This is my official June 2017 Net Worth Update. Below are my actual numbers for ALL my investments and liabilities as of 07/01/2017. Detailed explanations and a quick summary can be found below. If you would like to see my previous months net worth posts, please visit my Net Worth Tracker. I have been tracking my net worth monthly since May 2015. If you want to learn how to track net worth then check out how I am doing it.
How To Track Net Worth
TOTAL NET WORTH: $534,311
Quick Summary and comments: +$19,739
HAPPY JULY 4TH EVERYONE!! After having two months in a row of negative months it comes with great pleasure to see this big fat increase this month. It’s been a super busy month for my wife and I and it has paid off for us. I closed on my latest rental property in early June and we spent all month fixing it up making it rent ready. Because of the latest addition to the portfolio, I have increased our net worth and will be increasing our monthly cash flow very soon. I just listed the property for rent yesterday and we have already received a ton of interest/emails and calls on the property. I would not be surprised if I have a signed lease by the end of the week. Once I have the new rental property rented out and I have all my final numbers/ROI in place, I will write-up a new post showing all the acquisition details and numbers/returns that I know you are already wondering about. 🙂
Other than working on the new rental, we had very little time and energy to do much of anything so we tried to lay low and prevent spending as much as possible. Because I bought this latest investment property in cash and also used cash to rehab it, we put a huge dent in our cash position as you can see in the spreadsheet above.
Real Estate Investing Update: It took me almost 3 months of searching properties before I finally found the right one to add to my portfolio. As noted above, I just finished the rehab on this one and it will be rented soon (hopefully). At this time, I am back in savings mode and will try to replenish my cash position some more before I begin the hunt for the next one.
Okay enough about that, lets jump into my net worth categories.
Assets: Explanations of each of my assets.
Cash: -$64,368
Well after paying cash for my newest rental property this past month as well as spending cash to rehab it, this put a huge dent in my cash position. Of course this is all expected and it’s just fine and dandy! I typically keep a large amount of cash ready for the sole purpose of being able to pull the trigger on a rental property if a good deal falls on my lap.
My cash as noted above in the spreadsheet consists of my wife and I’s checking account and my REI (Real Estate Investing) checking account. Satisfied! (Sort of)
HSA account: +$203
Slight increase in my HSA account from my paycheck contributions. Nothing crazy.
My HSA deductible is $1300 for the year and I have close over $5k in this account so with that being said, since I am maxed out already with my yearly deductible, I don’t see a need right now for depositing more funds. I am only taking a very small amount out from my day job paycheck to fund this account. Any money after that deductible will just sit in that account not making me money. I know I can use the money that I don’t put in there to get better returns as long as I invest it in more real estate. This number should increase each month a tiny bit. Satisfied!
Company Stock Options: -$1,581
I sold a bunch of my stock options a few months ago and now the remaining stocks are just sitting here waiting for me to sell. The stock price went down a bit so I am really happy I sold when I did. I actually do not have any plans on selling more of these in the foreseeable future.
These are stock options from my day job. I am fully vested. Satisfied!
Stock Portfolio: +$659
My stock portfolio is built of precious metal mining stocks. It has been a roller coaster ride with these as expected. I finally saw a slight increase on it. It has been on a negative slope for a few months now. I’m not too worried about what these do in the short-term. I’m in it for the long haul on these as I think it’s just a matter of time before the precious metal sector takes off. Overall I am still profiting from these stocks as I bought them for dirt cheap.
I bought all my shares using tradeKing. Satisfied!
401K: +$51
I made an executive decision awhile back to take money out of my 401k and no longer contribute any more money to it. Mainly because I do not get matched contributions from the dreadful day job. But also because I KNOW I can make better returns using that money on rental properties. Any movement you see in this asset is only from market fluctuations. I am not able to withdraw the remaining amount in here until I quit my job. I really don’t like the idea of having an account that punishes me to take money out because of age. Satisfied!
Property # 1 (Indianapolis, IN)
All is good with my primary residence. I did install a new security camera in my detached garage though to make me feel nice and cozy about having all my tools and stuff in there. I live in the inner city and although we have not experienced any crime/theft ourselves since we moved here, I know its out there so just being safe.
