Happy October everyone! Fall is here, Halloween is on its way, and I have a lot going on in the next month. I’m excited to share it all with you, and how my financial picture ended for the month. I’m on my way to Santa Barbara this weekend and the Financial Blogger Conference in St. Louis in two weeks. The last week of the month, Denver Underground Parties returns with our second event, Wicked Wonderland, a massive Halloween party I am hosting with two friends.
Banking, Debt, and Investments
I’m feeling bullish on the stock market, and I made two new purchases to beef up my portfolio and reduce the cash in my Liberty Fund. In the last month I bought shares in Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) and Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ: WYNN). Starbucks is a stable company that is highly profitable.
A cup of coffee costs only a few cents to make and they sell it for $5. That’s a good business. After my visit to Las Vegas last month, I started looking into shares of MGM Resorts (NYSE: MGM), but decided to invest in the profitable alternative from the other side of the strip. Wynn’s business is growing, profitable, and paying a 2.5% dividend, just a bit below my 2.875% mortgage rate.
My issues with Lending Club seem to have passed. I had trouble finding loans due to investor competition, but this month investing was a smoother process. My account has now led to an account balance of $962. I turned off the automated investment at Lending Club and have begun investing more with Prosper. My net annual returns at Lending Club are 12.09% and I have no plans to withdraw a cent in the near future. I currently have 46 active loans, 0 in funding, and 15 fully paid and I have earned $138 in interest.
If you want to know exactly how I make 11+% with Lending Club, check out my in depth guide to making money with Lending Club. I have $150 with Prosper and have earned an annualized return of 10.64% so far.
I have no plans to slow down my investing in the near future. My biggest focus in general is my automatic investing in my retirement accounts.
Liberty Fund Update
I have a $30,000 savings goal for my liberty fund. I started saving in August, 2012 and the balance is now at $23,735. I’m making great progress saving.
The bulk of my liberty fund is in a combination of high interest savings accounts and a stock investment account. I suggest 360 Savings from Capital One 360 for this type of savings. I began this fund with a $5,000 emergency fund goal and have expanded it to give me more flexibility and a bigger cushion. Just don’t have too much cash in your emergency fund, and occasionally re-evaluate if your emergency fund is too big.
Side Business Income
Narrow Bridge Media – All Blogs and Online Activities
Revenue
- Private Ads, Freelance Work – $2,047
- AdSense – $15
- Affiliate Payments – $50
- Premium Plugin Sales – $0 (will be reported only when paid by Code Canyon) – 8 sales to date, paid on the 9th sale
Expenses
- Freelance Writers – $60
- Email List – $19 (Provided by Aweber)
- Web Expenses and Development – $0
Yes, you read that right. BEST. MONTH. EVER! I had more freelance projects than ever before, and that made a huge bump in my online income this month. I hope to keep up the trend!
I created a new WordPress plugin a couple months back to solve a problem I had. I was trying to convert from the Thesis Theme to Genesis (did you notice?) and couldn’t move my Thesis post images as expected. My new plugin takes care of that and is available for $10, of which I get $6 per sale.
Denver Flash Mob – Flash Mob Consulting and Planning
Revenue
- Custom Flash Mob Revenue – $350
- Sponsorship Revenue – 0
- eBook Sales – Future Revenue Stream Idea
Expenses
- Staff Payments – $100
- Web Expenses and Development – $0
The busy summer season is behind us. I don’t have any events on the calendar for the fall at this point, though I am in talks with a couple of potential clients.
Net Worth
In total, my net worth was up $2,564, or 1.42%. I update my condo value and car value based annually in January. I pay off my credit cards in full each payday.
Great job with your side business income!
Thanks! It has taken a lot of time and work, but it is a growing part of my income and I’m thrilled to have more diversity.
Seems like things are getting better and better for you Eric! Keep the growth going!
I have been making more from freelance work lately, which has been great for revenue growth.
That is huge. I think you have a keen eye when it comes to money. I would love to keep hearing from you.
Following and sharing your posts on Google+. I hope to get one from you as well. 🙂
Thanks for the friendly comment Jay. I just visited your site and it looks like you have great stuff.