I just returned from the first of my wedding related trips, this one to Santa Barbara, and I’m excited for the adventures ahead. I just shared a new post on travel hacking, and have to say I’m loving some of the recent benefits, like waiting for my flight in the United Club lounge instead of at the gate.
What’s Eric Up To
This weekend, I was in Santa Barbara, California for J’s hometown bridal shower. I had an unexpected overnight stay in San Francisco thanks to the inability of several United airlines employees to read a watch, but sometimes you have to roll with the punches.
Later this month I’ll be using a free flight and a free companion pass flight to take us to Denver for a bridal shower hosted by my mom and sister. It is crazy to think that I’ll be married in about 10 weeks!
New Project
My new site, Finance Lifestyle, has been doing great so far. I have a handful of posts up that give a much more personal view of personal finance. I have posts on beating debt, building wealth, saving for retirement, and how I am able to fly for free so often.
The best place to start is with the Finance Lifestyle Manifesto discussing the main ideas of the new site: conquering debt, building wealth, lifehacking, traveling the world, and entrepreneurship. The manifesto is free when you join the community.
Side Business Income
Narrow Bridge Media – All Blogs and Online Activities
Revenue
- Advertising, Misc Income – $773
- Freelance Earnings – $200
- AdSense – $12
- Affiliate Payments – $103
- Premium Plugin Sales – $50 (Thesis Post Image Converter available at CodeCanyon)
- Book Sales – $1 – Buy here or Amazon
Expenses
- Freelance Writers – $110
- Email List – $19 (Provided by Aweber)
- Web Hosting – $21 (Money making sites hosted with LiquidWeb, others with Hostgator – both paid annually)
- Conferences – $500 – World Domination Summit
After a dip for the last couple of months, I hit my $1,000 goal again this month for revenue, and I’m looking forward to another great month in March.
Denver Flash Mob – Flash Mob Consulting and Planning
Denver Flash Mob is officially back online and things are going great. We have two flash mobs planned and another in the works.
Revenue
- Flash Mob Down Payments – $250
- Flash Mob Final Payments – $0
Expenses
- Flash Mob Manager – $0
- Choreographer – $0
Investments
Retirement
My new employer in Portland has a 90 day period before benefits kick in, including 401(k). My new 401(k) investments will start later this month. I will be investing 4% of my pre-tax income with a 100% match of that 4% by my employer. I am also investing $211 per paycheck automatically to max out my Roth IRA. Read more about my automatic investing in my retirement accounts to see how it all works.
Investment Analysis
The best tool I have found to help me keep my portfolio balanced is Empower. The site helps me track and manage my bank accounts and credit cards too, but the site has helped me save hundreds of dollars per year by showing which investments are charging the biggest fees and how to balance my portfolio for my goals and risk tolerance. The site is completely free.
Outside of the stock market, my net annual returns at Lending Club are 11.82% and I have no plans to withdraw a cent in the near future. I currently have 47 active loans, 1 past due, 2 in funding, and 23 fully paid. I recently had one loan past due which I sold on the secondary market for a discount. I have earned $191 in interest, so even if one loan goes bad I’m still doing great.
If you want to know exactly how I make 12% with Lending Club, check out my in depth guide to making money with Lending Club.
Net Worth
I had an “oops” moment and overwrote my February net worth, which was negative, with the March update. Over the last two months, my total net worth was down about $2,000. Until my condo in Denver is rented, I am paying for both a rental in Portland in addition to my condo in Denver.
I update all values monthly with the exception of my car value and my condo value, which is updated annually with the value from Zillow.