Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

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Western Red Cedar
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Western Red Cedar »

Frugalchicos wrote:
Sun Dec 05, 2021 7:15 pm
- We are rebalancing our investments to 90-10%
What prompted you to invest a little more aggressively? Have you been doing more research since the FW case study? (I'm not second guessing this, just curious).

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

@WRC

Hello! We have been doing some research and according to the info we have seen, we agree we have been a little to conservative. Based on the studies, we would have more chances of success with a portfolio of all or 90% stocks. We are not any experts, but we try to make the best decisions based on what we read and is recommended.

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

Alright, it is that time of the year... Recap, thoughts, goals...lets get it started

DECEMBER INCOME –$11,376

DECEMBER EXPENSES – $4,208

- Rent: $1,150
- Groceries: $496.52
- Cellphones: $0 - both chica and I are using our work phones.
- Electricity: $25.38
- Internet: $68.89
- Misc./Entertainment: $829.73
- Day care: $1,473

CURRENT ASSETS: $813,358 ($27,474 increase from last month)
Cash savings: $20,686
Investments: $592,025
Chico’s 401K: $5,116
Chica's 401K: $18,147
HOUSE EQUITY: $177,383

We saved 63% of our income

Happenings this month:
- We visited The Basque Country for 10 days. Weather was amazing for most of the trip (in the 70s), ate a ton of pintxos, spent time with the fam and friends
- We saw the condo in person and it is well on its way. Pretty excited for the headquarters we are building
- My boss suggested to work for a month from The Basque Country. We will probably spend the month of March so we can see the completion of the building of the condo and maybe buy some furniture
- We didn't win the lottery of the marathon but we will most likely run the half

Image

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

RECAP 2021
- Started the year with $613,625 and ended with $813,357. Difference: $199,732
- We had $437,085 in investments at the beginning of the year, we ended with $592,825. Difference: $154,940
- Our savings average was 64.55%
- We made $4,636 on eBay
- We received $9,257 in dividends
- Our living expenses were $42,470. Average of $3,539/month

ACHIEVEMENTS 2021
- We hit our goal of $725K NW by August. We achieved $800K on 11/7
- Construction of the condo started in September. It will likely be done by March-April
- We moved to Chicago in April. Chica got a promotion making crazy money and I got a job even before the move.
- We stayed healthy during the entire Covid pandemic in 2021
- Mini is doing great. She speaks a lot, mostly in English
- We bought a storage room close to our condo for $7,900. it will be great to keep surfboards, bikes and camping gear
- I run a half marathon in 1 hour and 56 minutes

GOALS 2022
- To reach millionaire status by end of year
- Keep our groceries at $450/month
- Be purposeful with our miscellaneous money and try to keep it below $350/month
- Furnish our condo in The Basque Country with less than $7K
- Establish an exercise routine
- Keep an 80% vegan diet
- Make time for Chica and be a better father (I am currently not a bad one, I just want to be better)
- Read 15 books and try to learn to play the guitar

SAVING % 2021
January - 86.58%
February - 96.04%
March - 93.95%
April - 0%
May - 67.92%
June - 42.65%
July - 69.54%
August - 66.84%
September - 67.15%
October - 64.17%
November - 56. 92%
December - 63%

Happy New Year to all of you and thanks for your comments and support!

Nicolino
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Nicolino »

Wow, sounds like a great year, congratulations! And the goals for 2022 sound exciting!

theanimal
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by theanimal »

Glad you, Chica and Mini are all doing well. Regarding the guitar playing, have you thought about doing something easy like setting up a daily habit for 5-10 min of play? Something a la James Clear's Atomic Habits. The idea being to get yourself in the mindset of being someone who plays the guitar everyday, and once that develops, expanding from there. Rather than trying something like playing 2 hours one Saturday, an hour on Sunday then being too exhausted after work on Monday, skipping it and not playing for another 6 weeks*. My DF has been following a similar routine with regards to the banjo. She started with a 30 days of banjo video series on YouTube and practices for 10 minutes everyday soon after waking up. I've been doing the same with regards to meditation each day. There's not much friction in starting in either case since it's only 10 minutes.

