Oh the joys of owning a home! In my 40.5 check in post I mentioned how our pool liner had failed and needed to be replaced.  This was an expected, but still surprising $4200 setback that wiped out my “Oh shit the ____ is broken” fund.   I’m sitting on my deck watching the pool fill… Continue reading Setbacks and Leaps Forward

Back in January I laid out my financial goals for 2019.  Since then, I’ve reached some goals, I’ve questioned others, I’ve completed a major home renovation, and had a mid-range setback.  I’ve also been mulling over net worth and whether I like it as a success indicator, but we’ll get to that at the end.… Continue reading Checking in at 40.5

A little while ago I wrote about how my smart home hobby turned profitable when my other blog, SmartHomeReviewer.com started making money. After posting it, I spent some time deep in thought about investments and passive income.  I wanted to know how I could find other ways to create passive income streams that spun off… Continue reading Why Blogs are Such Great Passive Income

In late 2013 my wife and I moved into our house during an especially cold Fall.  We’d just upgraded from a small condo to a large house, and we were officially house poor.  By hilarious coincidence, our closing date was just three days before we were scheduled to leave for a non-refundable Dominican Republic vacation… Continue reading The Side Hustle – My Hobby Turns Profitable

My family has grown since I started this journey to financial independence.  Thankfully my salary has grown along with it, and my debts have shrunk.  During this time, my house has remained the same size.  Don’t get me wrong, our house is large enough for both kids to have their own room, and another bedroom… Continue reading I Just Cost Myself Four Years…

I once worked with a man who came into a large sum of money.  Shortly thereafter, he showed up to work in a brand new Tesla Model S.  It was 2014 and Tesla’s were still very rare, even in New York.  The car was incredibly impressive and people actually lined up to get a look… Continue reading Equal and Opposite Spending

“I think we should look at something a little smaller, and then when you have kids you can upgrade.”  That’s what I heard from my realtor over and over as I shopped for a house.  I had lived in a small two bedroom condo for eight years and the idea of buying a starter home… Continue reading A House You Can Grow Into

I’ve been poor before.  Not all that long ago I was a recent college graduate with a degree in computer science living on unemployment in the post dotcomm and 9/11 New York metro area.  I’d gratefully lost my first job as a C programmer and the seemingly decent income that went with it.  I had… Continue reading That Fear