October 2023 Early Retirement Replace

Welcome again to a different month-to-month replace from Root of Good! Fall is in full swing right here, with the leaves shifting from inexperienced to numerous hues of yellow, orange, and crimson. The mornings are cool and crisp and the afternoons pleasantly gentle and sunny. It’s a good time to benefit from the outdoor because the summertime warmth, humidity, and bugs are fully gone. 

Although we don’t have any journey deliberate for this fall, I’ve been busy researching and planning future journeys in my free time. Our subsequent huge journey in a few month will take us to South America onboard a cruise from Miami throughout Christmas break. And after that, we hope to do a few smaller journeys within the spring earlier than we spend the entire summer season of 2024 in Poland. Busy instances!

On to our monetary progress. October was a combined month for our funds. Our web value dropped by $22,000 to finish October at $2,683,000. Our earnings totaled $2,663, whereas our spending was a moderately modest $1,513 for the month of October. 

Let’s soar into the small print from final month.

 

Earnings

Funding earnings totaled $1,452 in October. Our fairness index funds and ETFs pay dividends quarterly on the finish of March, June, September, and December. Some funds paid their dividends within the first few days of October. Because of this, we had a bigger than regular quantity of funding earnings final month. Right here’s extra on our dividend investments.

Weblog earnings totaled $486 for the month. That is the “new regular” for weblog earnings since I solely submit on right here about as soon as monthly. 

My early retirement life-style consulting earnings (“consulting”) dropped to $0 in October. Issues are slowing down I suppose. 

Tradeline gross sales earnings totaled $0 in October. One other month with out tradeline income. Nevertheless, I simply bought three new gross sales throughout October however gained’t obtain fee for these till November or December. I ramped up my tradeline gross sales in 2020 and mentioned it in a bit extra element in my October 2020 month-to-month submit and in my July 2021 month-to-month submit. 

For October, my “deposit earnings” totaled $724. Out of this complete, $17 got here from money again and incentive bonuses from the Rakuten.com and Mrrebates.com on-line purchasing portals (a few of which was earned from you readers signing up via these hyperlinks). 

In case you join Rakuten via this hyperlink and make a qualifying $25 buy via Rakuten, you’ll get a $10 join bonus. 

The opposite $707 in deposit earnings got here from a category motion settlement from Capital One. They bought hacked; my knowledge was leaked to the darkish net. I acquire a fats paycheck. Appears honest sufficient. That is the most important class motion settlement I’ve ever obtained.  So far as I do know, I haven’t had any identification theft points, and this isn’t the primary time my knowledge has been compromised. First time I bought paid this a lot although!

Youtube earnings was $0 in October. Youtube solely pays out once you hit $100 in gathered income. Not too long ago, my Youtube earnings have been about $50 monthly on common, so I solely receives a commission each different month. I simply checked my channel stats and realized that I crossed $10,000 in lifetime earnings just a few months in the past. Fairly wild! 

Right here is the Youtube channel for the curious. It’s random journey movies, birds, children, and a few DIY movies. There are only some most important movies that usher in a lot of the visitors (and income!).

 

 

In case you’re excited by monitoring your earnings and bills like I do, then try Empower Private Dashboard, previously generally known as Private Capital (it’s free!). All of our financial savings and spending accounts (together with checking, cash market, and 5 bank cards) are all linked and up to date in actual time via Empower Private Dashboard. We’ve got accounts all over, and Empower Private Dashboard makes it very easy to examine on the whole lot at one time.

Empower Private Dashboard can be a strong device for funding administration. Preserving monitor of our total funding portfolio takes two clicks. In case you haven’t signed up for the free Empower Private Dashboard service, test it out at this time (evaluation right here).

Monitoring spending was one of many crucial steps I took that allowed me to retire at 33. And it’s now simpler than ever with Empower Private Dashboard.

 

 

Bills

Now let’s check out October bills:

In complete, we spent $1,513 throughout October which is sort of two thousand {dollars} lower than our recurrently budgeted $3,333 monthly (or $40,000 per yr). Groceries and utilities had been the 2 highest classes of spending in October. After spending over $12,000 in September once we purchased our new (used) automobile, this previous month’s modest spending is a pleasant change of tempo. 

 

Detailed breakdown of spending:

 

Groceries – $728:

Groceries had been a bit of decrease than latest months. Fortuitously, meals costs appear to be leveling off after a few years of routine value hikes on the grocery retailer. I feel it’s too early to say that our grocery spending is declining long run, but it surely’s good to see a decrease quantity like this occasionally.

