Friday, September 5, 2008

Slightly Increased My Retirement Contributions

I decided to slightly increase my 403b contributions from 2.9% of my bi-weekly pay to 3.9%. My company matches my retirement contributions dollar-for-dollar up to 3% of my base compensation and 50 cents per dollar beyond 3% up to 5%. I will increase it again to 5% in a few months. I’m sure I won’t miss the money since it's taken out before I receive my paycheck.

I still plan to start contributing to a Roth IRA account in January. The goal is to contribute $200 (automatically) to that every month. Doing things automatically is the only way I manage to save these days. If I see money in my account after I pay bills and other necessary expenses, I tend to substantiate extra purchases and treats for myself. So, doing my saving automatically makes up for my occasional spending impulses.

I recently started using Yodlee to track my expenses and may eventually use the bill pay option the site offers. I like being able to go to one place to see my accounts instead of visiting several sites to see what shape my accounts are in. Mint is good, but I think I like Yodlee a little better. Yodlee seems to be more functional though I like the actual look of Mint (aesthetics matter to me...). I am still tracking my spending daily in addition to checking my balances on Yodlee. Revised budget still to come sometime this month.

3 comments:

Eve said...

great!!! every little bit counts!!!

MoneyMaus said...

Good luck! I hope I can start contributing to Roth IRA in January 2009 as well :) I love automatic account building as well, it makes things SO easy. Way to go on increasing your retirement contributions!

Shana said...

EFT's are the way to go!I started investing $25 a month in college via EFT. I currently invest $180 a month via EFT. Every time I get a raise I increase the EFT amount! This is a great way to invest b/c you never forget!