Small month, big spending
What happened this last month?
February was a bonus month, so it makes the numbers look a lot better, especially when it comes to how much we saved. As for expenses, normally February is a low expense month. This month breaks the mold.
Some of the expenses were optional. For example, we planned a trip this summer and paid for some of the expenses such as hotel and Disneyland tickets. We had visited California between Christmas and New Years and we wanted to go to Disneyland for a day or two, but the tickets during that time were astronomical. Not to mention, it probably would have been really crowded. We instead just visited Downtown Disney and thought about going over the summer. There is also a conference that is happening for a board I’m on. It’s going to be in Vancouver, Washington and we decided to make a small trip out of it to see some of the Pacific Northwest.
Other expenses were unavoidable. Our oldest is getting her wisdom teeth out; our youngest had it done last year. I also decided to have some GI issues looked into and went to a GI doctor that had some upfront expenses as we try to sort things out. It seems like it’s been helping. As morbid as it sounds, I oftentimes ask myself if a health issue is something I could put up with for the next 40 years. If the answer is that I’d prefer not to, then I do something about it.
Where did we spend the most?
Our monthly expenses were up considerably compared to last last month. Annually, they’re still down considerably from last February.
- $3155 Summer vacation
- $2393 Wisdom teeth
- $1475 GI Doctor
- $1340 Washington trip
The Money Related Numbers
Completed! – 130.39% to target number (previously 129.26%)
This is our invested assets (401k, HSA, IRA, brokerage, etc.) divided by our target goal number.
29 months until original FI date (previously 30)
The number of months until my 45th birthday and our Financial Independence date.
Completed! – 0 months until calculated FI date (previously 0)
The number of expected months until we reach our target number. This is based on our current expected monthly contributions, assuming a 10% annual return.
The Expense Related Numbers
16.45 times annual spending (previously 16.61)
This is how many multiples of our annual spending we have saved up towards our goal. For example, if this value was 9.1 and we spent $10,000 annually, we would have $91,000 saved up.
65.80% to minimum FIRE (previously 66.43%)
The minimum number to achieve FIRE is 25 times our annual spending. This number shows how close we are to the absolute minimum.
12.62 times annual spending at goal number (previously 12.85)
We’d like to save 25 times our annual spending. This is how many times our annual spending we’ll have saved when we reach our goal number. If it’s 25 or greater, than our goal number will be enough to cover our expenses. If it’s lower than 25, we’ll need to either cut our expenses or increase our goal number.
How Much We Invested
126.90% Month to Month Change In How Much Saved (previously 17.37%)
This number shows the change in what we saved in our investment accounts this month compared to the prior month.
118.35% Month to Month Change in How Much Saved With Employer Contributions (previously 26.68%)
Same as the prior number, but with employer contributions counted.
0.97% Month to Month Change in 12 Month Savings Average (previously 2.33%)
This number shows the change in our 12 month rolling average. This helps to smooth out months over time.
0.89% of 12 Month Average Net Income Invested With Employer Contributions (previously 2.19%)
Same as the prior number, but with employer contributions counted.
How we track the numbers
I’ve been using Empower (referral link) to track our numbers. I put them into a spreadsheet that calculates the numbers you see above.