Star*Bucks ERE Journal

[Star*Bucks]

Q4 2024 & Year End Review:

Q4 Progress

October + $4,036
November + $4,973
December + $9,615

Total Q4 Progress $18,624

Q1 Progress $20,853
Q2 Progress $27,467
Q3 Progress $34,612
Q4 Progress $18,624

Current Net Worth $832,115

Current SWR 2.16%

2024 Average Monthly Net Worth Increase $8,463
2024 Average Monthly Dividend/Interest $2,836
2024 Total Dividends Received $34,031

Historical Annual Progress
2014’s Net Worth Increase $24,786
2015’s Net Worth Increase $43,912
2016’s Net Worth Increase $76,342
2017’s Net Worth Increase $68,122
2018’s Net Worth Increase $70,282
2019’s Net Worth Increase $42,274
2020’s Net Worth Increase $31,296
2021’s Net Worth Increase $77,022
2022’s Net Worth Increase $70,106
2023’s Net Worth Increase $118,165
2024’s Net Worth Increase $101,556

Happy that I was able to help my parents out throughout the year but I am so disappointed that I had to. Parents ideally are supposed to be there to push their kids forward and my whole life I have been the one helping them out. The reason I am still working now as my SWR is nearing 2% is because I need to be able to help them and when I retire I want to be able to help without having to resort to coming back to work.

I plan to take at least 2 trips per year. In 2024 I was able to go to Japan and Thailand. I needed those trips and I think a 2 week trip every four months would be ideal but my company will not go for that so I will settle for 2 trips a year. One in the first half and one in the back half of each year.

Disillusionment in Stock & Home Prices:
I’ve waited on the sidelines because I knew roughly every ten years there is a recession and stocks were/are way overvalued. I’m convinced it is not a Free Market system we are in. It is a manipulated system where there are people pulling the strings. If I was invested this whole time my net worth would be triple or even quadrupled.

It is a shame but I’ve waited this long and I will continue to collect close to 5% interest on my stash while I wait for what should be an inevitable crash but who knows, it may never come. That being said I may start investing weekly from my pay checks into value stocks such as Ford which has a healthy dividend and low stock price and it is not overvalued like most other stocks currently. I will probably spend about $200 per week going into stocks or ETF’s weekly (DCA).

New Years Resolution:
-Learn Spanish
-Get in shape and work on my health
-Finish Getting My Dental Work Done
-Begin Dollar Cost Averaging weekly from my payroll not my “stash”. When/If the market start to go into a recession then I can deploy savings into Vanguard Funds for the long term.
-Try to get a 10k+ average monthly net worth increase. That would equate to a 120k+ annual net worth increase which I almost did in 2023 ($118,165). The upcoming pay raise in April should help with this.

[Star*Bucks]

January 2025 Update:


Current Assets:
Cash: $3,017
HSA: $31,277
IRA: $147,480
Roth IRA: $232,007
Brokerage: $303,507
401k $48,302
Home $70,000
Car $9,000

Current Debts:
Credit Card -$1,455

Prior Months Net Worth $832,115
Current Net Worth $843,135

Net Worth Increase of $11,020

Prior Months SWR 2.16%
Current SWR 2.13%

Dividends/Interest Earned This Month: $2,587
Minimum Cash Value Credit Card Rewards Points: $8,995

Life & Finance:
Smog Check and Car Registration paid for in January. My car has over 165k miles and I never did a tune up. I looked up what it takes to do a tune up on a Prius and it is such a big job. You have to dismantle so much just to get access to the spark plugs. I will try to get around to this in the next month or two.

Fun:
None

Fitness/Health:
I actually fell off my diet a bit. I still go on my walks at work and I tried to increase those walks but you can’t outwork a bad diet. I will tighten up my diet again in February.

