Following the end of each month, I publicly review my personal financial condition. This is the primary reason I do not use my full name on this blog; I’d like to be able to continue sharing the specific details of my finances without providing people who know my in “real life” the ability to search for my identity online and discover Consumerism Commentary. A few friends and family are familiar with Consumerism Commentary, but that’s the extent of my publicity among people who may want to know more about me.

Like September, I ended the month with a lower “modified net worth” than I had when the month began. October was worse that September, however. My bottom line was $162,881 in October, down over 6% for the month.

Continue reading this post for the report including some explanations. Read the rest of this article »

Every month, I publicly review my personal financial condition. If you’re wondering why I post under a pseudonym, Flexo, this is the primary reason. I’d prefer that those who know my in real life, except for a few individuals, are not aware of this information.

Reviewing my finances online helps me be accountable for my choices.

I ended September in a worse position than I started the month, like many people with money in the stock market. Here is a review of my account balances and “modified net worth.” Click on the following report for a larger image. Read the rest of this article »

It’s a long-standing tradition at Consumerism Commentary to review the details of my finances at the end of every month, and it’s that time again. I start with a “net worth report,” a list of my bank account, credit card, and loan account balances, investment values, and some more ethereal numbers like my car’s value and “accounts receivable.”

August helped me out financially for a few reasons, two of which I’ll explain in the forthcoming income and expense report. The third reason is the stock market, slightly up in the month of August, buoying my investments tied to market indexes. In total, my accounts were up 7.7% over the month, the largest monthly increase this year. The bottom line of this report is a modified net worth of $174,669. I call this a “modified” net worth because the report is more complete than a list of bank account balances but not quite as complicated as a net worth figure that a business might use.

For the details, continue reading. Click on the thumbnail for a larger report. Read the rest of this article »

It’s two months later, and I still need to achieve another $50,000 to reach my net worth goal of $210,000 by December 31. With so much of my assets tied into the stock market indexes, it’s no surprise I’m not making the progress I hoped for.

When the company I work for releases its quarterly results, they include a special warning about “forward-looking statements.” The company forecasts its earnings for the rest of the year based on a 2% return in the stock market at large through the end of the year. If the market fares worse or better, they have no problem adjusting expectations. I’ll need to do the same.

Every month, I report my financial status, so here are the numbers. Click on the thumbnail to zoom in. Read the rest of this article »

Last month, I shared my belief that I would not make my net worth goal for the year, and June has been a step backwards. I ended the month with a modified net worth of $155,596, over $2,000 down from the end of May.

For any readers new to Consumerism Commentary, I post financial updates every month. This balance sheet, combined with an income/expense report, help me keep track of my progress.

I hope that monthly declines in my net worth continue to be few. The last time I experienced a monthly decline was in May 2006, a decrease of 1.3% and before that, May 2005, a decrease of 5.9%. Keep reading to see my current balance sheet with explanations. Click on the thumbnail for a larger version of the table. Read the rest of this article »