*If that high duration method works well for you, all power to you.

Western Red Cedar
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Western Red Cedar »

I would second @theanimal's suggestion. I set up a simple spreadsheet to track goals and habits to start off the new year and it has been helpful to reinforce some of the habits I've been building, along with some goals that I put on the back burner in 2021. One of those I had dropped is a daily Spanish practice. I've been much more consistent with my Spanish, meditation, and personal journalling as a result of this new practice.

I also have guitar on my spreadsheet, but I really only aim to play a few times a week. I assume your life is busy, so you may opt to pick a few specific days to practice guitar if you can't do it every day. But.....a short daily practice would probably be a great idea if you want to pick up this new hobby. You could even start with 5 minutes per day, just to get in the habit of picking up the instrument. My Spanish goal is 10-15 minutes but I regularly double or triple that goal.

Also - congratulations on the condo! That sounds very exciting and it has to feel great continuing progress in the Basque region while you continue to build wealth in the US.

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

@nicolino @theanimal @westernredcedar

Thanks for the comments guys!

The thoughts about how to set up goals are definitely helpful. My goals are a little vague at the moment and need to set up some metrics. For working out, I would like to set it up at 3 times a week and for running, I would like to run the half in 1 hour and 50 minutes. However, life at the moment evolves around the 2 year old mini we have…So far I gifted myself a second hand set of Bose earbuds sport (they don’t move from your ears and pair amazing, great for running) and a couple of shorts…at least the purchases will help building the momentum :roll:

For playing the guitar, I would like to set some time aside during my lunch break. Even if it is 15-20mns a day, the progress would be evident by summer. I can’t really play when mini is in the house since she wants to play/smash the guitar or maybe she is taking a nap.

15 books in 2022 is a pretty modest number. The paperwhite I got works wonders for me (I think it is the paperwhite 3 from 2015), the backlight is great for reading at night (thanks for the recommendation Animal) - any reading recommendations are welcome!!

theanimal
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by theanimal »

I really like John Valliant's books. He takes an environmental issue and mixes it with violence/crime. His first two books, The Golden Spruce and The Tiger are non-fiction and his latest Jaguar's Children is fiction. I really, really liked the latter 2, and enjoyed the first as well.

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

@theanimal

Awesome, i will add them to my list! Thanks

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

JANUARY INCOME –$10,424

JANUARY EXPENSES – $5,735

- Rent: $1,150
- Groceries: $627
- Cellphones: $0 - both chica and I are using our work phones.
- Electricity: $26.25
- Internet: $68.89
- Misc./Entertainment: $2,663 ($1000 dentist for chica, $1,100 tickets for The Basque Country)
- Day care: $1,133
- Gym: $66.98

CURRENT ASSETS: $835,449 ($22,091 increase from last month)
Cash savings: $28,929
Investments: $604,574
Chico’s 401K: $5,476
Chica's 401K: $19.087
HOUSE EQUITY: $177,383

We saved 45% of our income

Happenings this month:
- We tested positive as soon as we came back from the Basque Country...spent confined half of the month
- We bought tickets to spend the month of March in The Basque Country. We will not get charge for daycare. At least we balance the ticket expense
- Goal: we need to get our shit together with groceries and miscellanious expenses. I feel I don't do shit and spend a ton of money regardless
- We will monitor our expenses on a weekly basis
- I am pretty confident we will have to pay about $11,000 in taxes. We are putting money aside to pay it by April. I am not in a rush to give the money to the government to spend it in shit, wars and bullshit...
- Anyways, I am excited to leave the snow and cold behind in 3 weeks and spend a month in The Basque Country. We will be working US hours, so we will be working from 2-11pm. However, I will have the entire morning to go surfing, running or walking around with the Chicas.

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

Time for a delayed update:

No much to report these days. We are working for a month from the Basque Country, it is a good timing since the renovation of our condo is almost done. Everything is getting together and looking good. It will be a good headquarter for Frugal Chicos.