Goals for January were:
-Begin the process of maxing out 401k & HSA (Over 7k put into 401k in January)

Goals for February:
-Start working out & Tighten Up The Diet

[delay]

Dividends/Interest Earned This Month: $2,587

Thanks for your journal update! I wonder about those dividends. Which of your investments pay out dividends? Like individual stocks, an ETF or another construct?

Goals for February:
-Start working out & Tighten Up The Diet

Sounds familiar Good luck.

[Star*Bucks]

[/quote]
Thanks for your journal update! I wonder about those dividends. Which of your investments pay out dividends? Like individual stocks, an ETF or another construct?

Hey Delay, the only dividend paying account I have is my 401k. I am invested in the Vanguard Total Bond Fund VBTLX. The rest of my funds are just earning interest. I had several Treasuries and brokered CDs but they all have matured and I haven't had the chance to go in and research what's available. Hopefully, this ridiculous Trade War will finally lead to the recession and stock market crash I have been waiting for; so I can finally ride the wave down. I refuse to pay the cartoonishly inflated prices right now.

[delay]

I refuse to pay the cartoonishly inflated prices right now.

Thanks for reply, interesting! The thought about inflated prices has also crossed my mind. There might be a large correction coming. But another possibility is that the inflated prices are solved by inflation. In that scenario bonds would do badly. For myself, I have no confidence in my ability to predict the future of investments, so I invest in random stocks.

One funny thing happened is that I randomly selected two stocks that looked identical to me, both Singapore shipping companies. I followed the random generator anyway and the funny thing is that they had wildly different outcomes. One did very well and one did very badly. I have no idea why.

[Star*Bucks]

Thanks for reply, interesting! The thought about inflated prices has also crossed my mind. There might be a large correction coming. But another possibility is that the inflated prices are solved by inflation. In that scenario, bonds would do badly. For myself, I have no confidence in my ability to predict the future of investments, so I invest in random stocks.

One funny thing that happened is that I randomly selected two stocks that looked identical to me, both Singapore shipping companies. I followed the random generator anyway and the funny thing is that they had wildly different outcomes. One did very well and one did very badly. I have no idea why.

I have a scarcity mindset. It is a negative thing to say but I am very self-aware. It is due to how crushing the 2009 recession was to me. Not only that but I also have to tread lightly because my entire family are consumers and spend every cent of what they make. Also, my elderly parents have zero savings with only small social security checks to live on. If this were not the case I would have been more aggressive in my past decisions, but I have to be the safety net for my irresponsible family members.

I was planning to purchase Ford stock as the P/E was good and the dividend payment was also very favorable. The company is a bit rocky currently but they have always had ups & downs. I feel the stock is safe because, in my opinion, the worst-case scenario would be a buyout or a merger.

Warren Buffet is also sitting on the sideline with a ton of cash. I think he is waiting for a soon-to-come buying opportunity. Vanguard Funds will be the bulk of my investing but I will buy some individual stocks like Ford that I mentioned earlier that I find compelling.

[chenda]

Hopefully, this ridiculous Trade War will finally lead to the recession and stock market crash I have been waiting for; so I can finally ride the wave down. I refuse to pay the cartoonishly inflated prices right now.

Yes the stock market is still hopelessly in denial about what is happening.

[2Birds1Stone]

Yes the stock market is still hopelessly in denial about what is happening.

Don't hold your breath. This was one of my biggest mistakes during the first 5-7 years of my investing career.......ATH ATH ATH, how could we keep going up........yet here we are.

[Star*Bucks]

February 2025 Update:


Current Assets:
Cash: $3,498
HSA: $31,734
IRA: $147,962
Roth IRA: $232,765
Brokerage: $305,589
401k $57,091
Home $70,000
Car $9,000

Current Debts:
Credit Card -$2,224

Prior Months Net Worth $843,135
Current Net Worth $855,415

Net Worth Increase of $12,280

Prior Months SWR 2.13%
Current SWR 2.1%

Dividends/Interest Earned This Month: $2,333
Minimum Cash Value Credit Card Rewards Points: $8,932

Life & Finance:
Paid $900 for my 6-month auto insurance bill.

