Thursday, December 26, 2019

Weekly Stock Purchases


Here are my weekly JPM stock purchases




  • OHI:  6 shares @ $41.45 --- Yield  6.47% 
  • WBA:  4 shares @ $58.52 --- Yield  3.13%
  • CL:  4 shares @ $68.64 --- Yield  2.51%

Total capital invested is $757.34 with a combined yield of 3.99%. These purchases will add $30.28 to my yearly dividends.

WBA is a relatively new position and I will try to build it up to around 80 shares in the coming months.

DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Thursday, December 19, 2019

Weekly Stock Purchases




Today I added to my MO, XOM, and CL positions.


  • MO:  5 shares @ $51.32 --- Yield  6.55%
  • XOM:  3 shares @ $69.58 --- Yield  5.00%
  • CL:  4 shares @ $68.08 --- Yield  2.53%

Total capital invested is $737.61 and the yield is 4.63%.  These purchases will add $34.12 to my yearly dividends.

DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

November 2019 Passive Income




Here is the passive income I received from both taxable and retirement accounts.


Taxable Account

  • Amegy CD --- $592.77
  • T --- $231.54
  • GIS --- $49.00
  • PG --- $26.11
  • ABBV --- $23.60

Retirement Account

  • 65/35 S&P 500/Bonds --- $255.53

Total November 2019 passive income is $1178.55.

Another solid month of income although my taxable income dropped a bit after selling off the E-trade account. I am currently adding back positions to my Chase account and hope to keep my monthly income in the $1,000+ range starting next year.


DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Monday, December 2, 2019

November 2019 Net Worth




All figures except my Jeep value are generated from Mint.com.

Well another month is in the books and November marked the third month in a row that I surpassed the $900k level. In fact, I hit a new post retirement high eclipsing $915k. When I became FI 21 months ago I started with out with $909k in total net worth. While I'm still $2k away from my all time high of $917 reached a month before FI, I feel pretty good about the trajectory.

My 401k reached a new all time high surpassing $400k and has been a steady engine for my portfolio. Nothing is guaranteed, but if I can get a "double" in the next 20 years I will feel super good about receiving roughly 2500 a month SS combined with $800k in retirement funds.

More important than my net worth, I am completely content with life. As I type this entry, I am sitting in front of a warm fireplace watching Monday night football while my girlfriend works on a Rotary project and my mom is sits with our Chihuahua putting together a jigsaw puzzle. Our minds our totally free and we spend our time "living in the now". I will never be able to adequately express how liberating this is.

Here is my net worth summary from November.

Assets

Checking --- $42,679
Savings/Investments --- $440,353
Lending Club --- $419
HSA --- $2,015
IRA --- $10,776
401K --- $403,355
2014 Jeep Wrangler --- $18,700


Liabilities

$2,763

Net Worth

$915,534


YTD Totals

2019      

 ***Jan 1,2019 --- 864,816***

Jan 31, 2019 --- $887,560
Feb 28. 2019 --- $895,998

Mar 31, 2019 --- $899,902
Apr 30, 2019 --- $904,190

May 31, 2019 --- $880,455
June 30, 2019 --- $894,816

July 31, 2019 --- 898,515
Aug 31, 2019 --- $894,960

Sept 30, 2019 --- $900,639
Oct 31, 2019 --- $904,935

Nov 30 2019 --- $915,534


2018

Jan 2018 --- $917,116
Feb 2018 --- $910,667

Mar 2018 --- $909,746
Apr 2018 --- $903,416

May 2018 --- $889,032
Jun 2018 --- $893,278

Jul 2018 --- $892,002
Aug 2018 --- $896,619

Sep 2018 --- $899,763
Oct 2018 --- $876,927

Nov 2018 --- $891,402
Dec 2018 --- $864,613


2017

May 2017 --- $835,009
July 2017 --- $851,904 


Aug 2017 --- $860,072
Sept 2017 --- $869,374

Oct 2017 --- $887,033
Nov 2017 --- $897,145

Dec 2017 --- $914,266


There is no down time when building a path that doesn't lead back to ZERO

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

October 2019 Passive Income


Here is the passive income I received from both taxable and retirement accounts.


Taxable Account

  • Amegy CD --- $573.63
  • PM --- $140.40
  • MO --- $117.60
  • TUP --- $108.00
  • CAH --- $48.10
  • M --- $37.75
  • KMB --- $20.60
  • GE --- $1.01

Retirement Account

  • 65/35 S&P 500/Bonds --- $245.65

Total October 2019 passive income is $1292.74

Another solid income month. I closed out my E-trade account and sold off my positions and am adding new positions in my Chase account. I've been wanting to keep all my accounts under one roof for a while and Chase finally offers low fees on stock purchases with their You-Invest-Trade accounts. Right now I get 100 free trades!

