Net Worth Update: June 2007

Commentary to come later...

May Net Worth

Let me start by explaining why I have two screenshots of my net worth. If you look closely, you'll see that I've added another asset up there, namely, my CAR!

I put a very conservative estimate for my car's value under assets so it should cover a year's worth of depreciation without me needing to change it every month. Since the car is already paid off, there is no corresponding balance attached to it under Liabilities.

But getting back to the first screenshot (without the car's addition), can you believe I increased my net worth by over 80% in just one month?!? Even I was a bit surprised at that as I did not expect it COULD increase like that in such short a time. Being in the red for quite some time before I started this blog, I'm quite giddy and excited with this revelation and it just motivates me even more to keep on doing what I'm doing.

A bullish month in the markets gave me an 8% increase in my investments inside my retirement vehicles. But a more important reason of my net worth jump seems to be because I paid down debt without acquiring too much more in this last month!

If you compare the screenshot from this month's and last, you'll see that I've also rearranged where some of my funds are held. I rolled over a previous employment's pension savings plan into my 457(b) and another previous 401(k) into a rollover IRA with Vanguard. This way, there are two less places that I need to look in to check my balances.

I've also increased my contribution to my 457(b) by $200 a month which shows me saving almost 27% of my monthly paychecks into my retirement accounts.

Despite these steps forward, I think there are several more things I can do to improve the way I save and monitor my net worth. The best way is still to spend less than what I'm making and save what I net from that excercise.

Also, I'm still looking into using an aggregator like Yodlee or Wasabi to better streamline how I check my balances.

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Back From My Two-Week Hiatus

Been almost two weeks since I last posted. My grandmother's passing will have that effect. I'm back now though and I hope to continue posting here soon.

I was gonna post this tomorrow... and I might actually just move the date of this too... but here's a post I did over at Gottadeal.com wherein I recounted my experience for Black Friday 2007.

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First post on here so I hope y’all don’t mind me recounting my BF 2006 experience!

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My Black Friday experience began on Thanksgiving Day as I woke up at 9 am, eager to tackle a slew of online sales that were already posted with the same prices as those of the following day. Before logging on, I made sure to find out exactly how much (to the cent) I had in my Best Buy Credit Card. I figured this would be my ammunition on the shopping day that I most looked forward to every year.

So there I was in front of my computer, browsing through the online deals that I found out through this site. My plan was to buy as much as I could online on the things that I wanted. I figured I’d just as soon swallow the shipping costs just so I can make sure that I’m able to purchase those particular items. Just in case I don’t get them in the stores the next morning, I’d still have them shipped to my house a week later, albeit with lower savings. Still, the price I got them for were way below what anyone would normally purchase them for. I’m thankful for the fact that some items were made available for pick-up as well as offered for free shipping. At this time, my brother tells me that at 10 am in the morning (Thanksgiving Day), there were already 7 people in line at our local Best Buy.

I’d love to tell you that my online experience on BB.com was without problems. I just can’t. Although this wasn’t my first web purchase, this was my first foray into Best Buy’s online store. As our brick and mortar was only 3 minutes away, I’ve always gone in for my purchases. Looking back, I probably should not have picked Black Friday to be the first time I delved into BB.com. First, as I was about to check out, our whole block lost electricity! Not only was our bird in the oven, but I also feared that my things might be taken off of my cart just cuz I believed it to be first come first serve. Thinking quickly, I got out my portable car jump starter, attached a 750W power inverter, and voila! My laptop (and online cable service) had juice again! I immediately checked my cart only to find that two of the items I placed in there were taken out. When I checked its page to see if I can add it in again, I found that they were already sold out. These were the Magellan Roadmates that were on sale. I figured, “Oh well” and just proceeded to check out my items. Lo and behold, despite turning off my pop-up blocker and my firewall non-existent, I kept getting an error as I tried to finish my purchases! I ended up spending an hour with customer service with the rep typing in everything and doing the order on his computer. It was quite the time consuming process and was not the best introduction I had hoped for Best Buy’s online store.

