There has been a noticeable uptick in reading volume over
the last few months here at “From 0 to one million” and from the bottom of my
heart I want to thank you for your interest and stopping by. Generating open
and honest discussion of personal finances and removing the taboos that circle
around the topic is one of this blog’s missions.
So to spare you an endless search through my posts for regularly
asked questions, I have decided to create this page to hopefully help save you
time and cut to the chase on some of the frequent queries that have been raised
through this medium. This way, those burning questions you might have will be
answered, and you can happily get to the business of enjoying my musings J.
So how much money do you actually make?
My wife and I do enjoy the benefits of being a D.I.N.K
household (double income no kids). But since a few readers out there are
colleagues of ours I have refrained from stating our exact salary sizes. I will
say though that for the 2013 year we are right in the middle of the 25% federal tax
bracket.
Why don’t you list out the mutual funds that are in your portfolio?
Call me philosophical, but I deeply believe that knowledge
is one of the most powerful tools within our human arsenal. With that knowledge,
I firmly believe that you too can get out there and search and find superstar
mutual funds to add to your portfolio that will earn 12% average annualized
returns for you as well. There is nothing more empowering than information.
Plus, to me there is a perceived conflict of
interest. If I were to say, “I invest in X” then one could argue (and
rightfully so) that I’m just trying to artificially inflate the value of the mutual funds I hold through this blog.
Ok, ok, so what DO you invest in?
I follow Dave Ramsey’s principles for investing. I spread my
investments evenly across 4 types of mutual funds: Aggressive Growth (small
cap), Growth (mid cap), Growth & Income (large cap) and International. I
only invest in mutual funds that have been in existence for at least 10 years,
have average annualized returns of at least 12% since inception and have a lead
portfolio manager that has lead the fund for at least 5 years.
What kind of returns are you getting?
My average annualized returns are chronicled and recorded in
an annual posting done in February titled, “My Super Fund Annual Checkup.” Between my 401k, my ROTH IRA, my
wife’s ROTH IRA and our taxable brokerage account, our portfolio, as of February 2013, is bringing
in a little over 16% average annualized returns.
How often do you post?
While there are no set rules I use, I generally try to post
2-3 times a week. At the end of every quarter I update my net worth numbers and
provide my own humble assessment of current market conditions.
Are you really debt free?
Abso-FREAKIN’-loutely! I have personally been debt free
since the spring of 2009. I do not own a single credit card nor have any debts
to my name, I am completely and 100% debt free. My wife joined the super-fit
debt free club near (fittingly) the 4th of July in 2012.
But how do you live without credit?
With money.
What’s with all the “my’s?”
To me this blog is about empowerment through information,
and taking that information to radically change your life. In learning
everything I can about what to do right in personal finance I am taking the
actionable steps to forever change my life and to leave a lasting legacy
through my family. So to me the “my’s” are an emphasis on the factual truth
that we can take control of our financial lives and through the
power of information lead ourselves to prosperity. Plus I was a big fan of the
TV show “Scrubs”