Also 2019 is my first year with ZERO W-2 Income so I can sell off some positions without tax consequences. I love the rates on long term gains and qualified dividends in retirement :)


DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Friday, November 1, 2019

October 2019 Net Worth




All figures except my Jeep value are generated from Mint.com.

Well I finally broke through through hit a new net worth high for the year and hopefully I won't drop back down below $900,000 for a while.

My checking account is quite a bit higher because I sold off some positions. I plan to reinvest back into either the markets or perhaps start refunding my Lending Club Account. I never did earn more that about 6% on it, but with interest rates falling my maturing CDs will most likely fall below 2% when they renew and a fairly steady 6% income stream is perfect for me right now.

My current net worth of $904,935 is $28,008 higher than last October's $876,927. What makes this even more amazing is that I also spent $34,800 in cash to fund my lifestyle while making $0 in traditional day job earnings. This is escape velocity in real time and I LOVE IT!!

I also should note that my net worth despite spending over $60,000 during the last 20 months with again, ZERO day job income, has only dropped $1,000 since I retired at the end of Feb 2018.

Here is my net worth summary from October.

Assets

Checking --- $54,879
Savings/Investments --- $427,870
Lending Club --- $419
HSA --- $2,015
IRA --- $10,578
401K --- $393,263
2014 Jeep Wrangler --- $19,000


Liabilities

$3,089

Net Worth

$904,935


YTD Totals

2019      

 ***Jan 1,2019 --- 864,816***

Jan 31, 2019 --- $887,560
Feb 28. 2019 --- $895,998

Mar 31, 2019 --- $899,902
Apr 30, 2019 --- $904,190

May 31, 2019 --- $880,455
June 30, 2019 --- $894,816

July 31, 2019 --- 898,515
Aug 31, 2019 --- $894,960

Sept 30, 2019 --- $900,639
Oct 31, 2019 --- $904,935


2018

Jan 2018 --- $917,116
Feb 2018 --- $910,667

Mar 2018 --- $909,746
Apr 2018 --- $903,416

May 2018 --- $889,032
Jun 2018 --- $893,278

Jul 2018 --- $892,002
Aug 2018 --- $896,619

Sep 2018 --- $899,763
Oct 2018 --- $876,927

Nov 2018 --- $891,402
Dec 2018 --- $864,613


2017

May 2017 --- $835,009
July 2017 --- $851,904 


Aug 2017 --- $860,072
Sept 2017 --- $869,374

Oct 2017 --- $887,033
Nov 2017 --- $897,145

Dec 2017 --- $914,266


There is no down time when building a path that doesn't lead back to ZERO

Friday, October 25, 2019

September 2019 Passive Income




Here is the passive income I received from both taxable and retirement accounts.


Taxable Account

  • Amegy CD --- $592.78
  • ABALX --- $354.78
  • SO --- $64.06
  • F --- $52.50
  • XOM --- $52.48
  • IBM --- $41.03
  • KHC --- $36.26
  • LB --- $30.54

Retirement Account

  • 65/35 S&P 500/Bonds --- $1242.38

Total September 2019 passive income is $2,466.81

Great income month with almost 50% coming from taxable and 50% coming from my 401k. I also had another great CD income month. 

I have been shuffling my portfolio around a bit lately and will adjust my holdings on my dividend sheet page soon. 

DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

September 2019 Net Worth




All figures except my Jeep value are generated from Mint.com.

After 19 months of retirement, I'm right on the $900,000 mark. It's amazing how that number seems to be where my assets hover. My all-time high net worth was a hair over 917,000 a month before retirement and my post retirement month-end low was at the end of 2018 around $864,000. Most months I wind up between $885k and $900k.

Well the more things change, the more they same the same, I guess.

Anyway here are the net worth numbers for September.

Assets

Checking --- $2,400
Savings/Investments --- $476,871
Lending Club --- $524
HSA --- $2,315
IRA --- $10,422
401K --- $388,607
2014 Jeep Wrangler --- $19,500


