| Currently in my eleventh month of deployment to Iraq. Also continuing to work on aggressively paying down most of my debt prior to redeployment.
The stock market sure does suck! I think I've lost about $11k these past couple of months. Regardless, my main focus continues to be paying off my car in its entirety before I redeploy back to the U.S. This should be completed NLT mid-October. To be able to complete something like that will be such a motivating experience that will push me to continue towards fully identifying and completing my financial goals.
The "other asset" column is my total contribution to the Army Savings Deposit Program thus far. I wont be able to attain the full 10% interest rate provided by the program, however, making the contribution for one more month will allow me to save $9100 + interest and direct the majority of it into maxing my Roth IRA for the year of 2011. The rest of the funds will be placed in my emergency funds account.
I have slowed down quite a bit on my financial education for no particular reason, however, I have started the search for looking for a financial advisor so that I can have a more defined plan laid out for myself. In my meeting with my financial adviser, I envision being able to talk with the individual and having them review all of my accounts and my current working situation as a military officer. I am also seeking a possible active manager for my financial assets who would monitor my accounts and make recommendations on what I should do with my funds.
As I started my search, I am finding that a lot of financial advisers require a minimum amount of investible assets that is way beyond what I currently possess at this time. Even Vanguard requires at least $500k before they will conduct a good portfolio analysis and active fund management. They do offer some other packages for less, however, they will only make recommendations for their funds and there is no tax analysis that is included in the deal. USAA has a couple of interesting active management packages as well, however, the only one that fits my prerequisites requires me to consent that they will have full management rights to my accounts, which means I do not need to approve of them buying or selling a particular fund.
I am continuing my search and I think I may settle with somebody in NYC who works on an hourly basis. Obviously, I need to find out how much this fee is, but if it is reasonable, I am hoping that I will be able to meet with the firm before the end of the year so that I can attain a solid plan on what I need to do to ensure that I have all the assets necessary to enjoy a comfortable retirement.
Still plan on saving, but holding on to the money for the 2011 IRA contribution until I figure out what I should invest in next.
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