Hey Everyone! 2025 is quickly coming to an end. Are you ready for the holidays? It will be a bit different for us this year. Mrs. RB40 is going to CA for 6 weeks. She is in the process of moving her dad into an assisted living facility, and there is a ton of stuff to do. We’ll fly down during Christmas to join her for the holidays. We hoped her dad could stay at his house for 3 more years, but it didn’t work out that way. He needs more help now. Anyway, Mrs. RB40 will probably spend about 50% of her time in California next year. It’ll be tough for our son. He likes having his mom around. Everything runs smoother when she’s home.
On the personal finance side, we had a pretty good month. Our net worth reached a new high again. The stock market is performing very well this year. Nobody knows how it will do next year, though. I’m nervous about this whole AI bubble, but you have to keep investing. Last month, our cash flow was okay. We withdrew from savings to plug some holes, but that’s what retirement is about. I’m getting used to being in the withdrawal phase of retirement.
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!
2025 Goals
Here is my 2025 goal spreadsheet. It’s helpful. 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 and work on them.
Well, 2025 is pretty much cooked. I’m going to take it easy in December. Some goals won’t be 100% done, but that’s okay. Overall, I did pretty well.
Financial Goals
Sell Rental Condo
This was my main goal for 2025. The previous tenant moved out of our rental condo in January. I fixed it up and listed it for sale. Unfortunately, the condo market was terrible in Portland. We only had one viewing in 4 months! I think buyers were afraid. That’s why I decided to rent out the condo for now. We’ll put it on the market again next year. The interest rate is a bit lower, and I hope it will sell.
Prep duplex for sale
Along the same line, I want to sell our duplex* after RB40Jr finishes high school in 2029. We want to move to Southern California to be closer to families. Mrs. RB40’s parents are getting older, and they need more help. My dad lives in Thailand, and he will need more help too.
*We live in one unit and rent out the other.
This year, I planned to repaint the exterior. However, the plan changed to kitchen remodeling. Our kitchen was totally outdated. We got the cabinet resurfaced, a new countertop, and new flooring. The kitchen is much better now and should be a good selling point. I’m calling this one done.
Max out my Roth IRA
The Roth IRA is the best investment account you can have. You don’t have to pay tax on the gains when you withdraw. This is huge. If you start young and max out your Roth IRA every year, it’ll be a great resource in retirement.
I’ve maxed out my Roth IRA contribution for over 20 years. But that streak probably will end this year. My earned income is decreasing quickly. After 11 months, I made $6,408. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll break $8,000. It’s probably time to transition into full retirement.
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 hoped for 10% gains. At this point, it’s all dependent on the stock market, and there isn’t much I can do to influence this goal. I’ll track it and keep my fingers crossed. This is a stretch goal.
Our net worth has increased 10.3% since the beginning of the year! Wow, that’s insane. The stock market is unstoppable. I’ll enjoy it while this euphoria lasts.
Health Goals
Exercise more than last year
Last year, I set a goal to exercise 3 times per week. However, I developed elbow pains, and I had to scale back a bit. The result – I exercised 120 times in 2024. That wasn’t bad, but I’d like to do more this year.
I exercised 5 times in November. That was terrible. I’m done for the year. Next year, I need to come up with a new exercise regiment.
Win claim denial
Last year, RB40Jr got a Cochlear Implant to improve his hearing. He had 30%-60% hearing in his left ear. He tried a hearing aid for a few years, but it didn’t help much. He can hear some sound with his left ear, but he can’t understand speech on that side.
Recently, the FDA approved Cochlear Implant for children. At first, I thought we could wait until RB40Jr is an adult. Then he can decide for himself. However, our audiologist said the earlier you get the implant the better. If you wait too long, the brain might not be able to adapt.
Anyway, he got the implant last year. However, the insurance denied the claim. They said the Cochlear Implant is experimental and doesn’t improve overall health. This is ridiculous. The device has been used since the 80s to improve lives. We are fighting this denial. I think health insurance companies are denying as many claims as possible to improve profits. A lot of people get too sick to fight the denials. No wonder everyone hates health insurance companies.
