My 2020 Savings Goals

I have a bunch of them because right now I have a lot of goals I'm looking to accomplish in the next few years.  Big goals that will require some funds to help make it all happen.  So I've set up a variety of savings goals to help me make those other goals a reality.  It is very exciting!

Emergency Fund = $5,000

I want a larger emergency fund simply because it makes me feel better.  I used to have a $3,000 fund, but with costs rising I felt it was time to up that a bit to give me some extra padding.  Right now I am working to get it back up to $3,000 to replace what was needed in 2019.  I'm almost there and once I've accomplished that I will move onto the new goal of $5,000.

Health Savings Account (HSA) = $8,000

New for me in 2020 is a HSA account.  I've never had one before and it was an option open to me this year as part of our employer provided healthcare coverage.  I investigated it in 2019 and decided it might be the better option for me and my family.  $8,000 is the maximum investment I can make right now, although that may change in the future, and fortunately I don't have to do it alone.  This year I will be contributing $50 per paycheck to this account and so is my employer.  By the time I retire and leave the company my goal will be to have this account fully funded as I will get to take it with me.  Having an extra $8,000 available for medical expenses when I retire will be a very good thing.

Employee 401 (k) Plan With Matching Funds = The Max!

I am very fortunate to have a 401(k) with employee matching at 4.5% if I contribute 6%.  As soon as I was eligible I began contributing 6% to my 401(k) so I didn't leave any employer money on the table.  I work hard so I wanted to make sure I got it all.  I contribute 10% of my income each payday to my 401(k) and have done well with it.  This year my children no longer qualify for the Child Tax Credit so I began bumping it up 1% each month.  This will lower my taxable income to compensate for that tax credit so I won't have a higher tax debt.  Not to mention it will be a big boost to my retirement income.  I will continue to do this until I reach the maximum I can contribute and let it ride until I retire.

Roth IRA = $7,000 Annually

I have a Roth IRA that hasn't seen much action from me in recent years.  The tax laws allow me to contribute a maximum of $7,000 per year to this account.  My goal is to contribute as much as I can to this account between now and my retirement account.  If I can swing the full $7,000 each year I will do that.

Savings Account

In the process of accomplishing all of these other goals I also plan to stuff my savings account with everything I have left over after bills and other expenses.  I will need to employ a lot of thrifty maneuvers to make sure there is something to stuff in there and I have quite a few ideas in mind.  Right now I am putting $100 per paycheck into this account.  No matter what.

Christmas Fund = $100

My Christmas Fund is my easiest goal to accomplish.  Each year from January through October I place a $10 bill inside an envelope to help me with gifts and other Christmas expenses so it doesn't become a hardship or affect our regular household budget.  We enjoy simple and modest Christmases so this fund works very well for me.

Travel Fund

I won't be starting this one until next year as I want to make sure I'm on track with my other savings goals first.  Then I will add this one.  I think this fund is going to be my most favorite goal to work on.  I can hardly wait!

I am super excited about these goals and equally as excited to work on them.  I know they seem pretty lofty and they are.  But completely doable too.  I know I can make this happen because if I do I get to retire early and have the life I've been dreaming about for a good long time.  That alone, is enough incentive for me to make this happen.