Liabilities

$3,549

Net Worth

$900,639


YTD Totals

2019      

 ***Jan 1,2019 --- 864,816***

Jan 31, 2019 --- $887,560
Feb 28. 2019 --- $895,998

Mar 31, 2019 --- $899,902
Apr 30, 2019 --- $904,190

May 31, 2019 --- $880,455
June 30, 2019 --- $894,816

July 31, 2019 --- 898,515
Aug 31, 2019 --- $894,960

Sept 30, 2019 --- $900,639


2018

Jan 2018 --- $917,116
Feb 2018 --- $910,667

Mar 2018 --- $909,746
Apr 2018 --- $903,416

May 2018 --- $889,032
Jun 2018 --- $893,278

Jul 2018 --- $892,002
Aug 2018 --- $896,619

Sep 2018 --- $899,763
Oct 2018 --- $876,927

Nov 2018 --- $891,402
Dec 2018 --- $864,613


2017

May 2017 --- $835,009
July 2017 --- $851,904 


Aug 2017 --- $860,072
Sept 2017 --- $869,374

Oct 2017 --- $887,033
Nov 2017 --- $897,145

Dec 2017 --- $914,266


There is no down time when building a path that doesn't lead back to ZERO

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Recent Buy --- MO




Today I added a few more shares to my MO position.


  • MO:  30 shares @ $39.40 --- Yield  8.53%

Total capital invested is $1182.00 and will add $100.80 to my yearly dividends.

I will add more aggressively if MO reaches 10% or higher.

DEFY MEDIOCRITY


Thursday, August 22, 2019

July 2019 Passive Income




Here is the passive income I received from both taxable and retirement accounts.


Taxable Account

  • Amegy CD --- $573.64
  • PM --- $136.80
  • TUP --- $108.00
  • MO --- $88.00
  • CAH --- $48.10
  • KMB --- $20.60
  • GE --- $1.01

Retirement Account

  • 65/35 S&P 500/Bonds --- $219.65

Total July 2019 passive income is $1195.80

My CD income jumped up quite a bit as I invested the proceeds from my home sale into a 2.5% 2 year Amegy CD in the beginning of June. Considering both the 2 YR and 10 YR bonds are hovering around 1.5% after massive drops during the past couple of months, I feel I caught lightning a bottle with that rate.

Other than buying a few shares here and there this month, everything is nice and calm and I just continue to sit back and live off the passive income streams.


DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Recent Buy -- M




Today I initiated a position in M.

  • M:  150 shares @ $15.90 --- Yield  9.44%

Total capital invested is $1590.00 and will add $151.00 to my yearly dividends.

The past few years have not been kind to Macy's. Considering the stock has fallen from $83 all the way down to $15 and change, its struggles along with many other retailers are widely known.

This is an iconic brand and I hope that the restructuring plan resembles that of BBY and not BBBY.

Obviously this is a speculative purchase and I fully understand this company may join the ash heap with Sears and JC Penny. Time will tell.

In other news I'm still watching MO closely (7% yield), PFE (drastic fall recently) and WBA (down around 50% this past year).

DEFY MEDIOCRITY



Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Recent Buy --- XOM




Today I add to my XOM position.


  • XOM:  16 shares @ $68.47 --- Yield   5.08%

Total capital invested is $1095.52 and this purchase will increase my yearly dividends by $55.68.

XOM briefly traded at a 5% yield at the end of 2018 when I last added shares. Will add more if weakness continues. I am also closely watching HP (Helmerich & Payne) which is now trading in the high 30s and its yield is approaching 8%. I'll probably initiate a position around $35. Also Shell in the $40s and BP in the $20s will peak my interest if they get there.

DEFY MEDIOCRITY







Thursday, August 1, 2019

July 2019 Net Worth




All figures except my Jeep value are generated from Mint.com.

The Net Worth line keeps inching forward as evidenced by another $4,000 monthly gain. I finished the month just a hair under $899,000. Since I retired 17 months ago I have experienced extreme resistance around the $900,000 level. One day I hope to blow through that number permanently.

It does feel good to have positive month/month and year/year gains though. My YTD net worth gain is $34,000 which equates to about $5,000/month. I'll take it!

I also adjusted my Jeep value up from $17,500 to $20,000 as I actually received a cash value to buy it at a local auction. I decided to keep it since I enjoy it so much :) Anyway, here are the numbers from July.


Assets

Checking --- $3,429
Savings/Investments --- $480,637
Lending Club --- $793
HSA --- $2,101
IRA --- $10,316
401K --- $385,355
2014 Jeep Wrangler --- $20,000


