The Crossover Point

Zola.

Here we are in November...
My wife has now finished work as we wait on the baby, I feel a little bit of nervousness now I have to say..!


November update:

S&S ISAs vs Mortgage Debt: 74.67% (+5.09%)    

All Investments & Cash Vs Mortgage Debt: 104.98% (+8.61%)  

Currently Mortgage Neutral!   


I plan to break this out a bit more going forward to track other metrics, such as my Bitcoin hedge. I anticipate this area will be a real rollercoaster, given Bitcoin's volatility. However, I have at least a five-year plan with it and I do plan to buy up the inevitable crashes, and less so at market tops. I am almost a year into investing in this space and have already seen a 50% haircut, but it has also surged back and I am up 40% for the year as of now. I think the end of the bull cycle could be around the corner, (which usually brings a two or three-year bear cycle with a massive crash), despite that,  I don't want to sell any now, as the threat of missing a rocket is always there as well. 

Index investing will always be my main priority and key monthly funding, along with a minor bit of active investing and of course mortgage overpayments. 

Bitcoin vs Mortgage	18.33%
ISAs vs Mortgage	74.67%
ISAs & Cash Vs Mortgage	86.62%
ISAs & Bitcoin vs Mortgage	93.00%
ISAs, Bitcoin & Cash vs Mortgage	104.98%

Zola.

Almost Christmas time
Delighted to say our second child was born last week, a baby girl. Everyone is safe and well. Back to broken sleep for a while!! 

I need to make one or two medium-large purchases in the new year, so a couple of weeks back I took some Bitcoin chips off the table (sold roughly 1/3 of my stack), and it's sitting in cash.  I made a good profit on this so I am happy with the timing, as the price has dropped considerably further since I sold. I do plan to go back to drip-feeding my bitcoin stack more slowly again, especially when the prices are lower and many are feeling bearish. Bitcoin now only makes up about 5% of my investments. 


December Update:

Bitcoin vs Mortgage	9.70%   (-8.63%)
ISAs vs Mortgage	76.23% (+1.56%)
ISAs & Cash Vs Mortgage	92.38% (+5.76%)
ISAs & Bitcoin vs Mortgage	85.93% (-7.07%)
ISAs, Bitcoin & Cash vs Mortgage	102.08% (-2.9%)

Jessy103

Congratulations!!! Best wishes to you and the family x

Zola.

Thanks @Jessy103

savingholmes

Congratulations on your new addition to the family ❤️

Zola.

2021 Review

• Closed out the year with a total savings rate of 49.97%
• 'FIRE' number grew closer from 17% to 30%
• Added about £80k to investments (boosted by a 25k inheritance)
• Mortgage down from £101,000 to £93,000
• Got a new job with a 40% pay increase
• Gained a beautiful daughter!

I don't imagine next years review will be as strong as my wife is on maternity until September and so the earnings will drop considerably for the year... we will also be hammered with double nursery fees when she goes back to work, good Lord! All well at home, but we think that is definitely us done on the kids front. One of each is plenty

January Update

Bitcoin vs Mortgage	9.95%.    (-0.25%)
ISAs vs Mortgage	76.28%.   (+0.05%)
ISAs & Cash Vs Mortgage	91.37%.   (-1.01%)
ISAs & Bitcoin vs Mortgage	86.23%.   (+0.3%)
ISAs, Bitcoin & Cash vs Mortgage	101.32%.  (-0.76%)

savingholmes

That is huge progress. Congratulations. 

Zola.

Thanks @savingholmes !

Zola.

I am glad to see mid February now, mornings and evenings starting to get a little brighter. 
January flew by, despite being relatively uneventful. My wife and baby daughter have now both caught covid, but managing well, mostly head cold symptoms. My son and I are testing negative still. 

Paydays from the end of February and beyond are down to me and stat maternity pay for my wife until the end of September (less than £500 for stat pay).. which will be a little shock to the system... I will have to tighten a few things up with groceries and takeaways to try and keep the current account healthy, whilst maintaining the investments and life enjoyment..

My son is dropping down to 3 days in nursery from next month, which will save us a few hundred a month and will help a bit.

The stock market continues to be a bit jittery, but it could be worse.

February Update

Bitcoin vs Mortgage	11.19%.    (+1.24%)
ISAs vs Mortgage	76.57%.    (+0.29%)
ISAs & Cash Vs Mortgage	91.23%.    (-0.14%)
ISAs & Bitcoin vs Mortgage	87.76%.    (+1.53%)
ISAs, Bitcoin & Cash vs Mortgage	102.43%.  (+1.11%)

Zola.

And here is March
A depressing couple of weeks with the war in Ukraine.. The world feels extremely fragile right now and the TV has been pretty grim. I was glued to the news for the first week, quite shocked that the war actually kicked off. I had to disengage from it and now I only glance at headlines once a day, as its all too depressing. 

This month and next month will be quite expensive months I imagine, one international flight with work and one European one for a stag do! 

Quite a few larger house expenses this month and the numbers have taken a bit of a hit all round. Such is life! Normal drip feed investing to vanguard etc as per usual. 

On the upside I got a 5% pay rise, and a lot more RSU stock units from work. These are tied in for 4 years but drip feed out in parts once a quarter and can make a real difference to the pay packet. I plan to use this money for ISA investing mainly..


March Update

Bitcoin vs Mortgage	11.92% (+0.73%)
ISAs vs Mortgage	74.45% (-2.12%)
ISAs & Cash Vs Mortgage	87.03% (-4.2%)
ISAs & Bitcoin vs Mortgage	86.37% (-1.39%)
ISAs, Bitcoin & Cash vs Mortgage.	98.95% (-3.48%)