We’re almost done with the first quarter of 2023, and I’m just now posting this year’s financial goals, but hey, it’s good to think these things through. I must say, there are a lot of financial goals we considered, but we can’t work on all of them and do any well, so it was important to focus on no more than three goals. In this post, I’ll be sharing our three financial goals for 2023.
2023 FINANCIAL GOALS
INCREASE THE EMERGENCY FUND
We have a solid three-month emergency fund in our money market account, which is thankfully earning some interest now. For 2023, we will continue to grow that fund as we can. I would like to see this increased to somewhere in the four to six-month range by year-end.
Since we still have a regular savings account used for short-term savings goals (which is where we will set the money aside for the other financial goals on this list). I think adding an additional one to three months of expenses to the money market account is doable while picking and choosing other projects to complete.
2023 FINANCIAL GOALS: SOLAR LOAN PAYDOWN
We made a major investment in solar energy last year that required going into consumer debt. If you’ve spent any amount of time reading a Life on a Dime you’ll know we are not fans of consumer debt. An exception was made for solar simply because we didn’t have the cash on hand for the system we wanted.
We’re all electric, and while we would love to cut down our energy costs while producing cleaner energy at the same time (we do have a goal to be more sustainable here), we also wanted significant battery backup in case of an outage.
By no means will we pay thousands off ahead of schedule this year, but we will make an effort to pay extra every month. The current payment amount is $122 and some change. We have recently increased our monthly payment to $150 a month. It makes me feel better.
INCREASE CONTRIBUTIONS TO SINKING FUNDS
If you’ve been around for a while, you will know I love sinking funds! In fact, we have a few; our short-term savings account, our Christmas savings account, and our auto maintenance account. We need to increase our contributions to these funds to keep up with expenses and/or reach our financial goals.
CHRISTMAS SAVINGS
A portion of my hubby’s check automatically goes to the Christmas savings account every pay period. With the kids getting older, and their interests getting a bit more expensive, we have upped the contributions for 2023. Since the money never hits our joint checking account, it isn’t missed.
In addition, I will make a point to budget a portion of my pay to deposit to the fund once a month. It’ll make things much easier when the time comes to do Christmas shopping.
AUTO MAINTENANCE
We drive used vehicles. It’s awesome because we have the titles in hand. We’d like to avoid going into debt to keep them on the road, so we have an auto maintenance fund. According to Bankrate.com, one in three drivers can’t afford unexpected repairs. We try to avoid being that one in three by setting money aside for that very purpose.
Typical expenses covered by this fund include oil changes and windshield wipers. But occasionally larger expenses are required to keep the vehicles in good condition. In order to keep them on the road and in good running condition we’ll need to increase our contributions to this sinking fund.
SHORT TERM SAVINGS
In addition to our emergency fund, we still have our original savings account, which earns a lower interest rate. We like to keep a few thousand dollars in this account to float larger expenses that don’t necessarily fit in the budget without touching the emergency fund.
We have a few things we’d like to do on the property that will require the use of this account. One example would be a few truckloads of gravel for the driveway. This would fill in some low spots and allow us to park on the garage pad. A metal garage building is a longer-term savings goal that will come out of this account as well.
HOW WE PLAN TO MEET OUR 2023 FINANCIAL GOALS
It really all comes down to a little more discipline with our spending habits and budget. With warmer, clearer weather, our reduced energy use will help offset part of the solar loan payments. It won’t pay for itself, but it will help. And we’re switching our habits up to become as energy efficient (and grid-independent) as we can.
We typically spend less money on food during the summer months, so I will try to get more frugal and creative with our spring and summer meal plans. I’ve tried to add fish to the menu once a week for health reasons and to switch it up a bit. This will probably decrease to every two weeks or once a month.
I’ve also stopped buying soda to drink at home. One, I gave it up for Lent and two, I’m tired of the increased amount of goods to take to the recycling center every week. I love not throwing away as much, but this one is completely avoidable. In addition to soda, we’ve also stopped buying nutrient-deficient snack foods, and reduced the spending on nonessential items.
A good old-fashioned increase to monthly income helps as well; after spring break I plan to substitute teach on Fridays as often as possible through the end of the year. Every little bit adds up. It helps that none of our goals are extreme; we’re making small changes to get us closer to where we want to be financially. This is something we’ve been doing for a good decade now, and it’s paid dividends so far.
What are your financial goals for 2023? Make sure they’re realistic and you have a plan to help you meet them! And hey, you can always sell some of those decluttered items from Minimalism in March to get a jump start!