Liabilities

$4,116

Net Worth

$898,515


YTD Totals

2019      

 ***Jan 1,2019 --- 864,816***

Jan 31, 2019 --- $887,560
Feb 28. 2019 --- $895,998

Mar 31, 2019 --- $899,902
Apr 30, 2019 --- $904,190

May 31, 2019 --- $880,455
June 30, 2019 --- $894,816

July 31, 2019 --- 898,515


2018

Jan 2018 --- $917,116
Feb 2018 --- $910,667

Mar 2018 --- $909,746
Apr 2018 --- $903,416

May 2018 --- $889,032
Jun 2018 --- $893,278

Jul 2018 --- $892,002
Aug 2018 --- $896,619

Sep 2018 --- $899,763
Oct 2018 --- $876,927

Nov 2018 --- $891,402
Dec 2018 --- $864,613


2017

May 2017 --- $835,009
July 2017 --- $851,904 


Aug 2017 --- $860,072
Sept 2017 --- $869,374

Oct 2017 --- $887,033
Nov 2017 --- $897,145

Dec 2017 --- $914,266


There is no down time when building a path that doesn't lead back to ZERO

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Recent Buys --- MO & ABBV


Today I added to my MO position and initiated a new position in ABBV


  • MO:  30 shares @ $47.70 --- Yield  6.71%
  • ABBV:  20 shares @ $66.49 --- Yield  6.44%

Total capital invested is $2760.80. The combined yield is 6.58% and will add $181.60 to my yearly dividends. These are commission free trades through Chase.

This is my first stock purchase since January. I'm always interested in adding shares of MO especially when the yield is around 7%.

While the market keeps reaching new highs, ABBV continues its painful descent having dropped almost $60 a share over the past year and a half. Hopefully the dividend is safe. I would hate to see it follow the paths of TEVA, GE, and TUP.

DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Monday, July 8, 2019

June 2019 Passive Income




Here is the passive income I received from both taxable and retirement accounts.


Taxable Account

  • ABALX --- $660.60
  • Amegy CD --- $340.90
  • SO --- $64.06
  • F --- $52.50
  • XOM --- $52.48
  • IBM --- $41.03
  • KHC --- $36.26
  • LB --- $30.54

Retirement Account

  • 65/35 S&P 500/Bonds --- $1217.95

Total June 2019 passive income is $2,496.32

Not much to say other than everything is progressing nicely and early retirement is going well. I try to do new things each day and continue to collect memorable experiences. So far so good. I honestly haven't paid much attention to stock values or dividend yields. 

Spreadsheets, valuations, and spending hours researching stocks isn't what life is about. Exploring, hiking, swimming, yoga, wine tasting, and relationships are what I focus on now. 



DEFY MEDIOCRITY

Saturday, June 1, 2019

May 2019 Net Worth




All figures except my Jeep value are generated from Mint.com.

Well the market had a very volatile month in May and the S&P 500 dropped by 6.6%. Obviously this caused my net worth to fall quite a bit....almost $24,000. Since I don't have a huge exposure to the markets, my loss was offset by bonds and a large cash position.  My net worth Beta is roughly .3 in relation to the S&P 500 which helps me sleep at night!  If we enter a secondary bear market like in December, I'll probably add $15,000 to $25,000 in some core positions. MMM, UPS, CAH, XOM, and MO are starting to look attractive. ABBV and LYB yields are also approaching 6%!

I am also in the process of selling my house so that could shake up my net worth in the coming months. While I would like to think I am fairly conservative in my estimate, expenses such as moving, home repairs, and agent fees could cause a $5,000-$10,000 swing. No big deal. We all go through this and I have not moved in almost 23 years.

Here is the May 31, 2019 net worth breakdown.


Assets

Checking --- $917
Savings/Investments --- $351,086
Lending Club --- $1,047
HSA --- $2,100
IRA --- $8,883
401K --- $363,905
2014 Jeep Wrangler --- $19,500
House --- $135,000

Liabilities

$1,983

Net Worth

$880,455


YTD Totals

2019      

 ***Jan 1,2019 --- 864,816***

Jan 31, 2019 --- $887,560
Feb 28. 2019 --- $895,998

Mar 31, 2019 --- $899,902

Apr 30, 2019 --- $904,190

May 31, 2019 --- $880,455


2018

Jan 2018 --- $917,116
Feb 2018 --- $910,667

Mar 2018 --- $909,746
Apr 2018 --- $903,416

May 2018 --- $889,032
Jun 2018 --- $893,278

Jul 2018 --- $892,002
Aug 2018 --- $896,619

Sep 2018 --- $899,763
Oct 2018 --- $876,927

Nov 2018 --- $891,402
Dec 2018 --- $864,613


2017

May 2017 --- $835,009
July 2017 --- $851,904 


Aug 2017 --- $860,072
Sept 2017 --- $869,374

Oct 2017 --- $887,033
Nov 2017 --- $897,145

Dec 2017 --- $914,266


There is no down time when building a path that doesn't lead back to ZERO

Saturday, May 11, 2019

April 2019 Net Worth


All figures except my Jeep value are generated from Mint.com.

