A unicorn of months

What happened this last month?

The grass is green and so our all the tracked numbers. Even though the markets in May were steady, we came into a sum of money that helped boost the overall numbers.

We also decided to do some things with the extra funds because our expenses would still be down from last year. For example, my wife decided to switch to an iPhone and we purchased patio furniture so we have an outdoor space to hang out and entertain. Since it was May, that also meant it was time to buy flowers and plants before the summer heat.

We decided this year to build an elevated garden or garden table. Not sure why we decided to, but it should make it easy to keep animals out.

We also made a rain barrel. Our neighbor was able to get us a new plastic 55 gallon barrel. I added a funnel type of thing to get water to go into the barrel and we purchased a hand pump off of eBay that works quite well for filling up watering cans. I don’t think we’ve used the hose to water any plants this year yet.

If you’re wondering what I use to track our numbers monthly, we use both Mint and Personal Capital. Personal Capital has a lot of cool planning tools that I haven’t seen anywhere else. You can check them out and we both get $20: https://pcap.rocks/adam4058

Where did we spend the most?

Our monthly expenses decreased slightly compared to last month. They were also considerably lower than last May. Our expense numbers continue to improve from one month to the next. The biggest expense months from last years kitchen remodel are behind us, but they’ll continue to decrease over the next few months.

• $1419 – Patio Furniture/Remodel
• $1067 – iPhone
• $440 – Life Insurance
• $250 – Plants/Outdoor
• $211 – Garden Table & Rain Barrel
• $175 – Flowers

The Money Related Numbers

51.46% to target number (previously 50.20%)

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.

74 months (previously 75)

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

41.83 months (previously 47.12)

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

10.13 times annual spending (previously 8.96)

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.

40.52% to minimum FIRE (previously 35.83%)

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

19.69 times annual spending at goal number (previously 17.84)

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

245.27% Month to Month Change In How Much Saved (previously 20.16%)

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.

197.28% Month to Month Change in How Much Saved With Employer Contributions (previously 21.97%)

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

21.64% Month to Month Change in 12 Month Savings Average (previously 3.03%)

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.

19.84% of 12 Month Average Net Income Invested With Employer Contributions (previously 3.62%)

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