I have the Costco Credit Card and I redeemed a $154 Costco Certificate for the cashback from credit card spend. I also found out that the cash back for gas at Costco is going from 4% to 5%. I ran the numbers and I went ahead and upgraded my Costco Membership from Gold to Executive.

I applied for the Capital One Venture Rewards Card for the elevated offer and I was DECLINED!!! How can I be declined?!? I contacted the hotline for Capital One and they told me I have to wait 7-10 days for the letter before they can reconsider my application. I then got an email later that same day with the digital version of the letter which stated I have too many open accounts. My credit is excellent and never a single late payment and my credit utilization is always under 2%. Oh Well… It would have been an easy 1k in travel rewards after spending 4k in 3 months, which is a 25% return for spend I would have done anyway.

I purchased a full-priced pair of running shoes which I hate paying full price but I needed them asap. I also ordered a few items online to dial in my one-bag travel setup. When I travel it’s carry-on only and I want to have the lightest gear.

Fun:
None

Fitness/Health:
I purchased a bunch of Nike sweats from Sports Authority back in 2009/2010 because I liked the style and they were having a great sale. The Nike sweat pants are super comfortable and warm. They are not falling apart but I prefer not to wear them out anymore, but they are perfect for around-the-house wear.

I went with my brother to the Under Armor store during the Black Friday sales and I purchased 3 of my brothers favorite workout pants that he recommended to me. I finally put them to use in February and went to the gym a few times. There is a lot to be said about looking and feeling good at the gym. I love the way these joggers look and feel. I wish I had a few matching shirts and a zip-up hoodie to go with them but my brother was in a rush so I had to grab the joggers and go. Next time Under Armor has a big sale I’m going to get a few more pairs of joggers and shirts with the zip-up hoody.

Goals for February were:
-Start working out & Tighten Up The Diet

Goals for March:
-Continue Working Out
-Try to be more positive

[zbigi]

Thanks for reply, interesting! The thought about inflated prices has also crossed my mind. There might be a large correction coming. But another possibility is that the inflated prices are solved by inflation. In that scenario bonds would do badly.

If stock prices don't grow (ths his how I understand your "inflated prices are solved by inflation" remark), then they do as badly as bonds under high inflation - but bonds at least pay the coupon (some stocks pay dividends, but it's usually less than what bonds pay).
Bonds prices will go down if inflation hits, but it doesn't matter because this will automatically increase their Yield to Maturity (it matters only if you sell the bond before maturity) - the bond is still paying out the same amount and current valuation on the market is not affecting anything. It's true even in case of bond funds - value of their portfolio of bonds will drop, which will result in a drop of fund value, but it will start grow faster (higher YTM), so as long as you don't sell early, the inflation-caused fluctuation of bond prices do not affect your nominal returns.

[delay]

If stock prices don't grow (ths his how I understand your "inflated prices are solved by inflation" remark), then they do as badly as bonds under high inflation - but bonds at least pay the coupon (some stocks pay dividends, but it's usually less than what bonds pay).

Thanks for your reply. How about a thought experiment. Say that someone doubles the amount of dollars in circulation. This results in 50% inflation and now every dollar has half the purchasing power it had before. Bonds are tied to dollars, and will now have half their purchasing power. Stocks represent ownership in a company, and it would now take twice the amount of dollars to purchase the same ownership share. So in this scenario bonds half and stocks stay equal. What do you think?

[zbigi]

How about a thought experiment.

In case of massive inflation, bond real returns would obviously be heavily negative.
For stocks, companies would have the price of their products doubled which means that, if they retain their profit margins, their nominal profits should double as well. This in turn will halve the companies' P/E ratio. Normally, this would lead to stock prices going up, as the stocks would become a bargain. However, I was originally answering under your assumption that current P/Es are crazy high, and might get inflated away - under such assumption, the inflation would make P/Es fall, but the stock prices wouldn't grow, thus making bonds a better investment, as they'd at least pay the coupon.

