Almost a year ago, I published my first ever Net Worth Update that detailed my net worth as of October, 2020. So I figured, since it’s been about a year since my last net worth update, it might be a good time to do another one!
This post goes into detail about my net worth as of November, 2021.
The Start of my Financial Journey
For a little back story, I graduated college in 2015 with $60k of student loan debt.
So out the gate, my net worth was negative $60k. You can read all about my debt free journey here, but in a nutshell, I started my Instagram @ImperfectFinance so I could document my debt free journey and chat with others going through the same thing.
After 4 and a half years, I paid off my debt in May of 2020.
If you need help paying off your student loan debt, you should check out my Student Loan Guide.
Investment Accounts
I started investing for my retirement while paying off my debt. When I started my career, I had learned it’d be a good idea to invest through my 401(k) with my very first paycheck (thanks, Mom!), so I did that.
With my 401(k), I invested at least up to my company match, sometimes more – but never much more. Regardless, because I started investing when I did, I had a net worth of about [positive] $31,000 when I finally paid off my debt.
Investing through my 401(k) was the only way I knew how to invest for a while. It wasn’t until I created @ImperfectFinance and began consuming more and more personal finance content that I realized the benefits of alternative investing methods like IRAs, HSAs and brokerage accounts.
Nowadays, I take advantage of all of these methods of investing.
Savings
But, my investment accounts aren’t the only contributors to my net worth.
I also have a $5k emergency fund that I keep in a high-yield savings account. Right now, this is just about all the cash savings I have.
Typically, I would have additional savings for other things (like, I used to have a $1k emergency fund for our dog Bogey, and I started saving up money for a new car for when mine decides to give out) but because I had to pay for other necessary expenses that popped up this year, I no longer have the cash saved for those things.
In addition, I do have over $5k saved for a trip to Italy with my family, but I do not include that in my net worth because I saved the money as a gift to my Dad for his 60th birthday, so technically it’s not mine! Lol and we’ll be spending it soon (hopefully!) to buy plane tickets and hotel rooms and all that fun stuff for a trip in 2022.
Car
Lastly, I own a paid off, 2006 Toyota Corolla. The Kelly Blue Book estimated value of my car is about $2,500 so I do include that when calculating my net worth!
My Net Worth Now
Now, when I combine my investment accounts, savings, and car value, my net worth adds up to: $86,613.50.
I don’t currently have any debt, so there’s no subtracting of any liabilities or debts from this total value.
At the beginning of 2021, one of my new year’s resolutions was to reach a net worth of $100k. While I don’t think that’ll happen in 2021, my other goals for the 2021 year were to:
- Max out my 401(k) – which means contributing the maximum amount of $19,500. Currently, I’m about 82% done with this goal. I am currently putting a hugeeeee chunk of my paycheck toward my 401(k) every payday which hurts a little bit, but if I can continue to stick it out, 2021 will be the first year I “max out” my 401(k).
- Max out my Roth IRA – which means contributing the maximum amount of $6,000. Luckily, you have until April, 15 2022 (Tax Day 2022) to do this for the 2021 year. Currently, I’m about 18% done with this goal.
- Max out my HSA – which means contributing the maximum amount of $3,500. You also have until April 15, 2022 (Tax Day 2022) to do this for the 2021 year. Currently, I’m about 82% done with this goal.
Although it’s not likely I hit a net worth of $100k in 2021, I do believe I’ll still hit the goals mentioned in #1-3, and that by mid-2022 I’ll hit a net worth of $100k — I’ll definitely update you when I do!
How to Calculate Your Net Worth
If you want to add up your net worth, simply subtract your liabilities from your assets. Your liabilities are things like credit card debt, student loan debt, or car debt, and your assets may be things like a car that you own, your investments, a house you own, or cash (like your emergency fund or other savings).
Net Worth = Assets – Liabilities
It seems the first $100k is the hardest to obtain, so I’ll definitely be celebrating when I finally do! I hope you found this post helpful. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.
Related posts you might like:
- 3 Major Life Changes I Made on My Debt Free Journey
- Moving States? Here Are 15 Moving Costs To Plan For
- 5 Life-Changing Lessons I Learned From My Student Loans
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