Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Where are you and where are you going?
Post Reply
Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

March 2017 Update:

Image

Current Assets:
Cash $2,428
Main 401k $122,922
2nd 401k $1,958
IRA $24,409
Roth IRA $6,410
HSA $11,494
Home $70,000
Car $19,552

Current Debts:
Credit Card. -$547

February's Net Worth: $254,446
Current Net Worth: $258,626

Net Worth Increase of $4,180
February’s SWR 7.1%
March’s SWR 6.96%


I did my taxes and I had to pay 4k in combined State & Federal Taxes. I made too much money in 2016 even after all of my deductions, so I was forced to recharacterize my 2016 Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. I was hoping for a 5 figure net worth increase this month but due to paying 4k in income taxes and a small drop in fund values my increase was only $4,180. I will really have to try hard to make up for this short coming. April will be costly as well since I'll have $1,700 in Property Taxes to pay. 2017 definitely isn't panning out the way I had planned, but barring any other surprises I should be able to start investing after tax dollars in June.

Goals for March 2017 were:
-Try to hit a 5 Figure Net Worth Increase FAIL!
-Look for a 2nd job Done but didn’t take the offer

Goals for April 2017 are:
-Start hitting the gym
-Pay Property Tax Bill

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

Q1 2017 Review:



Q1 Progress

January + $6,712
February + $2,694
March + $4,180


Total Q1 Progress $13,586


Current SWR 6.96%

This has been by far the worst quarter in a long time. Lots of catching up to do to make up the difference. I want to stay at a minimum of 20k net worth increase per quarter but this year I really wanted to go for the 25k per quarter increase. I hope the following quarter will be better and I’m being realistic here I know when the market pulls back it will sting but I’m looking forward to getting lots more shares at a discount. That’s all for now.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

April 2017 Update:

Image

Current Assets:
Cash $3,903
Main 401k $126,973
IRA $25,803
Roth IRA $6,214
HSA $11,799
Home $70,000
Car $19,552

Current Debts:
Credit Card. -$408

March's Net Worth: $258,626
Current Net Worth: $263,836

Net Worth Increase of $5,210
March’s SWR 6.96%
Current SWR 6.83%


I'm a few days late posting this update. I attempted to post on the first but the forum was down and I've been extremely busy. April was an expensive month. I paid DMV Registration of $235 & Property Taxes of $1,700. I was able to roll over my old 401k from my previous employer to Vanguard after they gouged me with two separate $100 fees which equates to about 10% of the total value in fees. What a shit company! Also I'm finally to a point where I can start saving after tax dollars. It's been an unexpectedly expensive 2017. I will begin by saving a emergency fund with a institution that will give me at least 1% interest on a savings account. I would like to get to a point where I can save $8,800 in the emergency fund which would be exactly what I need to max out 2018's IRA & HSA. Money saved beyond that I may look to invest.

Goals for April 2017 were:
-Start hitting the gym FAIL
-Pay Property Tax Bill DONE!


Goals for May 2017 are:
-Start saving as much as possible in after tax dollars.

Frugalchicos
Posts: 658
Joined: Wed Apr 19, 2017 9:23 pm
Contact:

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Frugalchicos »

Congratulations on your 250K. Halfway there!

Keep it up, it will pay off

thrifty++
Posts: 1171
Joined: Sat May 23, 2015 3:46 pm

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by thrifty++ »

Nice work! Quarter mill. Are you starting to feel rich now?

I must ask where on earth are you that your home is only worth $70k?

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

Frugalchicos wrote:
Wed May 10, 2017 9:52 pm
Congratulations on your 250K. Halfway there!

Keep it up, it will pay off
Thank You!
thrifty++ wrote:
Wed May 10, 2017 11:31 pm
Nice work! Quarter mill. Are you starting to feel rich now?

