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About Me:

Monkey Mama

Just a 47-year-old mom of 2 in Northern California. My kids are Monkey Monkey(MM) and Drama Llama (DL). I am married to Monkey Hubby (MH).

We were a one-income family for 13 years. In late 2015 my spouse returned to work (minimum wage/part-time/seasonal). Something recent on his resume just buys us more options for the long run. The main benefit of this job is that he just works while the kids are in school. As always, we are saving 100% of his income.

We saved a lot while we were very young and also moved to a lower cost-of-living area, to make life much simpler. We still live in California though (in one of the most expensive regions of the U.S.). *Simple* and *inexpensive* is relative.

Likewise, we have never had debt aside from our mortgage.** My blog is a testament to how much simpler life is without debt; how we have that much more money to both save and enjoy!

**Caveat: I have no problem whatsoever with credit cards paid off monthly, or low-risk credit arbitrage (for example, 0%-interest debt while earning 5% on FDIC-insured cash). These are the kinds of debt we have had. Just not interested in high-interest debt, using debt to buy beyond means, and not interested in the hassle that comes with loans and payments. With age and means, the latter (hassle) is our biggest debt avoidance motivation.

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2024 Goals

[ ]Small monthly Charitable Contribution
...($230 @ 8/31/24)
...Trying to be more mindful about how the little amounts add up and are helpful.
...This is not an all inclusive list of charitable giving but it is a new habit I want to add in addition to other donations of time, goods and money

[ ]Pay cash for college
...This is so much a given, to me. But I realize not everyone can read my mind, and so will memorialize in my goal list.
...#1 We don't do Debt
...#2 The student loan system is a scammy and corrupt mess.
...Seriously, wouldn't touch these student loan servicers with a ten foot pole.
MM YEAR 1 ✔
MM YEAR 2 ✔
MM YEAR 3 ✔
MM YEAR 4
MM YEAR 5

DL YEAR 1 ✔
DL YEAR 2 ✔
DL YEAR 3

[ ]$10,000 to savings
...($7,749 @ 10/31/24)
...$1,000/month, plus interest
...Topping off with snowballs

[ ]$7,500 to investments
...($4,786 @ 10/31/24)
...~~$350~~ $400/month, plus snowflakes
(Snowflakes: credit card rewards and dividends)
...Topping off with snowballs
...Note: Bumped up to $400 9/1, re: reduced food expenses

[ ]$2,025 to mortgage
...($0 @ 10/31/24)
...Topping off with snowballs and/or excess cash
...Keeps us on track with $10K principal paydown per year

[/]9% of household income to work retirement plans
...(9% @ 10/31/24)
...This is the minimum for the match; I'd otherwise rather fund IRAs.
...Note: Total retirement savings rate is 20% (with IRAs)

Goal savings rate = 25% of gross salary, plus funding IRAs from other sources.

[ ]$14,000 to IRAs 2024 (MAX)
...($0 @ 10/31/24)
...Will fund with MH's income
...Will not fund until the year is over. This is for tax and planning reasons. I won't know what mix of Traditional/ROTH IRA we literally can contribute until we do our 2024 taxes. In addition to that, can make a more informed decision based on our financial and tax situation for the entire year.

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**Long-Term Goals**

[X]$500,000 in retirement accounts by age 45.

Current big picture goal:

[ ]$1 Mil in retirement accounts by age 52.

Stretch Goal: Achieve by age 50

Have decided to pretty much stay the course. Keep saving 20%+ to retirement. This means taking 401K match & maxing out IRAs.

NOTE: WE HAVE NEVER CONTRIBUTED LESS THAN 10% TO RETIREMENT. NO EXCEPTIONS.

If we can't achieve at least 10%, then something else has to give. I share because it's infinitely easier to save for retirement if you start early. Let the investments do the hard work for you.

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Debt: $85,000 mortgage
{Home Purchase Price $290,000}

Ongoing goal is to *never borrow money again.*

Took on a $230k mortgage in 2001 and have not added to that.

-------------------------

Net Worth: Increase net worth by $600,000 in the next 10 years. This is my "financial independence" goal.

2017: +$ 70,000 (partial year)
2018: +$ 51,000
2019: +$105,000
2020: +$104,000
2021: +$215,000
2022: <$ 65,000>
2023: +$ 90,000
TOTAL: +$570,000

This is in line with prior goal, saving 100% of our expenses every year.

