My current financial situation

A bit about my situation:

Debt: I have a mortgage and an auto loan, and that's all at present. The auto loan should be paid off by the end of the year. The only other "debt" I have is a medical expenditure account with my employer. I set the account up to pay for laser vision correction in January. I have been reimbursed for the surgery and the amount is being deducted from my paychecks through the end of the year. Interest-free loan! I do have credit cards and use them regularly, but I never carry a balance.

Net Worth: I may post specifics in the future, but for now I'll just tell you the progress I've made recently. I started tracking my net worth in mid-February . . . it's positive but I'm nowhere near using the "million" word, even fractionally. I set an aggressive goal for the year . . . 35% growth in net worth. With some frugal spending, aggressive investing, and a fortunate increase in the value of my home, my net worth grew more than 13% over the next two months. I will update again in mid-May, and I expect to be near 50% of my growth goal for the year. The last 50% will be tougher, as I don't expect to see the same kind of bump in home equity to help me along.

Career: I do government research, so the pay is not spectacular, but the benefits are good. I get a lot of vacation and I don't have a stressful work day too often. I try to make the most out of the money I do earn, and now that I am putting it in print I expect to hold myself to a higher standard.

Goals: Like I said, I have set the bar high for the first year. My long term goal is to "retire" at 45. Again, I think this is setting the bar pretty high, and I will have to be smart and careful to get over it, but I think it is doable. I say "retire" because if I manage to find something I love doing (read: something that doesn't have me in an office for 40 hours per week), I may not want to retire at 45. Ideally I can do both; have the money to retire at 45 but continue to do things I enjoy, especially if they pay!

Who am I and what's the point?

I am a 27 year-old statistician with an interest in personal finance and an obsession for research and analysis. I've been out of grad school and in the working world for just under 4 years now, but only in the last 5 months have I really decided to be an active participant in my own finances. I've always been a little tight with money and a good saver, but until recently I didn't consider taking time out to actively monitor my net worth and make decisions that would ultimately make it grow. I'm not even sure I knew what net worth meant. I thought it was a word tossed around by the rich to leave the rest of us wanting.

Why am I blogging? For starters, it's an outlet. My girlfriend, my family, and my friends don't all share my obsession, and frankly they get a little tired of me talking about it. This blog gives me the forum to talk about the financial issues, opportunities, and struggles that affect (or at least interest) me.

It's also an opportunity to learn and share what I have learned. I've been reading financial blogs for awhile now, but I don't think I'm getting the most I can out of the community unless I actively participate.

I hope to stay aggressive in new posting, and I hope that this helps to draw in readers and their comments. This is a blog written from my perspective but I also want to think of it as an open forum for the exchange of ideas. Welcome to Analyzing Wealth!