Here’s a rundown on the things I purchased on BB.com:

1 Garmin-nüvi 350 WAAS-Enabled GPS Receiver w/3.5" Color Touch Screen
1 4-Year Performance Service Plan
1 Westinghouse-19" Widescreen LCD HDTV
1 4-Year Performance Service Plan
1 Curtis-7" Widescreen LCD Portable TV-RT700
1 4-Year Performance Service Plan
1 Kodak-EasyShare 7.1MP Digital Camera-Silver-Z710*
1 4-Year Performance Service Plan


1 Apple®-iPod™ nano 4GB* MP3 Player-Silver
4 Canon-All-In-One Photo Printer/Copier/Scanner MP160
2 Western Digital-60GB External Hard Drive
1 ATI-RADEON X1600 PRO Graphics Card
1 Hauppauge!-WinTV-PVR 150 Personal Video Recorder
2 SanDisk-2GB Secure Digital Memory Card
1 Philips-Progressive-Scan DVD Player
1 Pioneer-16x Internal Double-Layer DVD±RW/CD-RW Drive
2 PNY-1GB Secure Digital Memory Card
1 Cyber Acoustics-2.1 Speaker System (3-Piece)

Sale Price: $2307.62
Actual Price: $3373.89

Savings of: $1066.27

As you can see, I saved a little over $1000. Not all of these are mine as more than half will go as gifts to family, relatives, and friends. On a separate purchase, I bought my girlfriend the 51” Hitachi RPTV which should be delivered (free) to her house later this week. This time, however, my “checkout” button worked flawlessly and I was able to finish my business in less than 10 minutes.

The rest of Thanksgiving Day and Dinner went off without a hitch. Electricity came back on 90 minutes after it went out and we were still able to finish off our turkey. Dinner was filling as me and my brother feasted just enough to make sure that we didn’t get indigestion pains while standing in line for what would be the calm before the storm of Black Friday at our Best Buy store.

My brother and I targeted 2:00 am to join the line. This was a full three and a half hours earlier than we came last year. I had hoped that the prediction of rain would come true but wishing upon a turkey bone proved to be inefficient as, by the time we got there, the line had already started to snake around the building and I ended up a little more than halfway around the circumference of the whole store. Learning from last year’s debacle, I luckily found a stray Rite Aid cart which I parked right next to my lawn chair in which I plopped down and made myself comfortable at while waiting for the store to open. I realized that I had had a little too much soda to drink during dinner and ended up peeing in a water bottle inside the confines of my darkly tinted car. This goes to show that it definitely behooves you to have someone there with you to save your place in line while you go on a bathroom break.

By 4:15, everyone in line woke up with a start as people up front found Best Buy employees making ready the process of giving out tickets. Everyone in line surged forward, leaving the spaces in between people in line non-existent. We could’ve swiped so many lawn chairs and blankets and even some nice jackets that were left on the ground. The next 45 minutes was filled with both hopeful and dreadful anticipation on whether I’ll get tickets to the early-bird items I came there for. At last count, there were 200 people in front of me and another 200+ behind me. It wasn’t looking good as I crossed my fingers and prepared the walkie-talkies that my brother and I would be using throughout the day.

Surprisingly, a number of tickets slipped through down to us. I got tickets for the 42” Westinghouse LCD, the Kodak 6.1MP camera, the 15” Advent LCD TV and the Sansa 1GB MP3 player. Except for the Westy, these were exactly a few of the ticket items I was waiting for. Unfortunately, the ticket for my prized item, the 32” Westinghouse LCD TV, never got to me. I was determined however to get my hands on one that I told my brother to scratch our original plan and just head straight to the TV section once we get inside. Even he was a little discouraged seeing as over 200 people were already in front of us.

