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Financial Independence Report – March 2022
Take a peek at our personal numbers for the month of March 2022. This includes a synopsis of our net worth and monthly cash flow activity.
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March – Overview & Updates
March was a fabulous month. I was blessed to celebrate 4.5 decades on this planet, and got to do something that I often don’t do… public speaking!
I’ll be honest, I was a bit apprehensive about the whole thing, but I knew getting uncomfortable would make me grow. And, I was right.
I was a featured speaker at my friend, Dustin’s, real estate wealth building conference called REWBCON.
There were 27 other speakers who were primarily speaking about real estate investing and wow, what a lineup!
I was the lone speaker discussing the future of real estate investing with crypto and NFTs. And, at first, I thought no one would come to my breakout session which was 50 minutes long. But, the more people I met at the conference, the more I heard they were interested in the topic.
Well, it ended up being a packed session and it went far better than I could have imagined. Although I procrastinated with the presentation right up to the final moments, I had been preparing slowly by watching youtube videoes about public speaking, learning to tell better stories, and ultimately reminding myself that this wasn’t about me, but about helping others.
Here’s how I calmed my nerves… by taking a selfie with the audience! That worked wonders because then it was just a conversation with friends.
Overall, I was proud of myself because this has been one of my biggest fears and after finally doing it, I wasn’t bad at all… and even fun!
Some of the ancillary benefits from this were a lot of engaging conversations with people coming up to me, some new additions to the NFTs Unlocked group, and some great feedback. So, just a reminder that once we take action in an area of fear, it becomes easier and easier. I know for some of you this could be taking action with your finances, so I encourage you to get a little uncomfortable in whatever area(s) you’re working in.
It was great to catch up with my mastermind group there AND got to hang out with my dear friend and Breakthrough Millionaire podcast co-host, Marlon Smith in person… it’s been a while.
Since this conference fell on my birthday, I celebrated it the following weekend with my family. We kept it low-key but I got to enjoy a stellar sushi dinner at a Michelin-rated restaurant we’d been wanting to try.
We also drove up to L.A. to visit some family during the kids’ Spring break. And, I had a chance to sneak away with my wife for the weekend to Santa Monica while we were up there.
I had a free night certificate from Hilton, so I maxed the value by staying at a $1000+/night property which was fabulous… thanks travel rewards!
And we got to check out The Broad contemporary art museum.
Okay, let’s get to the numbers!
Net Worth Summary
March was another positive month with additional growth in our net worth.
We finished the month at $3,241,594 vs. $3,177,248 this past February. This is a +$64,346 increase to our net worth or +2.03% by percentage.
A good chunk of this appreciation came from the rise in real estate values, although we did have some cash increases also.
We also had decent cash flow this month which helped.
Cash Flow
Cash flow was POSITIVE for March.
We ended up with a healthy $6,973 of cash flow for the month.
Income
Income for March was DOWN from the last month to $21,232.
Our recurring income is primarily made up of my wife’s teacher salary, rental income, dividend income, misc investment income (like NFTs!), and online income (coaching, online related, book, etc.).
Online income was decent with the addition of another private coaching client and some new members to NFTs Unlocked.
We are also still paying back the property manager for some turnover expenses but should be back to cash flow positive next month… finally!
My wife is also earning a little extra going forward as she’s taken on an additional leadership role at her school site.
Expenses
March’s expenses of -$14,260 were DOWN compared to last month.
The largest non-recurring contributors this month can be attributed to restaurants which is a bit crazy to think about, but there were several celebratory dinners, some travel mixed in, and a neighborhood get-together for my daughter’s bday.
I didn’t spend as much on NFTs this month.
Finally, note that our mortgage payment for our primary residence has been cut down to $2500 includes our PITI (principal, interest, taxes, & interest) PLUS an extra $300 that goes straight towards the principal (to accelerate our mortgage payoff).
Portfolio Balances (Equities)
Stocks stabilized some in March and even went up a bit.
With that said, I’m still anticipating further volatility ahead.
Not much has changed to our allocation other than a larger position in crypto.
Final Thoughts
Alright, March was a fun and productive month.
And now into April, we’re back on the hunt for the HELOC. Yes, rates have gone up considerably, but the HELOC will certainly give me the flexibility to buy as a cash buyer on my next real estate investment.
I also got our taxes over to our CPA. So, hopefully, that comes back soon for me to review.
Finally, I’m planning to embark on a new health challenge called the 90-Day Wildfit Challenge. It’s a bit pricey at $899, but the cost of not optimizing my health is way higher.
Readers, how was your March? What were your biggest gains or losses?
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My extended goal is to help you find your personal path to financial independence, and to enjoy the entire journey along the way.
More about me
- Finding FI Interview #44: Flying Free with Captain FI - July 24, 2023
- 8 Things About Money that I Wish I Knew In College - May 17, 2023
- It Pays to Pay Attention: How Diligence Can Save and Earn You Money - April 24, 2023
3 Comments on “Financial Independence Report – March 2022”
Yeah, could be a good time to buy the dip in NFT land. And the Twitter NFT bid seems to be up to $18,000 now.
It’ll be interesting. Let’s hope interest rates don’t move much higher.
Hi Michael,
I just read that Jack’s first tweet NFT that sold for $2.9M last year was out for sale this year with the highest offer at $277.
Is this really the exact same NFT that was bought for $2.9M? https://twitter.com/cryptowhale/status/1514349810505158670?s=21
If so, how is the rest of the NFT market doing and do you think this is an opportunity to buy? Heck, I’d buy Jack’s NFT for $300 no problem!
Sam
Hey Sam, it sure is! I suspect he put it up for auction without notifying anyone and those that did find it just threw in some lowball offers knowing full well they weren’t going to hit his reserve of $40M+! Good thing for him is he got a bunch of publicity from it. We’ve seen other publicity stunts in the NFT space before like a sale of a crypto punk for millions when in reality it was just a transfer from one of his wallets to another.
The NFT market goes in cycles. It’s currently down in trading volume the past month or two, so now could definitely be a good time to pick up some quality NFT projects. I’ve been buying a handful throughout this cycle. 🙂