The drop in net worth we experienced in June was nothing compared to July. The Zestimate of our house dropped yet again, and my 401(k) portfolio plummeted with the rest of the market.

So, how close did we come to meeting our goals?

• Increase net worth by 1%
  Not even close. We dropped into the negative numbers this month.
• Purchase Mer’s new laptop
  Score! The laptop should ship this week, although Dell hasn’t charged us for it yet.
• Build our emergency fund by $500
  So very close - it’s up $455.97.
• Create three-year financial plan
  Well, we’re closer than we were. We’ve talked about our short-term and long-term plans (like real estate investment), but we haven’t finalized anything.

August is going to be a challenging month, while we adjust to my new payday schedule and my new (lower) salary. We should see a significant savings in fuel, however, because I estimate that I’ll need to fill my truck about once per month rather than once per week.

Another financial challenge will be our books for school. I already have my books for one class, and our bookstore is nice enough to provide ISBNs, so I may be able to get some of the books at a discount. (Our college has some customized books/packages that we can’t buy elsewhere). Our big advantage here is that Mer and I are enrolled in two of the same online classes, so we can same by ordering just one of each text.

Goals for August:

• Our net worth goal for August is -2%. It may sound terrible to have a goal of loss, but if we can keep it to -2% with the books and pay change and water bill due this month, I’ll be happy.

Our 2007 goals have not changed from the adjustments we made in June.

If I can make it through the month without obsessing about finances, I will be a very happy camper.

See you next month!