Once inside, we made a mad dash at the TV section, getting in line with only 10 people ahead of us. The cash registers for this section broke down for a bit of time, which gave me ample opportunity to scour the aisles and get everything else on my wish list. Even the items that I already bought on BB.com, I doubled up and still put those in my cart as I didn’t know if I’d get the 18-month no interest payment plan by buying online. As our place in line inched forward, I easily filled 2 carts full of merchandise with the bigger items like the LCD TVs and printers remained on the ground, pushed by our feet as moved along. I even got a hold of another 32” Westy that was different from the sale item. I got this primarily as a back up just in case, and also to use as the purchase that will give us the advertised payment plan.

I was excited as hell when our turn came up in front of the cash register. Missing only a few items from my wish list, I was pretty hyped up by the chance to get my prized TV. After all, I was the first one without a ticket to ask for the advertised 32” Westy. I even took it in stride when another BB employee came up and said that he recognized me as one of the shoppers last year (and one of the people who last year led a revolt/complaint that they didn’t have the courtesy to tell the 98 people in line for a sold-out laptop that they wouldn’t get one unless they had a ticket). I basked in my infamous-ness. However, my joy was short-lived for when they checked in the computers whether they had warehouse stock of my TV, they said they had none! I was so devastated and felt so deflated. My brother felt the same way and I noticed how we both hunched over the cash register as they rung up our items, sans my TV.

After check out, I told my brother I’ll try to stay a bit to see if by chance, there was a way I could still land that 32” Westinghouse. I let him drive home all our purchases while I stayed behind, walking up and down the long line that snaked around the inner wall of Best Buy, asking people whether they’d be willing to exchange their 32” Westy ticket for the 42” Westy ticket that I possessed. For the next 15 minutes, I must have done this 3x, swallowing my pride for the sake of a TV. After my third go-around, I ended up back by the cash register feeling worn out and deflated. But when all hope seemed lost, a nice couple who looked no older than I was (turned out they were in their early twenties), turned to me and said I could have their ticket!!! They were an hour ahead of me in line and managed to get a ticket for two different TV sets. They chose to get just one of them and then handed me their other ticket! I was SO THANKFUL!! I had built a rapport with both the cashier girl and the guy that held everyone in line. They let me cut right after that nice couple and I was able to get my prized TV!!

I was rolling in quiet victory as I was handed the receipt to pick up my TV outside. I quickly walkie-talkie’d my brother to let him know of the great news. To spread the good karma, I started giving away the rest of my tickets to people in line who wanted them. As this story has gone on for 2,000 words, I’ll end by listing the items that I got for this year’s Black Friday. I am again looking forward to next year’s BF and I hope to make it as good as it did for this year.


10 Sandisk 2GB MemoryStick Pro Duo Card
3 Westinghouse 7" Digital Picture Frame
2 ATI X1600 Pro 512MB PCIe Graphics Card
2 Seagate 250GB Internal Hard Drive
3 Canon Photo Printer/Scanner/Copier (MP160)
2 Superman Returns (PS2)
2 Midland 2-Way Radio Pair
1 Pioneer 16x Internal DVD/CD Burner
1 Philips DVD Player (DVP3040)
5 Panasonic 4-pack MiniDV Tapes
2 Cyber Acoustics 2.1 Speaker System
4 Dynex PC Webcams (Pack of 2)
2 MAG 17" LCD Monitor
2 CA Recycling Fee (MAG Monitor)


5 Sandisk 2GB Secure Digital Memory Card
6 PNY 1GB USB Flash Drive
1 RCA Indoor Amplified TV Antenna
1 Disney 3 Megapixel Digital Camera
1 Sandisk Sansa m240 1GB MP3 Player
1 Midland 2-Way Radio Pair
1 Westinghouse 32" LCD HDTV (W3213)
1 4-Year Performance Service Plan
1 Kodak 6.1MP Digital Camera w/ 10x Zoom (Z650)
1 4-Year Performance Service Plan
2 Curtis-7" Widescreen LCD Portable TV-RT700
2 CA Recycling Fee (Curtis LCD TV)

Sale Price: $2985.97
Actual Price: $6160.90

Savings of: $3174.93


** Quick update: Most of these items are now on their way to my relatives in the Philippines for a timely arrival just in time for Christmas!!!

