{"id":1561,"date":"2019-07-30T09:18:56","date_gmt":"2019-07-30T16:18:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thefundfamily.com\/?p=1561"},"modified":"2019-07-30T09:23:51","modified_gmt":"2019-07-30T16:23:51","slug":"our-road-to-fi-an-update","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trevorrumsey.com\/thefundfamily\/our-road-to-fi-an-update\/","title":{"rendered":"Our Road to FI: An Update"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Tara and I started this blog in January 2018<\/a> with the hope to be able to document our road to FI <\/a>for ourselves, our posterity and others (you). While certain opinions and methods have changed since we started back in 2018, our goal remains the same: become financially independent<\/a>. To us, becoming financially independent means freedom. We want to be free from having to work 9-5 and being able to do the things that we want to. So, here\u2019s an update on where we are at with that. Feel free to comment below on what you think we are doing well and what we could improve on. Also, let us know where you are at on your road to FI!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mone\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We Bought a House<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In October 2018, we bought our first house<\/a>. We had been saving up for quite a while and were happy to finally find something that fit in our price range. If you haven\u2019t read about how we got our home, read it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While our house has been really nice to have, it has also stood as our biggest hindrance to FI. Our mortgage is the biggest expense we have and the only debt we have. Tara and I have talked on multiple occasions and have agreed that paying off our house is our top priority going forward. This follows Dave Ramsey\u2019s baby step 6<\/a> and is the second to last baby step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve done our best to make sure our home is a blessing and not a burden. The best thing we\u2019ve done is remodel our basement to have a mother-in-law apartment<\/a> that we rent out. This helps offset our mortgage costs and helps us save for other things. To read about the remodel process, go here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"frondoor\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We Invest and Save<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Ever since we got married, Tara and I have always had a really high savings rate.<\/a> After we paid off all of our debt in 2017<\/a>, we started to invest very seriously too. In total, we invest or save about 30% of our income. Our favorite investment is an index fund called VTI through Vanguard<\/a>. We use that for our personal investments, as well as for our two sons\u2019 college\/mission funds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We welcomed another son into our family last week, but have already been saving for his future. It was decided early on that we would start saving for both of them even before they were born. As of right now, we put $50 for each son into Vanguard. My goal is to up that amount to $100 each in a year. We aren\u2019t sure how we want to go about giving our sons that money yet, but are open to suggestions if anyone has them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I recently discovered a new index fund called FZROX through Fidelity<\/a>. They are a total stock market index fund just like VTI, but have ZERO fees. I also like how they are only $10 per share, but I\u2019m not sold on moving all my money over to it yet. I will write an article on it soon to go over my experience thus far. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A big chunk of our saving is going towards FU money<\/a>. If you don\u2019t know what FU money is, read more about it here<\/a>. Not only does FU money help in unplanned emergencies, it also gives peace of mind. Tara and I both agree that having a big chunk of cash lying around would feel really nice, so we\u2019ve put a decent amount of money towards that. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I put our FU money into Marcus<\/a> for a while until just recently when they lowered their rate from 2.25% to 2.15%. Which I was happy with them for the most part, but another account I had with Wealthfront<\/a> had just announced that they were offering 2.57%, so I decided to switch over. I still have my account open with Marcus, so I may go back at some point. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My 401k continues to grow. I put in 5% to get the 4% match. I am not super fond of the investment options that they provide nor the fees they take, but you can\u2019t beat a 4% instant return. My work also provides a free 3.5% of your salary every month that helps out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I got a raise at work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In February I got a raise at work. 10% increase. I was pretty excited, especially since I didn\u2019t expect it to be such a big increase. I like what I do at my job a lot and can see myself staying there for 5 more years or so. My work also has a pension plan if you stay for 5 years (I have been there 2.5 years). Plus, they have really good benefits that allows me to have babies without breaking the bank. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 We cut back spending<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A few times this year, Tara and I have had a \u201cno-spend\u201d month. We basically only spend money on the essentials like food and gas for an entire month. We aren\u2019t perfect at this because we often get invited to something like a birthday dinner and don\u2019t want to turn it down. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These no-spend months help keep our expenses in check. We aren\u2019t typically big spenders anyways, but we do love to eat out. We usually end up with an extra $500-$1,000 the month we do these and we highly recommend trying it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Passive income and Side hustling<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Although this hasn\u2019t had a huge impact, we have started making some money on the side. Our blog has earned about $200 since the start of 2019 and continues to make us a little bit of money. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tara started a business selling home-sewn baby clothes called Baby Gowns Co<\/a>. She launched her business about a month ago and has been able to make decent money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have also been referring businesses to a company that processes credit cards for merchant accounts and gives me a portion of every business I refer on a monthly basis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Besides saving more FU money, accruing passive income has been our 2nd most priority. Passive income and FI go hand in hand and is one of the fastest ways to get out of the \u201crat race\u201d and into FI. Hopefully we will have more updates on this to come. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Net Worth<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m not totally sure how to calculate our net worth with our house. I\u2019ve seen some people only calculate the debt portion while others subtract the home\u2019s worth by what they owe. For now, I am not going to include our home in our net worth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our liquid net worth has grown substantially since we started blogging in 2018. There\u2019s been some market volatility, but that really hasn\u2019t hurt us too much. Plus, having a decent chunk of our money in online savings accounts has made it so they haven\u2019t been touched much. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We plan on continuing to have increases in our net worth from year to year, just like this year. With our savings rate and compound interest, we will start to grow substantially in the coming years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks for reading! We have really enjoyed being able to share our road to FI with you and hope you have enjoyed it too. If you have questions for us, feel free to comment below or email us at thefundfamily@gmail.com<\/a>. Feel free to share your road to FI as well. 
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