My primary residence in Indianapolis. This was originally a turnkey property I bought back when I lived in Austin. I bought this house for $67k almost 2 years ago. Spent an additional $30 in renovations when I moved into this house. I love the location, the size of the house and because my mortgage on it is less than half of what I was paying when I was living in Austin, TX. Super Satisfied! Here are more details on when I originally bought this one as a rental property.
Property # 2 (Austin, TX)
Rent paid on time and the tenants submitted a repair request for the wood privacy fence which pretty much was completely deteriorated. Honestly this fence was pushing close to 12 years old and the wood was just rotten to the core. I replaced the majority of the fence with a brand new fence so at least now I know it will be good for another 5 to 10 years. It was pricey though as I ended up paying about $1800 for this. These tenants have been amazing to me so I will pretty much always fix whatever they want fixed. I screened them myself and I am proud. 🙂 This is the property I self manage in Austin. Even now that I live in Indy, I will continue self managing this one. I think I can do it from afar and if in the future I realize that I can not continue being my own property manager, then I will probably just find a PM to handle it.
This is my first rental property. It used to be my primary residence at one point. I expect gradual appreciation from this property because it is in the suburbs Austin which has been growing tremendously. Love me some HOT markets! Satisfied!
Property # 3 (Indianapolis, IN)
Rent paid on time and no repair requests made. These tenants renewed the lease for another 2 years a few months ago! My PM has a deal in which if they renew for 2 years, we knock off $25 from the monthly payment. It’s a great deal and a win win for everyone. The tenant gets a lower payment and I get an extra two years of no turnover and vacancy costs for a very small fee. These tenants in the past have been super picky and have requested more repairs than any of my other tenants, mostly really small stuff but at the end of the day, they are a good family and I am happy to keep them.
This is my first turnkey rental property I purchased out-of-state in Indianapolis. I do not expect much appreciation on this property. I purchased this for CASH FLOW purposes only. Satisfied!
Property # 4 (Indianapolis, IN)
Rent paid on time and zero repair requests. This tenant told my PM a few months ago that they want to purchase a house and break the lease. We responded that they could leave but would have to continue paying rent until the house is re-leased. After that, we never heard back from them so I am not sure if they are still planning on purchasing a house. Other then that, these tenants have been very good. This property was the one that I fired my property manager from originally when I first bought it as a turnkey rental properly.
This my 2nd turnkey rental property in Indianapolis I do not expect much appreciation on this property. I purchased this for CASH FLOW purposes only. Satisfied!
Property # 5 (Austin, TX)
Mortgage paid on time. No issues. This is a note that I own from a house that I sold via owner finance in the Austin area. If you notice though, the reason why this asset will continue to go down from the spreadsheet above is because it is a note and the principal balance on it goes down each month as the buyer pays me. Remember, I’m the lender on this one. Satisfied!
Property # 6 (Independence, MO (KC))
Rent paid on time and no repairs on this one either. To date I have never had a repair call on this one and I have now had this property for about a year and a half. Its been a cash cow! This is the last turnkey rental property I purchased located in the Kansas City area. I bought this in late October 2015. I purchased this property also for CASH FLOW purposes only. I am not expecting appreciation gains on this one. Satisfied!
Property # 7 (Indianapolis, IN)
Rent paid on time and zero repair requests. This one was the property I wanted to convert to an airBnb but since the tenant renewed the lease, I will put the airbnb venture on hold. The tenant has been great so far and I don’t want to ruin that. Easy cash flow baby!!
I bought this rental property from a wholesaler here in Indy after I moved here. I paid this one in cash and it came with a properly screened and paying tenant which was great. The property needs some fixing up however I won’t mess with it until after the tenant moves out or submits repairs. This is the one I really want to convert to an AirBnB.
Property # 8
Rent paid on time and no repair requests. Life is good!
I bought this house from a wholesaler here in Indy for $65k in a very popular Indy neighborhood back in late October 2016. I finished the rehab on this one in late November/early December 2016 and got it rented out for $950 just in time for Christmas. December is not easy to find a qualified tenant. Not only did my property manager find a qualified tenant but the tenant signed an 18 month lease so that we both don’t have to deal with a vacancy/move in December again. Talk about a Christmas miracle!!!
Property # 9
I literally just purchased this home in early June and spent all month rehabbing it to make it rent ready. I just listed it for rent and will hopefully have it leased out by the end of July.
