Starting up monthly IRA contributions again

**starsapphire** · 01-06-2007, 01:16 PM

I'm getting a small COLA starting with my next paycheck so yesterday I set up my account to auto-deduct $50/month from my checking to go into my IRA.

It feels so good to start contributing to my IRA again even if only minimally. I stopped contributions about a year and a half or two years ago in order to pay off debt. I had just barely opened the account too, but I had to get extremely serious about paying off debt. It made no sense to me, once I really thought about it, to contribute to my IRA but pay minimum payments on $7000 worth of debt. That debt is all gone now.

I'm also getting a 5% merit increase starting with my next paycheck but that is all going into the EF. I need a big fat EF. When that is fully funded, I'll increase my IRA funding by the same amount.

I love setting a goal and then accomplishing it

**dcompton** · 01-06-2007, 04:03 PM

Congrats! That's great!

I have one CC to go that I will pay off before the 0% interest ends in July. Then my focus is all on saving and retirement too. I agree about the big fat EF. I am my only source of income, with no family safety net to fall back on. I love my single life and wouldn't trade it for anything, but I'm also very aware that I'm precariously sitting alone out on the end of a small branch. I want at least a six month EF, growing to 12 before I'm really happy. And gotta keep that retirement growing too.

I can hardly wait for all the debt to be wiped out, like yours, so I give all my atttention to getting ahead rather than just catching up. You're in a good place. I hope I'll join you there soon!

**rosebron** · 01-13-2007, 09:49 AM

YEAHHH!!! Congratulations to you!
I can't wait to be completely debt free.

I spent half of 2006 paying off cc debt at the expense of retirement savings.
I, too, had been saving hard and consistently for retirement and also had a nice savings account. Yet, I was over 26K in cc debt Travel & launching a new business). We have a mandatory 5% contribution that is matched twice at work. I was also contributing the maximum allowed by the federal government to my 403(b) plan and the maximum allowed to Roth IRA. I was really feeling great about being a 'super-saver' until I read the Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.

That was in May 2006, one month after giving birth to our son and 2nd child.
Boy, was his addition to our family combined with Dave Ramsey's common-sence teachings a blow to my brain!! So, I cleaned house!!!

Any whole-life insurance was terminated and term policies increased. I used the cash value to eliminate debt and any savings I had. I axed my Roth contributions completely and stopped contributions to my 403(b) plan and used these monthly debits to pay off debts.

With my merit increase this year, I have budgeted for all of my loans to be paid-off and plan to max out my 403(b). Let's see what happens.