I must ask where on earth are you that your home is only worth $70k?
Thanks Thrifty, not feeling rich at all man on the contrary kinda stressed. Stocks are high as well as Bonds. By the end of next month my Emergency Fund will be funded and I don't feel comfortable putting money in any investments right now besides my retirement accounts. BTW, the house is not 70K just the portion of ownership I have is 25% and my brother has 75% so when all the costs for selling are done I'm giving a good estimate of 70k for me to leave with.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

May 2017 Update:



Current Assets:
Cash $7,549
Main 401k $131,168
IRA $25,605
Roth IRA $6,108
HSA $12,091
Home $70,000
Car $19,552

Current Debts:
Credit Card. -$127

April's Net Worth: $263,836
Current Net Worth: $271,946

Net Worth Increase of $8,110
March’s SWR 6.83%
Current SWR 6.62%

I’m going to stop including the pic of my Mint summary because it’s a pain in the ass linking it using that horrible picture website Photobucket. Besides Mint never showed the HSA account anyways so it was always short/skewed. May was a ok month, I purchased a pair of shoes strictly for work and I got myself a new pair of running shoes. I used the full life of the 2 running shoes I tossed last week and had them both for over 8 years. $200 spent on shoes in May both were on sale 25% off. I tend not to buy anything until it goes on sale nowadays. I also went over my budget on groceries, but I went very low on my fast food budget. Over all I spent about $80 more over the month all categories included but I don’t mind. I’m eating healthier and it only breaks down to an additional $20 per week.

June will have a dividend payment included but I am not forecasting any big net worth increases due to not getting as much overtime at work as before. Things have slowed down a bit. If this continues too long I will be looking for a second job.



Goals for May 2017 were:
-Start saving as much as possible in after tax dollars.


Goals for June 2017 are:
-Have a Net Worth increase of 6k or better

User avatar
C40
Posts: 2748
Joined: Thu Feb 17, 2011 4:30 am

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by C40 »

Photobucket is shit. It's the AOL of online photo storage/sharing.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

C40 wrote:
Thu Jun 01, 2017 12:40 pm
Photobucket is shit. It's the AOL of online photo storage/sharing.
:lol: You got that right man, too many pop ups as well. I'll look for an alternative when I find the time. I'm very impressed with all your graphs, I need to step my game up!

m741
Posts: 1187
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:31 am
Location: Seattle, WA

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by m741 »

It's not perfect, but imgur (imgur.com) is probably the best overall image host right now. Very easy to use.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

June 2017 Update:



Current Assets:
Cash $8,817
Main 401k $134,273
IRA $25,389
Roth IRA $5,998
HSA $12,081
Home $70,000
Car $14,668

Current Debts:
Credit Card. -$550

May’s Net Worth: $271,946
Current Net Worth: $270,676

Net Worth Decrease $1,270
May’s SWR 6.62%
Current SWR 6.65%

June was another expensive month. I'm pretty sure this is the first month ever since I've been keeping track that my net worth actually went down. Besides my regular living expenses I had my annual Home Owners Insurance Premium, some State Licensing and local Business Licenses to renew, the freaking spring on my garage door snapped in 2 so I had to pay to get it fixed. The total for all of this was $1,800 of which I didn't budget for but should have known was due. Also Mint for over 6 months has not updated the value of my car so I manually checked KBB for the value and it dropped by over 5k! I’m through dealing with Mint. Personal Capital is a much better app. Well at least I got a dividend in my 401k of almost 1k in June. Hoping for a much more prosperous July.



Goals for June 2017 were:
-Have a Net Worth increase of 6k or better (Failed)


Goals for July 2017 are:
-Try to not have any unexpected costs.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

Q2 2017 Review:



Q2 Progress

April + $5,210
May + $8,110
June - $1,270


Total Q2 Progress $12,050
Total Q1+Q2 Progress $25,636

Current SWR 6.65%

The numbers speak for themselves. It will take short of a miracle to match last years 80k net worth increase let alone the goal I personally set for myself of hitting a 100k net worth increase in 2017 (Shooting for the stars, I know) I have 6 months left in the year with a 10k average monthly increase I will be able to beat 2016 by 5k. I’ll be looking for a second job and taking all overtime that comes my way. I’ve found a comfortable balance with my diet that makes eating at work and at home enjoyable and inexpensive. Not as healthy as I would like but can’t have everything.

User avatar
Viktor K
Posts: 364
Joined: Sat Jul 30, 2016 9:45 pm

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Viktor K »

So just read through your journal and added it to my subscriptions. Thanks for updating so consistently and being transparent and good luck hitting your goals the rest of the year.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

July 2017 Update:

Current Assets:
Cash $10,395
Main 401k $138,263
IRA $25,830
Roth IRA $6,210
HSA $12,504
Home $70,000
Car $14,537

Current Debts:
Credit Card. -$169

June’s Net Worth: $270,676
Current Net Worth: $277,570

Net Worth Increase $6,894
June’s SWR 6.65%
Current SWR 6.49%

Although I am shy of the 10k net worth increase I hoped for I still think the 6,894 is good. I'm optimistic for the next couple of months because August is a 3 paycheck month and September has a dividend payment coming. So hopefully some good progress can be had.