More details to come on this property AFTER I have it rented and know all my final numbers. Stay tuned for a future post.
Liabilities: These are self-explanatory so I wont dive too deep into these however I would like to include the items below for informational purposes.
Credit Card
I only use one credit card (rewards card) that I use to purchase my everyday expenses. I pay this off in full every month. I am receiving 1.5% cash back on this card and am very pleased with it. Satisfied!
Last 30 days net worth graph from Personal Capital
Although this month’s chart is boring and negative, I really do love this chart. It looks great and its nice and big. Good stuff!
If you want to set up and track your net worth online like I do, create a FREE account at Personal Capital.
There you have it folks! How was your month? Subscribe here if you would like to receive emails on future posts including more net worth updates.
Really looking forward to the details on that new property – you’ve created quite a machine. Buying in cash also gives you some flexibility in the future should you need to leverage up for any reason.
Thank you! It feels good being able to pay cash for these last few properties. I also like the added peace of mind for if and when the economy ever fails that I have some paid off rentals making me money.
I love hearing about your rental properties! Congrats on gaining a new property and paying for it in cold, hard cash. 🙂
Thanks MrsPP! 🙂
Look like a great month overall, congrats on property #9 and paying for it in cash. When’s the search for Lucky rental number ten start?
Thanks Brian! Ooooh property #10 probably wont be for awhile. Well if I dont have any unexpected financial surprises then maybe this coming winter I will be ready for another one. Just have to play it by ear really.
I’m excited to hear all the details about #9! I’m sure the numbers are pretty incredible since you patiently waited for the right deal and put in a lot of the fix up work yourself. Much better than anything I’m achieving!
I wouldnt say incredible but they are very similar to my other rentals. Which is really good because its only getting harder and harder to find those kinds of numbers.
Wow nice one Alex. I’m excited to hear about #9. I’m also looking forward to start getting into more rental real estate myself… I’m house hacking right now in MPLS, but looking to identify properties elsewhere in the Midwest.
House hacking is a great way to start investing in Real estate so kudos to hat my friend. I think Indy and KC are the best markets to invest in the midwest right now. You should look into those cities.
That’s an impressive growth rate when you look at the assets and house #9 is a great way for investing and 19k in a month, that’s good. Is property #9 in Indianapolis as well?
Thanks! Most of my net worth has considerably grown because of my real estate properties. Its a great way to add value and boost net worth. At least in an increasing housing market of course. Yes this new property is also in Indy.
Great to hear. Looking forward to the details. I’m looking to buy #2 in KC in the near future. I’ve heard good things about the appreciation in that part of Indy and considered buying there some time back but couldn’t really find a provider to work with. Pretty awesome that you got that much appreciation in a Midwest city. I would love to see how your AirBnb experiment goes. I’ve been considering buying a vacation rental but it does seem a lot riskier than long term rentals, especially since I would want someone to manage it for me.
I do love the idea of a vacation rental and I have always wanted to do one. Eventually I will get to it but for now I have a good paying tenant that came with the house when I purchased it so Ill let that be for now. Good luck with your search for KC home #2. That is exciting!
Nice work. Thanks for sharing your updates and giving motivation to many!
Thanks MB!
Awesome man. What is a decent cash on cash would you say for an investment property (using a conventional loan)? I’m in the process of closing on a property in Memphis and another in Jacksonville. Really excited to be getting into some properties in the mid-west. My first rental is in LA and wanted to dabble in out of state.
Seems it’s around 7% for cash on cash for all cash purchases…which is good enough to us folk in California. For getting a loan, it’s around 15% cash on cash returns. (this is 80 ltv). Would love to get higher…but I’m more in it for easy/steady streams of income from b/c neighborhoods and those returns are pretty decent vs the unpredictable stock market at this point.
Anyway, I really enjoy your blog and you’ve inspired me to be more proactive with my real estate portfolio. 🙂
Yeah that sounds about right. My minimum cash on cash would be 15% here in the midwest in a decent area. It could get higher with the cheaper properties in worse areas but I stay away from those and think everyone else should to especially for out of state investors. For all cash, for me since im local I like to see a 10% cap rate. I think 7% as you mentioned sounds about right for out of state folks buying properties ready for rent. If youre able to buy a fixer upper then you can get a little better of course.
Good luck with your RE portfolio!