I don't know why, but i dragged out my financial paperwork today. It's a murky, damp and humid day, so it's just the kind of thing I like to play around with.
You see, I've been tracking my net worth for 20 years now, and tracking my expenses, down to the penny, for 12 years now. (That is truly amazing, and have never considered stopping because i can cull so much valuable information from these records.)
I started out at age 28 with a net worth in 1987 of $11,314. I was living in the basement of my sister's house and was already saving for my own house (something i would accomplish 8 years later with a 45% down payment). Yes, i did it the old-fashioned way, waiting and saving, not going out to get a sub-prime mortgage with 0% down.
20 years later, I had (excluding my home) a net worth of $437,069 as of 12/07; that number's much lower now due to the major stock market gyrations we've been seeing of late...or should i say, downward spiral?
In 1987, my net salary was $16,843. I was working for a non-profit conservation organization. Aside from a $4,500 savings account, my investable money was tied up in laddered 6-month and 1-year CDs which at the time were earning over 8%.
These days, the bulk of my $$ is in T. Rowe Price mutual funds, about 85% stocks and including low-fee index funds for bonds and international stock. I was shocked to see i took a $23,000 hit for the month of June alone. I tend not to panic in times like these, though I can't help but feel jittery even as i continue to buy stocks through both my 401k and on my own in taxable funds.
Here's a rundown of how my networth has increased over the years. Aside from a bull market for a number of years, i also benefitted from 2 separate inheritances that totaled $65,000 as well as a one-time stock option sale that netted me $40,000 after taxes. With the inheritances from my grandparents, I spent a few thousand on furniture but saved most of it.
My salary never exceeded $75,000 except for the year i sold the stock options, which is taxable income. I was laid off on 3 separate occasions, and each time this happened, it temporarily suspended my savings; even after you get a job, there's usually a 3-month waiting period before you can begin contributing to a 401(k).
So,i had a mix of good fortune balanced by some tough times of unemployment, probably somewhat typical of many people.
All figures are for end-of-year. My best years for increasing my net worht were 1991 and 1999.
2007: $437,069
2006: $398,069
2005: $345,604
2004: $313.769
2003: $276,105
2002: $230,166
2001: $237,553
2000: $228,820
1999: $209,638 ($30K inheritance & stock option sale)
1998: $121,729
1997: $107,829
1996: 85,381
1995: $58,057 (house purchase)
1994: $121,655
1993: $100,574
1992: 61,713
1991: $69,668 ($35K inheritance)
1990: $23,467
1989: $13,676
1988: $14,818
1987: $11,314
So what do you think? Will i make it to a million in another 12 years?
Aside from $ talk, i did see an interesting movie today with H. The Rape of Europa. It's a documentary based on a book by the same name, about how Hitler, who considered himself a great artist, wanted to bring together a vast collection of great artwork, and how he ransacked the finest galleries in Europe to do so as the war raged on. It's one of many lesser known facets of WWII.
Priceless works by Rembrandt, Michaelangelo, Vermeer, Renoir and others were looted by the Nazis and transported to Lintz, Germany, Hitler's boyhood hometown, where he envisioned reshaping the town into a prestigious German city rich in art and culture. After the war, the Americans helped recover much of the stolen art which was hidden away in castles and small country towns, but to this day, much of the art has never been found.
What I Have to Show After 20 Years of Saving
July 4th, 2008 at 05:08 pm
July 4th, 2008 at 07:13 pm
You will hit $1 million well before 12 years, assuming the market cooperates. You'll probably double in 7-8 years which will put you pretty close, and hit a million a couple years after that, so maybe 10 years tops. If this bear market ends soon and we see a nice recovery, maybe even sooner.
July 5th, 2008 at 04:32 am
If I can keep up my current aggressive mortgage prepayments, I should have the mortgage paid off in 7 years, and after that i'll plow the $ that would otherwise have gone to the mortgage right into retirement. That should really turbo-charge my savings.
July 5th, 2008 at 07:10 am
I think odds are you will hit $1 mil in 10 years as well. Though it is precarious for now (the market).
I keep track of everything but beyond this blog I don't think I really noted on my net worth sheets why any year was particularly good or bad. You reminded me I probably should (though inheritances and the like would probably be memorable).
Thanks for sharing!
July 5th, 2008 at 08:41 am
July 5th, 2008 at 10:12 am
July 5th, 2008 at 11:14 am
July 5th, 2008 at 11:37 am
July 5th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
You're doing awesome!
July 5th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
July 6th, 2008 at 05:04 pm
Today our financial assets total about $400,000. We have home equity of about $175,000. We have no debt except our mortgage and HEL totaling about $107,000, for a net worth of about $468,000. Not a bad change in 16 years.
July 6th, 2008 at 07:55 pm
It's nice to see the numbers add up like that! I've been keeping track of my own net worth since 1994, when it was $2500 (after I finally got myself out of debt!--I don't have the exact numbers but back in 1989 my net worth was approximately $-13,000), and now up to about $178K.