Am so behind on everything.
Not a great month for me health-wise and not helped by a mad busy month at work.
I’m not counting down the days/months to my FIRE but I’d be lying if I said thoughts didn’t stray in that direction.
Anyway, how did I get on in March?
March was bonus month – I got my performance bonus but the company missed some of its targets so I didn’t get the full bonus. Anyway, I saved a whopping 59.1% of my net salary. The above includes £25.24 from Prolific surveys.
Shares and Investment Trusts
Mostly topped up existing holdings but did open up a small new position in International Public Partnerships investment trust (INPP).
Current share/IT portfolio can be found here.
(Entire portfolio here)
Future FundÂ
Well, it was only a matter of time. My FF dropped back to what it was in January, which wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.
At the end of March, my FF was down to £375,994.57.Â
Things are looking a little rocky still but I think my recent de-risking has made my portfolio a little bit more resilient, I think…. I’ll probably write a separate update post on what I’ve been doing.
Dividends and Other Income
A decent month for dividends:
I received £869.23, of which £496.484 was from my ISAs, the rest from my SIPPs. All dividends were reinvested.
Goals Update
I got through quite a bit of reading, which is just as well as brighter days and nicer weather means I’ll have gardening chores to do, rather than be sitting curled up on the sofa indoors.
Anyway that’s it – hopefully a more interesting update in a few weeks’ time.
Hope you all had a great March and Easter!
Welcome back Weenie. Good to hear from you. Sorry to hear you’ve not been well. I hope you get back to 100% ASAP.
I do get nervous when you don’t post on the first of the month like in the olden times ;). So many FIRE bloggers have gone quite now that I wonder how easy it will be for others to accidentally stumble across this fantastic idea as I did over 10 years ago.
Loving the Trump emoji! 😀 Maybe you should’ve waited a couple more days before posting after all? Many markets have now virtually recovered their losses – and then some. As a someone who has now FIREd, Trump’s roller coaster is certainly making things… ‘Testing’. As per…
I was about to start accessing my pension at the start of this financial year but have postponed that until, er, further notice. Fortunately my S&S ISA, which is all in the S&P 500 (I know, I know) isn’t doing that badly so I’m continuing to use that as a bridge until I feel more comfortable taking a bite out of my pension.
All the best.
Hey Chromebaby
Thanks, am feeling better thanks.
Yes, lots of FIRE bloggers have fallen by the wayside and the new young bunch prefer to do vlogs or just updates on Reddit.
I’m not planning on going anywhere having just renewed my site hosting subscription!
Haha, glad you liked the Trump emoji – that’s the second time it’s made an appearance, I’m glad I saved it!
The markets are swinging upwards again, you wouldn’t think from looking at the trends there were wars going on!
All the best with deciding what to do with your pensions!
Glad to hear you’re feeling better and that you’ll be continuing to blog until your big day. It’s going to be an exciting year and a bit as you countdown to FIRE! Wow! What an epic journey – worthy of a six series of 10 episodes each on Netflix!
Welcome back too, Weenie. We’re all allowed to be a little quiet at times when we need to, and I hope you’re feeling better.
Unlike you, I am (sadly) counting down the days to FIRE (like most mornings!) plus I have a countdown app (I know, I know). I wish I had your resilience to ignore it when needed. Regardless, you’re still ahead of me with the date to pull the parachute cord.
My Future Fund has been on the up, mainly as I’m almost entirely invested in oil, which is my industry and we have various share schemes etc. I told you I wasn’t very sophisticated, but my total ignorance has paid off (caveat: I’d rather this mess in the Middle East had never happened). I’ve dumped as many shares as I’m able to, and will now de-risk to more sensible investments.
Naturally, my bonus was paid at the end of March as well. Our similarities continue.
Well done with reading some books, I’ve still managed none, which is disappointing. Enjoy the garden, spring has sprung and it’s so therapeutic to get out there and potter about 🙂
Happy Easter!
Hey Starla
Now that you mention a countdown app, I am intrigued but I will wait! In a few more months, I will have my ‘one more year’ before I hand in my notice and mentally, I’m not quite there yet!
Glad to hear that your Future Fund is up – I’m only invested in oil via my trackers, I don’t have individual shares but perhaps I might consider one for my dividend income portfolio.
I think when it comes to investing, ignorance can be bliss and it’s great to hear that you’ve been able to capitalise on world events, and why not, it’s not like you can do anything about it.
I always love hearing about our similarities! 😀
Keep at it and hope work doesn’t cause too much stress for you.