November 2024 FIRE Update – Retire by 40

Hey everyone! Did you have a good month? November was an interesting month. We had the Presidential election in the U.S. and emotion ran high. I was disappointed with the result, but that’s life. You win some, you lose some. I’ll be on a news diet for the next 4 years, though. I don’t need the endless drama. The rest of the month was pretty good. I kept busy with classes and shuttling RB40Jr around. We ended the month with a nice relaxing Thanksgiving week at home.

On the personal finance side, November was rough. I spent a little more than usual due to Black Friday. Also, our FIRE income was lower than normal. As a result, we had a big negative cash flow month. We’re still okay for the year, though. I’ll add it all up next month. On the positive side, our net worth increased quite a bit due to the stock market. 2024 is turning out to be a banner year for investors.

Alright, I’ll share how I’m doing with my New Year goals. Then, I’ll go over our net worth and cash flow. Let’s go!

2024 Goals

Here is my 2024 goal spreadsheet. It works well. Try it out if you can’t keep up with your New Year goals. The key is to review the spreadsheet monthly to track your progress. That way, you can see which goals need extra attention. 2024 is almost done. Let’s finish strong!

Financial Goals

FI ratio > 100%

The FI ratio is passive income divided by expense. If you can generate enough passive income to cover your expenses, then you’re set. For 2024, I reduced this goal to 100%. We are getting older and I feel we can spend a bit more. After 11 months, our FI ratio is 110%. Not bad!  

*FI Ratio = passive income / expense

3% Rule

Everyone is familiar with the 4% retirement withdrawal rule, right? Basically, you should have a successful retirement if you withdraw less than 4% of your investable assets annually. Let’s see if we can spend less than 3% in 2024. This is a good way to test your retirement readiness. I’m calling this one. We spent way below 3% this year. We didn’t do any home improvement projects, though.

Track net worth and hope for +10%

I’ve been tracking our net worth since 2006. It’s great to see the progress. This year, I’d like to see 10% gains. At this point, the gain is completely dependent on the stock market and there isn’t much I can do to influence this goal. I’ll just track it and keep my fingers crossed.

Our net worth gained 22.1% this year. That is insane! I haven’t seen this kind of gain for years.

Health Goals

Exercise 3x per week

Now that I’m 50, health is job 1. I need to exercise consistently so I can stay healthy longer. I joined a gym and plan to exercise at least 3 times per week.

I took a week off during Thanksgiving. My joints are achy in this cold weather.  Getting fit after 50 is tough!

Health checks

Equally important is going to see the doctors. At this age, we have more maintenance and preventative care to deal with. Here is my list for 2024.

• Colonoscopy. Done!
• Annual physical. Done!
• Dental exam. Done!
• Vision screening. Done!
• Immunization. Tdap booster, Flu, and Covid vaccine. Done!

Fun goals

International trip

Mrs. RB40 turned 50 this year and she wanted to go on a fun memorable trip. We visited Japan for 3 weeks. It was awesome. I’d love to live there for a year or so.   

Happiness level > 8

I’m a naturally happy guy so this should be easy. Life has been great over the last few years.

November was a good month. The election didn’t go my way, but whatever. I disengaged and stopped caring. That’s how I deal with trauma. Hahaha… The rest of the month was great. I enjoyed my classes and kept busy with my SAHD duties. Life is good when you’re a little busy. Also, we had a great Thanksgiving week at home. RB40Jr’s joy of being on vacation was infectious.

Help RB40Jr start a YouTube channel

We gave up on this one. RB40Jr. lost interest.  

Net Worth (+22.1%)

I’ve been tracking our net worth since 2006. It is very motivating to see our progress. The power of compounding is incredible. These days, our investment gains far outpace our earned income. This year, our net worth is up 22.1% so far. That’s amazing. I haven’t seen this kind of gain since 2014.

***Important*** My best advice is to stay the course. Do not stop investing. You should keep investing whether the stock market is up or down. You might think stocks are too expensive, but it’ll look cheap in 10 years. Keep investing and you’ll achieve financial independence someday. Don’t try to time the market. 

This is a chart of our net worth from Empower. (Personal Capital is now Empower.) Sign up for a free account at Empower to help manage your net worth and investment accounts. I log in often to check our net worth and use their free tools. It’s a great site for DIY investors.

I’m not sure why the chart looks like this. The update interval probably got messed up in August and September.

Nov 2024 FIRE Cash Flow

This FIRE cash flow chart includes my online income, side gigs, and taxable passive income. Mrs. RB40’s income isn’t here because she plans to retire in a few years.

Whoa, November was our worst month in 2024. Our FIRE income was very low and we spent more than usual.

November 2024 FIRE Income: $1,326

Yikes! It looks like I’m transitioning into full retirement.   

• Real estate crowdfunding: $0. You can read more on the RE Crowdfunding Passive Income page.
• Dividend Income: $848. Good month with dividend.
• Rental Income: -$41. The HOA had a special assessment. They had to fix a few things in the building.  
• Blog income: $163. I got a new work laptop.  
• Odd jobs: $270. I only worked a little bit in November.      
• Other: $0
• Interest: $45.

Spending: $3,639

This year, I plan to spend about $65,000. That was the amount we spent last year. After 11 months, we spent about $57,500. We should be under budget this year. However, I didn’t start any remodeling this year. I’ll work on it next year.

Here are some details.  

• Housing: $1,251. This includes mortgage, utilities, furniture, repair, and maintenance. Our housing expenses are low because we live in a duplex. We split many expenses with our tenant.
• Transportation: $248. Gas and insurance.   
• Entertainment: $210. We ate out a few times.       
• Groceries: $578. The grocery bill was about average.
• Health: $257.   
• Kid: $560. Unfortunately, kid related expenses are also increasing as RB40Jr gets older. We are making payments for his orthodontist and an international school trip.    
• Entertainment: $234. We ate out a few times last month.
• Personal: $419. Clothes and Christmas gifts.
• Travel: $0.

Savings: –$2,313

November 2024 wrap-up

Alright, let’s wrap it up. November was a pretty good month. Our cash flow was negative, but I don’t feel bad about it. Our net worth is higher than ever. The negative cash flow is negligible while our net worth reaches a new high every month. As long as we spend less than 3% of our net worth, I won’t stress about it. At this age, it’s more important to enjoy life.

That’s it for November. Did you have a good month? 

Passive income is the key to early retirement. These days, I’m investing in commercial properties with CrowdStreet. They have many projects across the United States. Go check them out!

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Joe started Retire by 40 in 2010 to figure out how to retire early. After 16 years of investing and saving, he achieved financial independence and retired at 38.

Passive income is the key to early retirement. This year, Joe is investing in commercial real estate with CrowdStreet. They have many projects across the USA so check them out!

Joe also highly recommends Personal Capital for DIY investors. They have many useful tools that will help you reach financial independence.