6 month streak continues and a rare month of green!

What happened this last month?

A surprised 6 month where our investment level as reached a new high. This is likely due to some RSUs (restricted stock units) that vested at work and were invested. Without that, this month would have been down from the previous month.

Our expenses this month decreased a very small amount from the previous year, but any decrease is a good thing at this point. Nothing too unusual happened this month. Some of the unique expenses this month include half of the cost of new tires for our daughter’s car. (She paid the other half.) I also built a new, larger tack cabinet for my daughter since she had outgrown her previous one. We spent another chunk on “horse related stuff”, which is really a catchall for anything that we wouldn’t be paying if our daughter didn’t ride horses.

Of course, with the return to school comes school fees. We also bought Cedar Point passes for someone who has been very generous towards our daughter and we wanted to show our appreciation.

Where did we spend the most?

Our monthly expenses down considerably compared to last month. Annually, they’re down about $100 compared to last August.

• $545 Horse related stuff
• $363 Tires
• $329 Cedar Point passes for a friend
• $302 Eye doctor
• $275 Tack cabinet
• $253 School fees

The Money Related Numbers

52.81% to target number (previously 52.31%)

This is our invested assets/target number. Our invested assets span across a variety of investment vehicles such as 401k, HSA, IRA, Roth IRA, ESPP (Employee Stock Purchase Program) and standard taxable mutual funds.

59 months (previously 60)

The number of months until my 45th birthday and our finish date.

42.69 months (previously 47.79)

The number of expected months until we reach our target number based on our current expected monthly contributions, assuming a 10% annual return.

The Expense Related Numbers

8.92 times annual spending (previously 8.82)

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.

35.66% to minimum FIRE (previously 35.29%)

The minimum number to achieve FIRE is 25 times our annual spending. This number shows how close we are to the absolute minimum.

16.88 times annual spending at goal number (previously 16.87)

We have a goal amount that we’d like to reach. Given our current annual spending, this is how many times our annual spending we’ll have saved when we reach our goal number.

How Much We Invested

165.51% Month to Month Change In How Much Saved (previously 36.49%)

This number shows the change in what we saved this month compared to the prior month in things like 401k, Roth IRA, taxable accounts, and Employee Stock Purchase Program.

145.83% Month to Month Change in How Much Saved With Employer Contributions (previously 34.85%)

Same as the prior number, but with employer contributions counted.

27.42% Month to Month Change in 12 Month Savings Average (previously -25.01%)

This number show the change in what we saved this month compared to the prior month, but on a 12 month rolling average. This helps to smooth out months over time and shows a more general trend.

23.88% of 12 Month Average Net Income Invested With Employer Contributions (previously -22.24%)

Same as the prior number, but with employer contributions counted.

How we track the numbers

If you’re wondering what I use to track our numbers monthly, we use both Mint and Personal Capital. I use Mint to grab the numbers each month because they do a great job of consistently pulling them and then I put them into a spreadsheet that calculates the numbers you see above. I use Empower (formerly Personal Capital) for their planning and forecasting tools.