[jacob]

You don't need to run thought experiments. There's data: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1879384620/

The most important thing to factor in here is that inflation increases earnings uncertainty and that earnings predictability (along with earnings growth expectations and of course animal spirits, etc.) is part of what factors into the market's P/E.

[delay]

However, I was originally answering under your assumption that current P/Es are crazy high, and might get inflated away - under such assumption, the inflation would make P/Es fall, but the stock prices wouldn't grow, thus making bonds a better investment, as they'd at least pay the coupon.

Thanks zbigi, that clears it up.

Thanks Jacob for the book recommendation, I'll see if I can find it somewhere.

[Star*Bucks]

March 2025 Update:


Current Assets:
Cash: $2,283
HSA: $32,201
IRA: $148,493
Roth IRA: $233,601
Brokerage: $309,071
401k $59,572
Home $70,000
Car $9,000

Current Debts:
Credit Card -$2,799

Prior Months Net Worth $855,415
Current Net Worth $861,422

Net Worth Increase of $6,007

Prior Months SWR 2.1%
Current SWR 2.08%

Dividends/Interest Earned This Month: $2,561
Minimum Cash Value Credit Card Rewards Points: $9,070

Life & Finance:
I was contributing 50% of my pay to my 401k and several weeks ago my contributions stopped being deducted from my check. I emailed several people about it and I didn’t hear anything until almost the end of March after returning home from vacation. The email stated that IRS rules state “Highly Compensated Employees” can not contribute to a 401k. Highly compensated means 155k+ for 2024. I checked my W-2 and I made 146k last year but if you include what the company matched into my 401k then I get to just over 156k. The email stated all the money I contributed so far for 2025 will be sent back to me and of course taxed to death. This is so unfair! Living in California and barely hitting 155k especially by doing endless overtime to get there is NOT highly compensated. This is such BS! I did some research and it seems like it’s the way my company structured the 401k that is leaving me in this bad situation. I am looking for another job now but whatever job I get I will stay at this job on a part time basis just as a safety net.

Fun:
I took a 17 day trip to Thailand. The purpose of my trip was continued dental work and R & R. A couple of visits to the dentist cost me $1,800 for a bone graft, implant, whole head CT scan, cleaning, and a bunch of things the dentist gave me like a saline solution, special mouth wash, pain killers, antibiotics, etc. This is significantly cheaper than what it would cost in America and my final appointment the dentist told me should be in 4-8 months. That appointment will have the final crown placed. The dentist said I will need at least 3 appointments during a 2 week period for this final work.

Besides the dental work I did enjoy Thailand. I tried new Thai dishes and Masaman Curry is one of my favorites now. I stayed in different parts of Bangkok just to get the feel of these different areas. The dentist told me not to drink alcohol and I typically do not drink but I wanted to on this vacation. On my 2nd to last day the dentist removed the stitches and told me everything is back to normal. No need to use the special mouth wash I can just use Listerine, I can brush in that area again, and I asked him about drinking and he said that was ok now as well. I went to the bar and had several vacation drinks starting with a Pina Colada and it was the best Pina Colada I ever had. It better be for 10 freaking bucks!! I then tried several other drinks like Mai Tai, Blue Hawaiian, etc and the best one by far was their Pina Colada.

I had 6 free night stays with Marriott and I put them to good use. I stayed at the St Regis, The Sheraton Grand, JW Marriott, Hotel Muse, Madi Paidi, and The Athenee. I really enjoyed staying at such nice places especially for free. Then I put to use a $50 credit I had with Agoda as well as a $50 hotel credit with my Chase card. I have plenty of points and free nights with other hotel chains but I will save those for later. I had to use the Marriott free night certificates because they were expiring.