April was another fantastic month on the net worth side. Despite my home value estimate dropping by $5,000, my overall net worth increased around $4,000.

April also marks my first year over year net worth increase since I retired. My net worth over the past year actually is almost $1,000 higher than a year ago. I am also within $5,000 of eclipsing my Day 1 Retirement net worth.

I have had the time of my life during the past 14 months and have virtually the amount of money as I did when I stopped receiving a paycheck. That is still difficult for me to comprehend, but I'll take it!

Here is my March 31, 2019 net worth breakdown.
Assets

Checking --- $1,241
Savings/Investments --- $360,455
Lending Club --- $1,339
HSA --- $2,100
IRA --- $10,227
401K --- $377,483
2014 Jeep Wrangler --- $19,500
House --- $135,000

Liabilities

$3,155

Net Worth

$904,190


YTD Totals

2019      

 ***Jan 1,2019 --- 864,816***

Jan 31, 2019 --- $887,560
Feb 28. 2019 --- $895,998

Mar 31, 2019 --- $899,902

Apr 30, 2019 --- $904,190


2018

Jan 2018 --- $917,116
Feb 2018 --- $910,667

Mar 2018 --- $909,746
Apr 2018 --- $903,416

May 2018 --- $889,032
Jun 2018 --- $893,278

Jul 2018 --- $892,002
Aug 2018 --- $896,619

Sep 2018 --- $899,763
Oct 2018 --- $876,927

Nov 2018 --- $891,402
Dec 2018 --- $864,613


2017

May 2017 --- $835,009
July 2017 --- $851,904 


Aug 2017 --- $860,072
Sept 2017 --- $869,374

Oct 2017 --- $887,033
Nov 2017 --- $897,145

Dec 2017 --- $914,266


There is no down time when building a path that doesn't lead back to ZERO

Monday, April 1, 2019

March 2019 Net Worth


All figures except my Jeep value are generated from Mint.com. 

I couldn't ask for a better start in my second year of FI. My net worth has increased about $35,000 since the beginning of 2019 even after subtracting all my living expenses. Obviously this trend won't continue indefinitely, but it is nice to see nonetheless.

It's also nice to note that my net worth has decreased by less than $10,000 during my first 13 months of FI. That's roughly $731 per month since I stopped receiving a W2 paycheck.

As I have noted before I have really increased my passive income during the last six months via dividends and CD interest. As of last September I was tracking for about $350 a month in passive income in my taxable account and now I am tracking about $850 a month from dividends and CD interest.

I also have earned an additional $3,000 in credit card and bank bonuses during the last six months.

I just opened two new credit cards and should be able to earn around $550 from these two doing nothing more than using them to pay my regular monthly expenses.

Six months ago I never dreamed that I could make $300-400 a month from credit card side hustling.

Here is my March 31, 2019 net worth breakdown.

Assets

Checking --- $1,403
Savings/Investments --- $359,757
Lending Club --- $1,463
HSA --- $2,570
IRA --- $10,051
401K --- $367,578
2014 Jeep Wrangler --- $19,500
House --- $139,827

Liabilities

$2,243

Net Worth

$899,902


YTD Totals

2019      

 ***Jan 1,2019 --- 864,816***

Jan 31, 2019 --- $887,560
Feb 28. 2019 --- $895,998

Mar 31, 2019 --- $899,902



2018

Jan 2018 --- $917,116
Feb 2018 --- $910,667

Mar 2018 --- $909,746
Apr 2018 --- $903,416

May 2018 --- $889,032
Jun 2018 --- $893,278

Jul 2018 --- $892,002
Aug 2018 --- $896,619

Sep 2018 --- $899,763
Oct 2018 --- $876,927

Nov 2018 --- $891,402
Dec 2018 --- $864,613


2017

May 2017 --- $835,009
July 2017 --- $851,904 


Aug 2017 --- $860,072
Sept 2017 --- $869,374

Oct 2017 --- $887,033
Nov 2017 --- $897,145

Dec 2017 --- $914,266



There is no down time when building a path that doesn't lead back to ZERO

Monday, March 11, 2019

February 2019 Passive Income





Here is the passive income I received from both taxable and retirement accounts.


Taxable Account

  • Amegy CD --- $340.88
  • T --- $231.54
  • OHI --- $137.94
  • GIS --- $49.00
  • HCP --- $38.97
  • PG --- $25.10

Retirement Account

  • VBMFX --- $228.67

Total February 2019 passive income is $1052.10


Another solid income month and I continue to love the balance of interest and dividends. March should be off the charts and can't wait to see the results.

I also am starting to receive some dividends from my cinder block garden!!


DEFY MEDIOCRITY