FIRE Monthly Progress Report for September 2023

The streak is broken What happened this last month? After 6 straight months of positive gains, this month was the first month that we were down from the previous month in our investments. That’s to be expected. We still have almost 5 years left to reach out number. Our expenses this month would have been…

FIRE Progress Report for December 2020 (Christmas Edition)

Christmas this year was quite a bit different than those of the past (for obvious reasons). However, we made the best of it and was able to enjoy a laid back time with our immediate family. Fortunately, I think everyone got what they were hoping for. We even had a visit from Santa on Christmas…

FIRE Progress Report for November 2020 (New Car Edition)

The time has finally come. After 287k miles (not all of which were driven by us), the Prius has finally been replaced by… another Prius. Despite what the title says, this car is “new-to-us”. We were able to get a pretty good deal on a 2017 Prius with 152k miles on it. I know, a…

FIRE Progress Report for October 2020 (Halloween Edition)

Nothing is more spooky that a month without a ton of surprises. We had to replace a wheel bearing on the Prius (286k miles and counting). Our neighbor also cut down a tree for us that may have fallen over on it’s own with the right weather and wind. It was a nice shade tree…

FIRE Progress Report through June 2020

Progress Report through June 2020 (Auto Repair Edition) What Happened and What Is Happening Even though our investments grew this month, so did our expenses. We had several one-time and annual expenses due this month. One of those was a repair to our 2011 Toyota Sienna. Some time in the winter, we noticed that the…

Savings at the pump with the GasBuddy card

I’m always a sucker for new ways to save some extra money without much effort on my part. That’s why when I found out about the GasBuddy card, I figured I’d give it a try. How it works This card works similar to the Target REDCard debit card. Essentially you link the card to your checking…

220k and counting

No, that’s not our current net worth. That’s how many miles we have on our 2006 Toyota Prius, and we have no plans on replacing it. We could replace it if we wanted to and go buy a newer vehicle with all the bells and whistles… …but we won’t When you start to look at a…

You Budget How Much For Restaurants and Dining Out?

In this post, I’ll be discussing how much we spend on restaurants and dining out. Depending on where you live, the cost to eat out probably varies a bit. However, there is one way to make sure you stay under budget – eat at home! It’s healthier anyway. Get to the point already! Just like…

You Budget How Much For Gasoline/Fuel?

I’ll be continue covering our budget this month. In this post, I’ll be discussing our fuel or gasoline budget. This one is a little tricky because it can vary a bit depending on a number of factors, such as the types of cars you drive and the number of miles driven each month. Get to…

Buying a Used Car

I’ve heard a lot of excuses about why people won’t buy a used car. They range anywhere from “I need something reliable” or “I got 0% financing so it’s not costing me anything extra.” There are a lot of good reasons to get a used car over a new car though. Borrowing money at 0%…