Fitness/Health:
I was in Thailand back in October 2024 weighing 192 pounds and I felt Great! This time around I was around 207 pounds and I felt like crap. The heat felt worse the walking took a heavier toll. I am really mad at myself for allowing this to happen. Cleaning up my diet now and trying to recover from this trip. I have a pain in my right foot and knee. My bunion is seriously acting up probably due to all the walking I did in Thailand. Each day it has gotten better though especially after taking a hot shower and rubbing Icy Hot on both my knee and bunion.

Goals for March were:
-Continue Working Out (I did in most of the nice hotels I stayed at and I did a insane amount of walking)
-Try to be more positive (I did and I made an attempt to be more social and extroverted since I am so painfully shy and introverted)

Goals for April:
-Recover from my trip & allow the bunion and knee to heal
-Get back on the diet
-Get back in the gym

[Star*Bucks]

Q1 2025:

January $11,020
February $12,280
March $6,007

Q1 Progress $29,307




Current Net Worth $861,422

Current Safe Withdrawal Rate 2.08%

March net worth increase looks pretty weak due to being on vacation for more than half the month. I still almost averaged 10k per month for the quarter which is my goal. Earning 5 figures each month is important to me. Assuming I spend 2k per month when I retire and move overseas, I should get 5 or more months of freedom for each month that I work.

[delay]

Thanks for your journal update!

I was in Thailand back in October 2024 weighing 192 pounds and I felt Great! This time around I was around 207 pounds and I felt like crap. The heat felt worse the walking took a heavier toll. I am really mad at myself for allowing this to happen. Cleaning up my diet now and trying to recover from this trip.

Weight loss is one of those subjects. I read "diet" and that's what I tried for years. Like you, that left me "mad at myself" and "I felt like crap". Why not explore other options besides dieting, like intermittent fasting? For me, it turned out it's all about when I eat, not what I eat.

I have already reached my goal but because I have a family who have not planned well due to different circumstances I am sure I will be asked to help from time to time. So, I will need a buffer built into my plan and that is what I am working on now.

As you can read on these forums many people find it difficult to stop once they reach their goal. Working harder to help your family is admirable. Although I wonder, will giving family money really make things better? They would become dependent on you with all the consequences of such a relation. For example, it seems hard to set a financial support level a dependent is happy at.

[Star*Bucks]

Weight loss is one of those subjects. I read "diet" and that's what I tried for years. Like you, that left me "mad at myself" and "I felt like crap". Why not explore other options besides dieting, like intermittent fasting? For me, it turned out it's all about when I eat, not what I eat.

Yes!! I’ve been back 1 week from my vacation and I have been back to intermittent fasting and down 3 pounds. I am motivated now and will keep this up.

As you can read on these forums many people find it difficult to stop once they reach their goal. Working harder to help your family is admirable. Although I wonder, will giving family money really make things better? They would become dependent on you with all the consequences of such a relation. For example, it seems hard to set a financial support level a dependent is happy at.

You are correct. This is my stance when it comes to my brother & sister since they are still working and they just need to work hard, try to increase their earnings, decrease their foolish spending, and get out of debt. My main goal is to be there for my parents who are too old to work, have zero retirement savings, and are living on tiny social security checks.

I do at times feel bad for myself for growing up so broke and having to work since 15, missed out on playing sports (including little league), never having a bike or skate board. I at least can say I was lucky enough to never go hungry as a child but the continued forced work to take care of my elderly parents feels like a slap in the face after going through all of that. I feel like I didn’t have a childhood.

I have looked into working a remote job but I do not have the necessary skills currently, but I feel like that may be the answer to this situation. Otherwise I will pull the trigger and retire once I reach 7 figures which should hopefully be enough to weather any storm.

