I purposely waited to update our net worth for this month. Two months ago, we had incurred a significant amount of expenses on our credit card. We purposely held off on paying that amount until today, which is that statement’s due date. Waiting to pay the card meant that $25k sat in our savings account earning interest during that time, as we “floated” that money. It was extremely stressful for me, so I’m glad those due dates are behind me, and I don’t have to manage that timing and coordination anymore.
Speaking of “floating” money, we also have our 0% interest credit card that we opened last Fall when we were incurring expenses on our new house. That still has a balance over $6k on it, but we just pay $500 towards it each month. We’ll pay it in full when the 0% interest runs out this Fall.
I don’t even know where to begin on what we’ve been managing with rental properties. We’ve learned the world of insurance claims. Prior to this month, we only had one claim because an intoxicated driver (on a Sunday morning) ran off the road, through a fence, and over our HVAC outdoor unit. I’ll have a separate post with the details that we’ve been managing, but here’s a run down.
– I still have a lease that needs to get out for signature, and then information on that house sent to our property manager so she can take it over.
– We had a tree fall on a house here in Lexington. The tree was removed, but getting the adjuster out to see the damage is taking 3 weeks, and we can’t do any repairs until he sees the damage.
– The house that had a burst pipe is nearing completion. Walls and ceilings are back in place, insulation is back in place, and cabinets are installed; they still need to do painting and flooring. We’re going to have our handyman install new counter tops when the insurance contractors are done with their steps, and then we’ll need to get it rerented.
– We had roofing damage on 3 of our houses in Lexington from that same storm that knocked a tree on a house. Mr. ODA fixed one roof himself. Another one is under the purview of a townhome HOA, and hasn’t been fixed. And we’re biding our time on the last one because it’ll end up being a full roof replacement; only a few shingles flew off, but the roof is so old and so steep that it wasn’t an option to repair.
– Frustratingly, I had 2 overdue tax bills. Our jurisdiction’s taxes are due by 12/1 each year. If you pay by 11/1, they give you a 5% discount. I paid the bulk of the bills in October. There was a supplemental bill due to an increase in the Board of Education tax. When I received the supplemental bills “off schedule,” I just filed them. It didn’t occur to me that there was a second tax bill in the year. They sent that one notice. Didn’t send a second to say “you didn’t pay early, but by the way, it’s due now.” So that was due by the end of February. I didn’t pay it and received the “delinquent tax notice” last week. There was a 5% penalty assessed on the balance due. So all-in-all, I cost us an extra $11. Not the end of the world, but kicking myself that I missed it. Also annoying, they sent it to our old address instead of our updated address that’s been in place since November.
We haven’t done any big projects around the house because of newborn life. I just painted the wood parts of our stair railing and treads black. I’ll then paint the spindles white (they’re already white but need touched up and a whole new fresh coat). I already had that paint on hand. We’ve also cleaned up the yard from that big storm earlier this month, along with some odds and ends that needed to be done in the landscaping. We got the first mow in and some new bushes with mulch in the front yard so that it’s looking nice for my family coming into town this weekend.
No net worth calculation update. I’ve done the majority of the account checks, but just haven’t been able to pull together the final bit timely.
One Dollar Allowance 