Merry almost Christmas! Just a couple of weeks left of 2020 - how did your year go? November felt like a really quiet month. My biggest memories are the wild weather, swinging from pouring rains on a Monday to heatwaves on a Friday. It might be a bit late in the year, but I'm hoping to plant out a lot of annuals in December to reduce the heat in the yard of summer. I say annuals because I haven't finalised te plans for the yard yet and don't want to stress about planting perenialls that will stick around for years - or that I'll have to move and replant wen I decide what I'm doing.
November Goals Update
Investing Goal: $110,000 in Vanguard
The goal is to have $110,000 in my Vanguard account by the end of the year. I started with $78,424, which means I want to gain just over $31,500. I hoped at the start that $5,500 would come from growth and dividends, and the remaining $25,000 would be from investments.
November ticked over $110,000 a couple of times, but at the end of the month, we sat sliiiiightly under. Unless the markets nosedive heavily, we're sitting pretty for kicking goals.
November ticked over $110,000 a couple of times, but at the end of the month, we sat sliiiiightly under. Unless the markets nosedive heavily, we're sitting pretty for kicking goals.
Full year
Opening Balance: $78,424.57
Deposit: $12,175
Dividends: $5,973.54
Market Gains: $13,339.09
Dividends: $5,973.54
Market Gains: $13,339.09
November
Opening Balance: $105,126.96
Deposit: $2,100
Dividends: $0
Market Gains: $2,685.25
Current Balance: $109,912.21
I've almost hit my target but it's interesting to see the breakdown. At that start of the year, I planned to achieve this goal with $25,000 of investments and only $5,500 of gains. Instead, I've only deposited $12k and seen almost $20k of gains.
It's amazing to see my money doing the heavy lifting, but it's also upsetting to realise that I didn't get anywhere near my deposit goal. I have invested elsewhere (see my bonus goal below) but invest 50% less than planned isn't ideal. Something to keep in mind for 2020.
Dividends: $0
Market Gains: $2,685.25
Current Balance: $109,912.21
I've almost hit my target but it's interesting to see the breakdown. At that start of the year, I planned to achieve this goal with $25,000 of investments and only $5,500 of gains. Instead, I've only deposited $12k and seen almost $20k of gains.
It's amazing to see my money doing the heavy lifting, but it's also upsetting to realise that I didn't get anywhere near my deposit goal. I have invested elsewhere (see my bonus goal below) but invest 50% less than planned isn't ideal. Something to keep in mind for 2020.
Spending Goal: Under Control!
The goal is simply to have my spending under control and for November I did really nicely. I spent a bit at the dentist, which normally adds up quickly, but the totals still stayed nice and low.
Here's what I spent in November, which includes the save-to-spend amounts.
Category | Spent | Budgeted | 12 Month Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home | $700 | $938.17 | $646.90 (up $55.40) |
| Under Budget. No Bills, just 2 rent payments. All the bills are due next month though, Merry Christmas? We've now lived in this house for 9 months, so the average still not representative of a full year, but it's getting closer. | |||
| OG Investment Property | $674.04 | $1,190.83 | $1,267.21 (down $9.85) |
| Under Budget Just the mortgage. Very nice | |||
| Home turned Investment Property | $612.20 | $1,042.33 | $1,316.50 (down $53.56) |
| Under Budget! Just the mortgage. The water bill was paid out on my rental income. | |||
| Personal Bills | $127.26 | $127.33 | $127.04 (up 5cents) |
| Under Budget! I still haven't got a new phone, so still no change. The ol' phone does struggle some days though. | |||
| Groceries | $241.02 | $190 | $190.90 (down $3.51) |
| Over Budget! I've been experimenting with cooking tofu and absolutely loving it. I've been buying a couple of different spices as well. | |||
| Pets | -$79.08 | $50 | $55.26 (down $14.34) |
| Under Budget! That's right, I MADE money. I had a pet sitting guest, and he was lovely. Since it's an inconsistent income, I made the choice to put it as a negative cost. | |||
| Roller Derby | $120 | $175 | $245.32 (down $4.29) |
| Under Budget! This is entirely saving money for new skates! | |||
| Travelling | $0 | $122.50 | $250.63 (down $9.17) |
| Under Budget! Nothing again! In January I'll probably start putting money aside again for the next trip. | |||
| Comfort Food | $97.60 | $40 | $74.36 (up $2.61) |
| Under Budget! Mr. FIRE and I went on a couple of dates :) | |||
| Other | $493.35 | $187.00 | $212.46 (up $5.26) |
| Over Budget! No shame here! I went to the dentist (boring) a friends birthday wine tour (fun!) bought tickets for my favourite artist (yay) and spent up on Black Friday sales. Here's the thing, for Black Friday, I make a list of what I want, and what I'm willing to pay for it - then I buy it. Everything I bought had been on my list for months, and I saved an average 50% | |||
| Total | $2,986.39 | $4,063.17 | $4,386.57 (down $31.49) |
| Under budget, with 8 out of 10 categories under. Spending less than $3k is a great month. Plus I splurged on 2 dates, trips out with friends, and a whole stack of video games. November was pretty darn good. | |||
Bonus Goal, if we can: $10,000 worth of an Asian Markets ethical and sustainability-focused ETF
I sunk $10k into the Betashares FAIR ETF in November, so this goal is met!
I may have the funds to do another purchase in January, but I may also have to replace my tenants' air-conditioner. We'll see how things go.
I may have the funds to do another purchase in January, but I may also have to replace my tenants' air-conditioner. We'll see how things go.
