Hello everyone! Summer is over. Our son is back from school and the weather is getting colder. It’s nice and quiet at home again. Ahhh…
August was a difficult month for me. I got shingles and spent most of the month in pain. After 5 weeks, the bruises on my forehead usually heal. I no longer have nerve pain, but my face still itches. I highly recommend getting the shingles vaccine if you are eligible at age 50. It hurts. I hope the itching goes away soon.
On the personal finance side, August was a good month. We spent more money than usual because of the move, but our price went up a bit. The stock market is doing very well and generating negative cash flow. We are absolutely in good shape for 2024.
Ok, I’m going to share how I’m doing with my New Year’s resolutions. Then, I’ll look at our net worth and cash flow. Let’s go!
2024 Terms
Here is my goal spreadsheet for 2024. It works well. Try it if you can’t keep up with your New Year’s resolutions. The key is to review the spreadsheet every month to track your progress. That way, you can see which goals need more attention and work on them. We don’t have much time left in 2024.
Financial Terms
FI ratio > 100%
The FI ratio is revenue divided by expenses. If you can generate enough income to cover your expenses, you’re good to go. By 2024, I have reduced this goal to 100%. We are growing and feel we could use more money. After 8 months, our FI rate is 109%. That’s good enough for now.
*FI rating = income / expenses
3% Law
Everyone is familiar with the 4% retirement withdrawal rule, right? Basically, you should have a successful retirement if you withdraw less than 4% of your investable assets annually. Let’s see if we can spend less than 3% by 2024. This is a great way to assess your retirement readiness. We will put everything together by the end of the year. Looks good so far.
Track net worth and hope by +10%
I have been tracking our value since 2006. Nice to see progress. This year, I would like to see 10% gains. At this point, profit is completely dependent on the stock market and there is not much I can do to influence this goal. I’ll just keep track and keep my fingers crossed.
Our total has gained 14.6% since the beginning of the year. Wow, that’s huge. I don’t think the stock market can keep up this pace, though. It will probably slow down a bit over the next few months.
Health Goals
Exercise 3 times a week
Now that I am 50 years old, health is a job 1. I need to exercise regularly to stay healthy for a long time. I joined a gym and plan to exercise at least 3 times a week. However, I was sick in August and only went 5 times. It was a huge setback. I will try to exercise more this month. Life after 50 is hard!
Health check
Equally important is going to the doctor. At this age, we have more care and protection to deal with. Here is my list for 2024.
- Colonoscopy. Done!
- Physical year.
- Dental examination. Done!
- A vision test. Done!
- Immunization. Tdap booster Done! Flu vaccine later.
Happy goals
International travel
Mrs. RB40 turns 50 this year and wanted to go on a fun ride he’ll never forget. We visited Japan for 3 weeks. It was good. We will visit again soon.
Happiness level > 8
I’m a happy guy by nature so this should be easy. Life has been good these past few years.
August was not a good month. We missed our return flight from Thailand and had to buy new tickets. I got shingles and was sick for a month. Being sick completely destroyed my level of happiness.
Help RB40Jr start a YouTube channel
We stopped this one. The RB40Jr. you are busy with other activities.
Total Merit (+14.6%)
I have been tracking our value since 2006. It is very encouraging to see our progress. The power of integration is amazing. Our investment returns far exceed my salary year. This year, our total is up 14.6% year to date. It’s really crazy. The stock market is pulling back a bit, though. That is to be expected and we will continue to invest whenever we can. The key is to keep investing.
***Important*** My best advice is to stay with the lesson. Don’t stop investing. You should continue to invest whether the stock market is up or down. You may think stocks are expensive, but they will look cheap in 10 years. Keep investing and you will achieve financial independence one day. Don’t try to time the market.
This is our total value chart from Empower. (Personal Capital is now Accredited.) Sign up for a free account at Empower to help manage your net worth and investment accounts. I check in regularly to check our value and use their free tools. It’s a great site for DIY investors.
August 2024 FIRE Cash Flow
This FIRE cash flow chart includes my online income, side gigs, and taxable income. Mrs. Salary RB40 is not there because he plans to retire soon…
August was a difficult month. We dipped into our savings to cover additional expenses.
August 2024 FIRE Income: $3,900
Our FIRE salary was good in August.
- Real Estate crowdfundingPrice: $188. You can read more on the RE Crowdfunding Passive Income page.
- Dividend IncomePrice: $1,793. It’s a good month.
- Rental Fee: $721. We’ve had an uneventful month in rentals.
- Blog income: $840. Slow month for the blog.
- Unusual activities: $295.
- Other: $63.
Cost: $7,292
This year, I plan to spend about $65,000. That was the amount we spent last year. That’s probably too optimistic. We’ll see how it goes.
Here are some details.
- HousesPrice: $1,246. This includes mortgage, utilities, furniture, repairs, and maintenance. Our housing costs are low because we live in a duplex. We split most of the costs with our tenant.
- TransportationCost: $690. Gas and insurance. I also had to renew my registration and annual parking permit.
- Entertainment: $506. We ate out a few times and went to see Cirque Du Soleil.
- GroceriesPrice: $485. The grocery bill was lower than usual.
- LifePrice: $417. I have had a few additional health related expenses due to shingles. It’s bad.
- A childPrice: $527. Unfortunately, child-related costs also increase as the RB40Jr grows. We make payments for his dentist and international school trips.
- It’s personalCost: $361. Mrs RB40 bought a few of her things.
- WalkingCost: $3,037. Wow!
To save:-$3,392
August 2024 wrap up
Okay, let’s wrap it up. August was a painful month for me, but I made it through. I just hope to stay healthy until 2024. It’s time to chill and relax at home.
That’s it for August. Did you have a good month?
A minimum wage is the key to early retirement. These days, I invest in commercial properties with CrowdStreet. They have many projects throughout the United States. Go check it out!
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A minimum wage is the key to early retirement. This year, Joe is investing in real estate with CrowdStreet. They have many projects all over the USA so check them out!
Joe also highly recommends Personal Capital for DIY investors. They have many useful tools to help you achieve financial independence.
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