Just to clarify, I do not give any money to my family outside of gifts for birthdays or holidays. I am basically being the backstop in cases of emergency. During the 2009 recession I was financially destroyed. There was no financially strong person in my family to help and I wouldn’t ask for help even if there was. I realized I need to bring myself safety and also my family needs someone who is financially strong. I was hoping my brother would become strong as well and start saving a ton of money when I helped him pay off his condo a few years ago, but he ended up letting his consumer mindset take over and he upgraded to a large home with a large mortgage. So it’s back to only me being the safety net for the family.

I added my mother as a authorized user on one of my credit cards just to make things easier for myself since I live a couple of hours from everyone. So if she has a co pay for her surgery I don’t have to send her money I can just tell her to use the card. The card also comes with free lounge access for her at the airports but I doubt they will be taking any trips.

[delay]

I am basically being the backstop in cases of emergency.

Thanks for your reply. I think you're right. Help in bad times prolongs the bad times, help in good times increases debts, help in an emergency softens the blow and grants a second chance. Being an emergency backstop seems like the best thing to do.

[Star*Bucks]

April 2025 Update:


Current Assets:
Cash: $4,003
HSA: $32,667
IRA: $149,009
Roth IRA: $234,413
Brokerage: $312,714
401k $60,666
Home $70,000
Car $9,000

Current Debts:
Credit Card -$3,570

Prior Months Net Worth $861,422
Current Net Worth $868,902

Net Worth Increase of $7,480

Prior Months SWR 2.08%
Current SWR 2.07%

Dividends/Interest Earned This Month: $2,508
Minimum Cash Value Credit Card Rewards Points: $9,421

Life & Finance:
Processed Tax Returns for myself, my parents, and my brother. I paid 3k in State & Fed Taxes and I also paid almost 3k in Property Taxes. Really expensive month for me.

Fun:
Going to the gym has been nice

Fitness/Health:
When I came back from Thailand on March 27 I weighed 208.8 pounds and now just over a month later I am at 194.3 pounds. I got really aggressive due to a health issue.

I messaged my doctor because the discomfort in my right knee which started back in February was not going away. She told me to do a walk in for a X-ray and after the x-ray to make an appointment for a office visit with her. I was able to get an appointment with my doctor the next day after my x-ray and I have arthritis in my right knee. Probably from being obese for so long. I am at level 3 which is moderate and level 4 which is the highest level is where they discuss knee replacements.

I was so bummed. My whole life purpose was to save up enough so that I can travel and backpack around the world. How can I do that with a bum knee? I got over the news in just a few days and went hard core into getting myself physically better. This was the best motivation I could have ever gotten.

My doctor also recommended compression socks and physical therapy. I have a high deductible health plan so everything is costing me money. I may just focus the rest of this year on losing weight and when open enrollment comes around I may get a normal health plan and get all the other things done that my doctor recommended such as physical therapy, getting fitted for custom compression socks (instead of the store bought ones I have), etc.

I cleaned up my diet, doing intermittent fasting, no cheat meals/snacks, while still working a ton of overtime. As of the last two days I have had zero discomfort in my knee. Maybe it is the diet or maybe all the pressure being removed from the knee due to the weight loss. Who knows, I will just continue to drop weight and eat healthy. My goal weight was 180 pounds for the longest time but now I may shoot for 170 pounds just to get the most pressure off of my joints.

Just this morning I went to my doctors office to get the final travel immunization shots. While there I was offered a blood pressure check and I said yes. This was a great experience. The nurse sat me down, put the strap on my arm, and told me the machine will auto start in 5 minutes and to just relax. Typically they would just check my pressure and move on to the next thing. Well the machine ran three times and all three times were excellent readings. The average of all 3 was 110/73 which for me is amazing. Hopefully this clean diet, exercise, and weight loss can result in me not having to take the blood pressure and cholesterol medications in the future.

Goals for April were:
-Recover from my trip & allow the bunion and knee to heal (Bunion is healed, went to the doctor for the knee)
-Get back on the diet (Done)
-Get back in the gym (Done)

Goals for May:
-Continue the Diet & Exercise
-Work All Overtime Possible