2008 Financial Goals

As the year is winding down, I've finally taken the time to solidify my financial goals. I made a list of things, some of which I think are very doable, some of which I think will be a struggle and might be a bit more dependent on the market than I like.

So here we are, my 2008 Financial Goals.

1. Fully fund my Roth IRA for 2008 (if possible).
The plan this year is to set aside the full $5000 for my Roth IRA contribution. Because I'm not sure what's going to happen financially, I'm not sure if I will be eligible to make the full contribution. Therefore, rather than contribute all throughout the year, I plan to set aside $5000 in a high yield savings account and then put it into the Roth IRA if I can. If not, I will have to look into other options.

2. Keep a running total of all taxable income.
This ties into goal #1. What better way to track whether or not I can make the full contribution than to keep a running total of all of my taxable income?

3. Place 3 paychecks directly into savings.
In 2008, there will be three months where I receive three paychecks. Because I'm used to budgeting with only two paychecks a month, I plan to take those extra three paychecks and put it directly into savings. Again, this may tie into goal #1, and be a relatively painless to at least partially fund my IRA.

4. Save a minimum of $400 a month outside of the above goals (not including investment income).
I think I can do much better than this.

5. Increase net worth by 20%.
This is the one that I think will be the hardest to achieve, and will be very tied to my investments. The past two months haven't been so great for my net worth, but I believe the market will bounce back, and hey, if nothing else, it lets me start at a low point. But in all seriousness, I would like to see a significant increase in my net worth. I have been pondering buying a home in the next few years, and I want to have at least a 20% down payment for that. So some serious savings are definitely in order.

So there you have it. My five financial goals for 2008. Pretty simple, but definitely worthwhile.