Latest update – The denial is final. However, our audiologist team appealed to the hospital to write off most of the surgery bill. It was a success! The hospital wrote off most of the surgery bill, and we’re only on the hook for the anesthesiology. We are very grateful to the hospital and the audiology team. They are amazing.
Fun goals
Sell my ceramic projects
I took some ceramic classes at the community center and had a blast. My projects aren’t professional level yet, but I’ll try selling a few items this year at the community center’s art sales.
I sold about $190 in the Spring Art Sale! That was incredible. I didn’t expect to sell that many pieces. The community center took a 35% commission. That’s perfectly fine. I’m glad to support them.
This was my table at the Holiday Arts & Craft Sale. I hope to sell about 30 pieces. We don’t have space at home for all these pieces.
More dates with the Missus
This year, I want to go out with Mrs. RB40 more often. If you’re a parent, you know how difficult this can be. Fortunately, our son is a teenager now. We can go out whenever we want. However, I need to overcome my reluctance to leave the house in the evening. We park in the street and finding a spot can be frustrating at night. Ugh! I’d rather hunker down at home than go out to a restaurant.
I‘ll go on date lunches with Mrs. RB40 instead. That’s way easier. Who wants to leave home after dark?
In November, we went out twice.
Happiness level > 8
I’m a naturally happy guy so this should be easy. Life has been good over the last few years.
I had a good November. Everything was running smoothly. No big problems.
Net Worth (+10.3%)
I’ve been tracking our net worth since 2006. It is very motivating to see our progress. The power of compounding is incredible. Our investment gains far outpace our earned income last year.
2025 has been crazy. The stock market is doing way better than I expected. The AI revolution keeps driving the market higher. It’s tough to be a worker these days, but at least investors are doing well.
***Important*** If you’re young (under 50), 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. If you’re retired, then you need to be more conservative and diversify.
This is a chart of our net worth from Empower. Sign up for a free account at Empower to help manage your net worth and investment accounts. They have great free tools for DIY investors.
November 2025 FIRE Cash Flow
This FIRE cash flow chart includes my online income, side gigs, and taxable passive income.
November 2025 FIRE Income: $3,031
- Real estate crowdfunding: $0.
- Dividend Income: $1,209.
- Rental Income: -$1. We got a new fridge to replace the old one that was frosting up.
- Online income: $87. Blogging income is approaching zero quickly. It’s probably time to move on to something else.
- Odd jobs: $241. I’m cutting back on my catering delivery gig. I’m trying to minimize driving when the weather is bad.
- Reimbursement: $1,494. Reimbursement from Mrs. RB40’s dad.
Spending: $5,034
- Housing: $2,135. This includes mortgage, utilities, furniture, repair, and maintenance. Our monthly housing expense is low because we live in a duplex. We split many expenses with our tenant. However, it will be higher than usual for 2 years because we’re slowly paying off the kitchen remode. Home Depot had 0% interest for 24 months.
- Transportation: $243. Gas, parking, and insurance.
- Entertainment: $0.
- Groceries: $480.
- Health: $162.
- Kid: $880. Whoa, a teenager is expensive. We paid for the orthodontist, Jiu Jitsu, Racquetball club fee, some gears, a haircut, and healthcare.
- Personal spending: $501. My ceramic clay, donations, eating out, 2 new pans, and various other personal stuff.
- Travel: $547. Mrs. RB40 visited her parents and charged a bunch of stuff on our credit card. Most of this will be reimbursed by her dad soon.
Retirement Savings: –$2,003
November 2025 wrap-up
November was a good month for the RB40 household. Mrs. RB40 went to CA again, but only for 2 weeks. We could handle that. Her next trip will be 6 weeks long, though. That will be tough. We’ll survive, but the house will be a big mess when she gets back. We’ll take a breather in December and relax. Have a great holiday!
That’s it for November. Did you have a good month?
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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.
Joe recommends Empower for DIY investors. They have many useful tools that will help you reach financial independence.
Disclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by budgetbuddy.
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