We’ve reached the halfway point of 2016 so it’s once again time to take a deeper look at my finances and update my net worth.
This year has been fairly quiet on the financial front. I continued to simplify our investments, this time by transferring a small RRSP account from Tangerine over to our TD Direct account where the rest of our investments are held.
Paying down our line of credit remains a top priority. I’m also counting the days until our car is paid off (three more months!) so we can allocate those dollars towards our TFSAs.
My main frustration is that I haven’t seen a raise in three years. Unfortunately it looks like that trend will continue into 2017. That means more pressure to ramp up efforts with our online business so that we can withdraw enough income to at least keep up with cost of living increases.
That said it’s satisfying to still be on track with our financial goals despite it being years since I’ve seen any significant salary growth.
Here’s a look at the numbers:
Net worth update: 2016 mid-year review
Total Assets – $738,605
- Chequing account – $1,500
- Savings account – $5,000
- RRSP – $118,866
- Defined benefit plan – $138,845
- TFSA – $4,359
- RESP – $20,035
- Principal residence – $450,000
Total Liabilities – $261,934
- Mortgage – $242,947
- Home equity line of credit – $18,987
Net worth – $476,671
A few questions that I often get asked after posting a net worth update:
Banking
We funnel all of our spending onto the Capital One Aspire Travel World Elite MasterCard. The card pays 2 percent back on every purchase and its new no more tiers redemption program makes it easy to cash in points.
We have no-fee chequing accounts at Tangerine, which we use for bill payments, email money transfers, and the odd debit purchase.
The rest of our banking is done at TD, including our mortgage, line of credit, and investments.
Pension
Each month I contribute roughly 12 percent of my salary to a defined benefit pension plan that my employer matches. The amount listed above is the commuted value of the pension if I were to leave the plan today.
The plan pays 2 percent of your highest average salary multiplied by the number of years worked. So that means if I retired at 60 with an average salary of $100,000 I’d receive $60,000 per year from the pension plan.
RRSP / RESP
The right way to calculate net worth is to use the same formula consistently over time to help track and achieve your financial goals.
My preferred method is to list the current value of my RRSP and RESP plans rather than discounting their future value to account for taxes and distributions.
I consider a net worth statement to be a snapshot of your current financial picture, so when it comes time to draw from my RRSP and distribute the RESP to my kids, net worth will decrease accordingly.
Principal residence
We bought our home nearly five years ago and, even though the market has gone up, I’ve continued to list the value at purchase price. Last year I factored our basement renovation into the equation and increased our home value by $25,000.
Final thoughts
I check in on my overall financial health twice a year to make sure I’m still on track to meet my goals – both short and long term. There are a few big picture goals in mind:
First, I want our net worth to surpass $500,000 by the end of the year. Second, I want to hit the million-dollar mark by the end of the year in which I turn 41 (2020). And finally, I want to become financially free by 45.
To me financial freedom means no more mortgage payments, or other debt obligations, and the income earned from our online business and personal investments exceeds our living expenses.
We’re on track to reach these goals and I can’t wait to get there!