 

 

 

Utilities – $269:

We spent $147 on our water/sewer/trash invoice. 

The pure fuel invoice, which offers heating and scorching water, totaled $24 for final month. 

The electrical energy invoice totaled $97 in October. 

Because the climate was gentle in September and the start of October, our fuel and electrical payments moderated accordingly. We used the air-con a bit of bit final month however not a lot. Due to this fact out utility expense was decrease than regular. 

 

Items – $200:

We began extra critical Christmas purchasing in October and picked up just a few issues. 

 

Automotive – $171:

Throughout October, we paid the property tax invoice and annual registration/license price for our new (to us) automobile that we purchased throughout September. The consolidated tax and registration totaled $126. Fortunately, the assessed worth is lower than what we really paid for the automobile so we save a small quantity on the annual tax invoice.

The opposite automotive expense got here from a $45 upcharge so as to add our new automobile to our insurance coverage coverage. That covers virtually three months of the remaining coverage interval. Meaning we’ll pay just below $200 per yr in further insurance coverage prices as a result of addition of the brand new automobile. Not too unhealthy I suppose? 

 

Fuel – $53:

A half tank for every of our vehicles. The brand new automobile is extra gas environment friendly so we should always spend rather less on fuel sooner or later. 

 

 

Healthcare/Medical/Dental – $47:

Our present 2023 medical health insurance prices $18 monthly, due to very beneficiant Reasonably priced Care Act subsidies that we obtain resulting from our low ~$45,000 per yr Adjusted Gross Earnings. 

Our 2023 dental insurance policy price a complete of $29 in premiums monthly. 

I selected a really fundamental plan for $9 monthly for me that covers most preventive care however no fillings. Mrs. Root of Good has a unique set of dental wants than I achieve this we saved the extra complete $20 monthly plan for her (identical as 2022’s plan).

By shopping for insurance coverage, we should always save a pair hundred {dollars} on my dental care. For Mrs. Root of Good, we’ll find yourself saving a web quantity of $63 in comparison with paying money for the preventive dentist visits all year long.

 

Eating places – $27:

We bought a household field of fried rooster from Bojangles final month. I had a $10 off coupon, so how may I refuse? 

 

 

Dwelling Upkeep – $22:

I bought useful and did a few DIY duties throughout October. I spent $6 for a brand new electrical junction field and light-weight fixture and upgraded an previous dysfunctional fluorescent tube gentle above our kitchen sink. The sunshine hasn’t labored correctly for the 20 years that we’ve owned this home, so I made a decision it was time to repair it. It was a ache within the butt nevertheless the top outcome works effectively. And subsequent time the lightbulb burns out I can swap it out with a daily $1 LED bulb as an alternative of needing a particular tube lightbulb. 

The opposite $16 in dwelling upkeep prices got here from some drainpipe I put in on the gutter downspout within the entrance of our home. This improve will assist preserve rainwater from ponding subsequent to our home in the course of the subsequent monsoon. 

 

Journey – $0:

I didn’t have any web journey bills throughout October, however I did rebook a few flights to shave off the fee in airline miles. 

I additionally needed to take a minute to spotlight just a few quickly elevated bank card affords that I’ve taken benefit of lately for tons of free journey.

 

Get free journey like us

If you’re excited by getting free journey out of your bank card like I do, take into account the Chase Ink Limitless or Chase Ink Money enterprise playing cards (my referral hyperlink). Proper now, for a restricted time, the Chase Ink enterprise playing cards supply an eye-popping 90,000 Chase Final Rewards factors that may be redeemed immediately for $900 in money. Mrs. Root of Good simply picked up one other new Chase Ink card this month, and I simply bought my new Ink card final month. The bonuses carry on rolling within the door!

I’m guessing the 90,000 level join bonus will solely final for just a few extra weeks, so join now in order for you the upper bonus quantity. 

Chase is fairly liberal in relation to “what’s a enterprise”. In case you promote stuff on eBay or Craigslist or do some odd jobs sometimes then you’ve gotten a enterprise and will get a bank card as a “sole proprietor”. 

I take advantage of the 90,000 Chase Final Rewards factors by transferring them to my Chase Sapphire Reserve card (additionally providing a 60,000 level join bonus proper now). With the Sapphire Reserve card, I can get 1.5x the factors worth by reserving cruises, flights, accommodations, or rental vehicles via their journey portal. Or 1.25x worth by reimbursing myself for groceries. That turns the 90,000 factors into $1,350 of free journey or $1,125 of free groceries. Or I can switch these Final rewards factors to over a dozen journey companions’ airline/resort applications like United, Southwest, or Hyatt. I’m about to ebook a $350 per evening resort in Florida for 9,000 Hyatt/Final Reward factors, for instance.