{Our expenses are far more consistent than our income. Also, helps to prevent "living up to income."}

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My Pages

Car Rentals?

May 18th, 2010 at 03:34 am

I perused airfare to Colorado, today. It's not horrid. Probably $250-$300 per ticket.

But, hard to stomach all the same. I am a very "reactive" traveler. Not "proactive" at all. Last time we flew to Colorado was "because tickets were $150 per person."

In fact, I've rarely flown anywhere across the country for more than that.

So, I should probably just suck it up and be happy that I have probably never paid more than $200 for an airline ticket. May this be the first and last time? Big Grin

OF course, I have never PAID for 4 airline tickets before, either. Yeesh!

--------------------------------------------------

Along the same lines, when in the hell did car rentals get so expensive?

I was thinking about our Hawaii trip today and thinking maybe we should get a car reserved. It will be our main expense, since the room and air is covered with timeshare points and miles (courtesy of MIL - she ain't SO bad!)

I peeked today and cringed at the prices.

So, I was discussing it with dh. I don't think I have ever rented a car. Maybe once like 10 years ago. To which dh tells me it should be $35 a day. To which I think he is crazy. He did tell me, "It's been a while. Maybe it cost more these days."

So, I have questions for all you wise bloggers:

1 - How far in advance would you generally reserve a vehicle?

2 - Where and how do you get a good deal on a rental car? What are all the tricks??

Airfare, I can so do. Car rentals are like a foreign language to me - hehe. I suppose we just drive so much or tend to travel to areas with good public transport. Just not something that has come up much.

Last time I rented a car was because we got some awesome one-way air ticket deal, to Vegas. So we rented a car to drive back. Must have been 1997 or something. Big Grin Another reactive trip! I don't think we had much choice - being 21 and renting a car - not many companies would rent to us. (The plane ticket was something like $30, and splitting the car rental 4 ways was like $20 each - a trip with the girls).

We rented a car in 2003 also. That was a whole other thing. Basically, our flight home from LA was canceled (indefinitely, due to wildfires - the whole airport was shut down), and getting this nursing momma home in 6 hours was priceless. I don't remember what that cost was - just that I can't imagine the alternative. It's a miracle we got that rental car in the first place. I don't think we had much choice that time either - probably got the last rental car at the airport.

That really sums up my car rental experience!

Posted in Just Thinking | 5 Comments »

5 Responses to “Car Rentals?”

Swimgirl Says:
May 18th, 2010 at 04:14 am 1274152450
1274152450

I remember that you don't love the system... but I always rent from Hotwire. Cheap. Never a problem.
Frugaltexan75 Says:
May 18th, 2010 at 04:37 am 1274153840
1274153840

I'd check with your car insurance company for any discounts. But yes, car rentals are not cheap. It's the add on fees they don't include in the price estimate that really bite.

As far as when to reserve ... It would depend on how busy that time of year was. You'd probably be safe a month or two in advance.
Swimgirl Says:
May 18th, 2010 at 04:43 am 1274154206
1274154206

I rented a car for 24 hours in Seattle two months ago. The complete total was $21. I did put gas in, but gas + $21 was all it cost.
ambitioussaver Says:
May 18th, 2010 at 02:36 pm 1274189791
1274189791

I agree with FrugalTexan, we usually use the insurance company or AAA or government discounts - whichever is better. To rent a car in Hawaii this past October I think we spent around $700 or so.
creditcardfree Says:
May 19th, 2010 at 01:46 am 1274229972
1274229972

My car rental experiences are primarily for our trips to Florida. I paid more for a car in July than October. I rented direct from the rental company that was at the airport. I reserved one once and then found a better deal and cancelled, since there were zero deposits required. I think I reserved at least 3 months ahead each time. Look for codes that might give you a discount, but compare it to their regular price. AAA/associations you might belong to are good ones to start with. Look for travel blogs for Hawaii that might clue you into other discounts. I think we ended up with Budget once and Dollar the other time. Good luck, MM.

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Monkey Mama*s Monkey Money Blog

Over Prepare, Then Go With The Flow

Car Rentals?

5 Responses to “Car Rentals?”

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