I am doing the “intermittent fasting” protocol in order to lose some weight and I think it's working out ok.


Goals for July 2017 were:
-Try to not have any unexpected costs.


Goals for August 2017 are:
-Try not to spend any money unnecessarily. No splurges.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

August 2017 Update:



Current Assets:
Cash $13,656
Main 401k $141,834
IRA $25,467
Roth IRA $6,019
HSA $12,703
Home $70,000
Car $13,983

Current Debts:
Credit Card. -$620

Prior Months Net Worth: $277,570
Current Net Worth: $283,042

Net Worth Increase $5,472
June’s SWR 6.49%
Current SWR 6.38%

Six month Auto insurance premium was due $650 plus a large electricity bill due to very hot weather and me being home during the day running the AC. The Net Worth increase of $5,472 is less than I hoped for. My cars value dropped by $554 according to KBB & overtime was not as readily available at work in August.


Goals for August 2017 were:
-Try not to spend any money unnecessarily. No splurges.


Goals for September 2017 are:
-Keep going to the gym and maybe find a second job if overtime keeps being sparse.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

September 2017 Update:



Current Assets:
Cash $16,872
Main 401k $146,898
IRA $26,376
Roth IRA $6,474
HSA $12,866
Home $70,000
Car $13,800

Current Debts:
Credit Card. -$190

Prior Months Net Worth: $283,042
Current Net Worth: $293,096

Net Worth Increase $10,054
June’s SWR 6.38%
Current SWR 6.14%

I love to see five figure monthly Net Worth increases. My car just hit 30,000 miles and I went to Walmart, Autozone, & O’reilly to get all the supplies I needed to service it. Found out that Amazon has much better prices with free delivery on the things I bought even though I do not have Prime. I was able to purchase a new engine and cabin air filter on Amazon for $16 for both while Autozone, O’reilly, and Walmart were charging over $20 just for the engine air filter.


Goals for September 2017 were:
-Keep going to the gym and maybe find a second job if overtime keeps being sparse.


Goals for October 2017 are:
-Find good paying second job

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

Q3 2017 Review:



Q3 Progress

July + $6,894
August + $5,472
September + $10,054


Total Q3 Progress $22,420
Total Q1 + Q2 + Q3 Progress $48,056

Current SWR 6.14%

I’m averaging a little over 16k Net Worth Increase per quarter and if this stays true for the final quarter of the year I will have a total of 64k Net Worth increase for 2017. Not bad but definitely less than I projected. I’m looking for a second job now so I can hopefully increase this final quarter performance.

Star*Bucks
Posts: 288
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:27 am
Location: California

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by Star*Bucks »

October 2017 Update:


Current Assets:
Cash $18,092
401k $149,549
IRA $26,492
Roth IRA $6,532
HSA $13,295
Home $70,000
Car $13,500

Current Debts:
Credit Card -$737


Prior Months Net Worth $293,096
Current Net Worth $296,723

Net Worth Increase of $3,627

Prior Months SWR 6.14%
Current SWR 6.09%

October has been a difficult month. The new company I’m working for really sucks. I have a job interview on Saturday the 4th for a great job with great benefits but the hourly pay will dip slightly. I hope to get that job and work my current job at the same time.

Net Worth increase looks pretty weak because I was only given one check this month. Anytime you have a new employer that first check usually takes 3 weeks to get. Things should go back to normal next month (hopefully) with higher NW increases.

Goals for November:
Get a solid job and keep my current job as part time

benecia
Posts: 24
Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 10:05 pm

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by benecia »

You've made amazing progress since you started this journal, really well done. Question, when you get to your number do you think you'll be able to stop or will the challenge of making your goals reality and the thrill of seeing the your NW increase keep you going?

thrifty++
Posts: 1171
Joined: Sat May 23, 2015 3:46 pm

Re: Star*Bucks ERE Journal

Post by thrifty++ »

Great that you are almost at 300k.
You could probably actually be financially independent now if you moved to low cost of living location or took a frugal extreme approach to things.
In any event your target number of $460k is not that far away now and must be on the horizon for you.

Post Reply