 

Southwest Companion Go deal – time to behave now!

I additionally picked up a pair of Chase Southwest playing cards in the course of the first a part of November. My aim is to obtain the join bonuses within the first a part of January 2024, and thereby earn a Southwest Companion cross that will likely be legitimate via December 2025. The Companion Go is legitimate for the yr you earn it plus the next calendar yr.

The Companion Go principally grants a free flight on your companion once you ebook flights for your self (with factors OR with money). This implies Mrs. Root of Good is flying free on Southwest for all of 2024 and 2025! 

Each Southwest playing cards pay a better than regular join bonus proper now, so it’s straightforward to qualify for the Southwest Companion Go. Simply keep in mind to NOT full the spending requirement till after January 1st of 2024 otherwise you’ll miss out on an entire yr of Companion Go advantages.

Word that these playing cards have an annual price (however they provide lots of free factors every cardmember anniversary so it offsets about half the annual price). And you’ll apply for each playing cards on the identical day in order for you. 

Referral hyperlinks should you’re :

Chase Southwest Fast Rewards Efficiency Enterprise card – 80,000 SW miles ($199 annual price) – choose the “Efficiency enterprise” card choice

Chase Southwest Fast Rewards Plus card – 75,000 SW miles ($69 annual price)

For $268 in annual charges, we’ll get ~160,000 SW miles, and the Companion Go that gives buy-one-get-one-free Southwest flights for two years. Simply pay taxes on the free ticket (normally $5.60 per a method phase within the USA). That’s about $4,000 value of free flights for the 2 of us. 

 

Cable/Satellite tv for pc/Web – $0:

We typically pay $18 monthly for a neighborhood lowered price bundle resulting from having a decrease earnings and having children. 30 mbit/s obtain, 4 mbit/s add. Proper now the price of the web service is quickly lowered to $0 as a result of “Reasonably priced Connectivity Program”. 

 

 

 

12 months to Date Spending – 2023

 

 

We spent $31,756 in the course of the first ten months of 2023. This annual spending is about $1,500 lower than the $33,333 we budgeted for ten months of spending in our $40,000 annual early retirement finances.

It seems that our new automobile buy didn’t throw our annual spending off by very a lot. We’re nonetheless working a small finances surplus with solely two months of spending remaining within the yr.

We don’t have any extra journey deliberate for 2023 apart from our cruise in December. So the remainder of the yr will likely be fairly low expense until a giant shock pops up unexpectedly. 

 

Month-to-month Expense Abstract for 2023:

• January – $3,423
• February – $1,675
• March – $1,679
• April – $1,566
• Could – $2,976
• June – $1,536
• July – $2,064
• August – $2,615
• September – $12,714 (we purchased a brand new used automobile)
• October – $1,513

 

Abstract of annual spending from all ten years of early retirement:

• 2014 – $34,352
• 2015 – $23,802
• 2016 – $38,991
• 2017 – $31,708
• 2018 – $29,058
• 2019 – $25,630
• 2020 – $28,466
• 2021 – $31,740
• 2022 – $29,449
• 2023 – $31,756 (12 months to Date via October 31, 2023)

 

 

 

Web Price: $2,683,000 (-$22,000)

Our web value dropped by $22,000 to finish October at $2,683,000. We appear to be on a downward trajectory, however I do know it’ll ultimately flip round. 

 

 

For the curious, our web value reported above contains our dwelling worth (which is absolutely paid off). Nevertheless, please notice that I don’t take into account my dwelling worth as a part of my portfolio for “4% rule” calculation functions. I notice of us ask me about that each month so I simply needed to state that right here for readability.

 

 

 

Life replace

Leisure mode continued all through October. I’ve been doing lots of studying and planning and having fun with our each day walks. And a protracted stroll or bike journey on most Fridays whereas our daughter is in her faculty class (we nonetheless need to drive her to highschool). 

I’m itching to do some touring, and luckily we now have an incredible journey developing in a few month. We set sail from Miami, go to just a few islands within the Caribbean, then head to South America and Central America for just a few days earlier than returning again to the USA. Highlights embrace Cartagena, Colombia and the Panama Canal (visiting, not crusing via it).

On Christmas Day, we will likely be docked at an island about thirty miles off the coast of Honduras. This would be the children’ longest cruise, so hopefully they’ve a very good time. 

Okay of us, that’s it for me this month. See you subsequent time!

 

Having fun with fall? Prepared for winter? 

 

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