  A mortgage is the only "good" debt, but interest is still interest -- better to pay off the balance sooner rather than later.

5. Minimize your checking account

The interest rates for money left in your checking or savings accounts are a joke.  And if you have more than a 6 months cushion worth of living expenses in those accounts, the joke is on you.  Any additional money you have shouldn't be lying around lazily, it should be working for you.  I dabble in individual stocks now and then, but for the most part, I know that I don't have the time, energy, or knowledge to follow the market that closely.  I recommend a set-it-and-forget-it strategy with index funds.  Personally, I have a Vanguard account split into four different funds ($VFIAX, $VTMGX, $VBIRX, $VTSAX) with dividends being automatically reinvested.

6. Treat your credit card like it's a debit card

Credit cards are not evil items.  They're a convenient way to pay for stuff, and you can get rewards back in the form of cash or miles.  The wife and I both have Chase Sapphire and Freedom cards at the moment.  But you gotta view your credit card like it's a debit card.  If you don't have the money to pay off your entire credit card balance, then you shouldn't be making that purchase.  Basically, only spend money you already have.  That "pay minimum amount" option they have on credit card sites is the worst thing ever.

7. Give yourself an allowance

Yeah, I know it doesn't feel like the grown-up thing to do, but giving yourself an allowance each month helps you to be wiser with your spending.  It doesn't have to be an end-all-be-all with self-loathing and punishment inflicted upon exceeding the allowance, but your discretionary spending amount should go hand-in-hand with your budget.

8. Don't borrow for cars

When did it become customary to borrow money to buy cars?  Why would you take out a loan on such a highly depreciating item?  If you can't afford to purchase a car with cash, that car is too expensive for you.  You don't want a monthly car payment hanging over your head for the next 5-10 years.  Refer back to #1 way up at the top of this post if you need to.

9. Find a money-making hobby

I'm a huge proponent for everyone having three kinds of hobbies: a fitness hobby, a creative hobby, and a money-making hobby.  These should help keep both your body and mind in shape, as well as giving you ideas for what you can do with your time once you reach retirement, where you won't have an 8-hour block of time siphoned off for your day job.  This money-making hobby can also end up funding some of your discretionary income or vacations, which is always useful.

10. Be generous

I wrote this post in hopes that people will worry LESS about their money, not MORE.  The topic of money should never consume your mind, and when you're not worried about your debt or your spending or your savings, you find that you actually have a lot of money leftover that you can be generous with.  Give to your church.  Give to organizations that are doing good work.  Give to causes that hold special meaning to you.  Give presents and pay for meals.  Give freely with your time, too.

Nobody ever reaches retirement by accident -- you have to plan for it.  If you get to retirement age and have nothing to show for it after working your butt off for decades, you have nobody to blame but yourself.  It's never too late to start good personal finance habits!