I am going to do a quick update with highlights:
- I got a 6% raise and a 10% bonus from last year's performance
- It seems chica is going to get a good raise and bonus from last year's performance
- We traveled to the Basque Country. We will be working from here for a month
- Condo renovation will be done by end of month
- We will probably have to pay 11K in taxes from last year
- I've been feeling anxious lately. I think it is a combination of inactivity, cold and snowy weather in Chicago, the last two years of Covid compounding, the war in Ukraine, stock market being down, etc. I am going to try to go surfing a couple of times before we go back to Chicago, it will help to relieve pressure.
- Our NW went down about 43K due to the war. I don't really have all the figures for this month, don't really feel like doing a full update to be honest.
- Once we pay taxes, we will continue investing aggressively

Be safe guys!

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

We are back in the States, time for a monthly update:

I am just going to cluster my ideas in the following bullet points.

- Our NW is about $857K - it is about $64,000 increase from last month
- We had to pay about 15K in taxes - that hurt badly
- we spent a good month in the Basque Country. It was a little hard working until late in the evening and dealing with contractors in the morning. Luckily, we were there to supervise and finalize details of the renovation. The condo is looking great and it is almost done.
- We have a few vacations scheduled this year. April in Cancun, a week in July in Michigan and 2 weeks in August in The Basque Country. This year, I want to take it easy and enjoy some quiet time
- Along with the lines above. I am ready to start relaxing a little bit more and spend a little bit more if it is necessary.
- It seems that I am on the way of getting a promotion by the end of the year. I will revise with my director my Personal Development Plan next week.
- I would like to buy a longboard or soft-board this summer to do some surfing. I need it badly
- I am excited for the nice weather in Chicago. I would like to start running outside soon. I am planning in running a half by September. Nothing official, I will just run by myself until I complete a half marathon the fastest I can.

Plans for the near future:
- Enjoy my time with the family, reading, running and longboarding. Currently reading The Martian
- Improve and gain skills at work. I want to make more money and play career in the next 2-3 years. I would like to reach the max I can before I quit my professional life

Plans for the future (post retirement):
- Dedicate most of my time to family and sports. This includes yoga, running, surfing and cycling
- Read fiction and non-fiction
- Perfectionate my French and Basque
- Perhaps learn a trade like electricity, plumbing or mechanics (I am more inclined for the last)
- Cook the healthiest and more sustainable food I can
- Mostly lead a simple life full of activity and social interaction

Nicolino
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Nicolino »

A great update! You sound very upbeat and forward looking, surely spring must be in the air!

Hopefully you guys continue going like this and this enables you flexibility in the future. My wife and I are both from different countries to, so having mobility and flexibility in the future is something I really look forward to.

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

@Nicolino

Hello!
Not really feeling upbeat but excited to start feeling great and energized. Finishing the condo renovation will definitely take a lot of stress off my shoulders (it has been a long reno and had to be on the watch because some things were not been done as agreed).

In regards to flexibility, I totally agree that flexibility is key to adapt and move around as suits you. Which countries are guys from?

Nicolino
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Nicolino »

I am from Argentina, my wife is from Peru. We are expecting a baby, that will probably be born in Chile. I think medium term we´ll probably move to Peru, but having the flexibility to travel for extended periods (weeks?) to Argentina or Peru (if we move to a third country or stay in Chile) is something I would like to have an option. This will probably become more important as our parents age, I guess...

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

Well, congrats!! I would love to visit all those countries one day. Being able to travel around “your countries” is amazing. I hope you like ceviche as much as el asado :)

Nicolino
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Nicolino »

Haha I much prefer asado, although ceviche is pretty good too. We have this thing going back and forth at home which is the best city for eating Lima or Buenos Aires?? If you ever come around Lima, Santiago or Buenos Aires definitely let me know!

Frugalchicos
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by Frugalchicos »

@nicolino
I will! Thanks ;)

theanimal
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Re: Frugal chicos journal - ERE in The Basque Country

Post by theanimal »

Glad you were able to spend some more time in the Basque country! Are you able to tie in your desire to learn a trade with renovations of your condo? What's the plan with the surfboard if you get one? Would you get this for the Basque visits or to go elsewhere in the US?

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