*** Just finally calculated most of the stuff I purchased this BF.


Sale Price: $5293.59
Actual Price: $9534.79

FOR A GRAND TOTAL SAVINGS OF: [B]$4241.20 [/B]


[CENTER]:D BF 2007, here I come!!!:D [/CENTER]

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Since this has started off to be a pf blog, here's a money-take on what my family and I are going through right now:

According to a recent survey by The Cremation Association of North America (CANA), 46% of Americans plan to choose cremation rather than traditional burial for themselves or their loved ones. Furthermore, the association predicts that by 2010 cremations in the U.S. will represent 46% up from 26.6% in 2000, with urban areas having higher cremation rates than rural areas. Specialists attribute the trend to issues ranging from less expensive (24%) to land preservation (17%). CANA found other reasons as well. Cremation tends to be simpler and more convenient.

"A basic cremation costs between $1,200 and $1,400, which is about 75% cheaper than a casket funeral, and is easier to arrange," explains Eric White, a spokesman for the Internet Cremation Society (ICS; www.cremation.org).


... and to be clear, financial reasons are not the only reason why we've chosen to go this route.

Scrounging For Change Underneath the Seats

I almost forgot to tell you about my story last Friday about literally scrounging for change under my car seats in order to buy a hotdog.

Los Angeles has this cool spot for hotdogs called PINK’S… cool enough to warrant its inclusion in the new DirectTV commercial featuring the guys from Entourage. Since I was in the area that day and since I haven’t gone to Pink’s in a while either, I figured, why not? I was hungry, hotdog stand in the corner, done deal. Problem was, I’m the sort of guy that hardly carries any cash on himself and just charges everything to his card everyday. Pink’s on the other hand, is a cash-only establishment. Such a big embarrassment when I tell my girlfriend to order whatever she wants to on the menu and even pushed for a side order to boot! What happened next harkens a time from back in my college days wherein my friends and I would scrounge underneath the sofa for spare change to pay the pizza delivery guy. I knew that I had some change in the car that I always keep for the meter or sometimes the toll roads. But this time, I calculated lunch to cost me just a tad over $20!! That’s lunch for both me and my girlfriend, as well a meal for my brother who’s waiting at home.

I’m sure glad the cashiers at Pink’s, despite a look of surprise (okay… maybe a little of annoyance too) accepted twenty dollars worth of quarters to pay for my bill without saying a single word. They DID count the quarters though to make sure I wasn’t short-changing them.

All in all, I think I’ll put that in my back pocket as a lesson learned that I need to keep track of minute things like that in order to avoid embarrassing moments like those from happening again. At least I felt like my younger college self again!

A Moment of Silence...

Today, I was going to write about the recent raise that I got at my job...

Due to some occurrences last night, which carries its weight over today as well, I just don't feel like blogging right now, folks.

Do You Have A Plan?

I had planned to write down my financial plans and goals today because I was inspired to do so by these posts from Well-Heeled and Single Ma. Both talked about how to tackle savings, investing, spending and paying off debt. I agreed with them on their points about 401(k) and IRAs, investing tax refunds, and striking a balance between spending and saving.

All of these are all well and good but I just realized (as I was writing this) that I really don’t have a concrete strategy at all. To be honest, I started all of this on a whim, motivated only by the PF blogs that I’ve started reading. Granted, some things were already in place like my employer’s deferred comp or my partially vested emergency fund. But looking at what I’m doing now, I definitely feel like I really don’t have an endgame right now. Sure, I could just as easily say that I want to have a $1,000,000 by the time I retire, but it seems that I’d just be copping out by stating a goal without really thinking things through yet.

So yeah. I know that this post now seems a little unneeded (is that a word?) But I suppose, just for me, I at least can realize that I really need to sit myself down and think long and hard not only what my goals should be but also what kind of plans I intend to follow through on so that I achieve those goals… no matter what they may be… once I figure them out.