We Created $30k Worth of Investment Wealth in December

December was surprising, to say the least. No Santa Clause rally for 2023 or was it an early rally? Who knows.

Well back to the intro, Lawrence Delva-Gonzalez, The Neighborhood Finance Guy writes about financial literacy topics which include but are not limited to Personal Finance, Better Budgeting, Tax Efficient Money Management, Steady Growth Investment strategies, Retirement tips, Net Worth Tracking. The goal is to help you make effective decisions and set S.M.A.R.T+E.R. goals with your money.

The information is free but the struggle is not sold separately.

Table of Contents

Inflation, More Recession Fears, and an early (Santa Claus) Rally in December

December 2023 was a wild month to end a rocky investment cycle. If you bought the tech dip on the onset, you are up by as much as +50%. If you started scared of the market, you missed out. More proof that you can’t time the market.

The Cocaine Bear market has given way to the Red Bull market. While some people are struggling to live in the red, the wealthy are positioning themselves for the next super cycle. Analysts are predicting that the US will narrowly avoid a recession. We won’t even do a soft landing. The hope is that we graze the soil and refuel mid-flight.

If you want to get off the game, you will have to jump into election uncertainty. The December CPI numbers are out and people are spending. This means that higher prices are here to stay, along with blood pressure and diabetes. Hint Hint, that might have been a warning or a tip for investing in the future.

Be careful out there. People are on a short pandemic fuse. It might be a New Year, but it’s still the same confusion. Credit card spending is up and Savings are down. See Exhibit #A below

All things considered, brace yourself.

Last year, I wrote “Try not to scare yourself into putting all your money in a bank savings account at 0.01%. A lot of great companies like Amazon, Google, Apple, and Microsoft are on sale. Down as much as 40%, translates to a solid buy in 2023. You will have to hold until late 2024 to see the wins.”

It was all true. This year, don’t try anything fancy. The economy, the market, and consumers will be struggling through the election with a solid closeout by next December. I’m anticipating at least a +10% increase. Slower than 2023 but solid for 2024.

The goal is to lose less when others are losing and win more when others are winning.

A Million dollars worth of joy while Traveling in December

Stocks rebounded from 2020 levels, but everything else feels a bit off.

Why is that? When the economic cycle contracts people start to feel tense. Beyond the stress, most begin to blame others for their woes. This includes immigrants and the rich.

The media pushed both sides for ad clicks for so long, that no one trust authority anymore. The White House tried to redress public concerns but failed again. Misinformation was allowed to spread for far too long and now we are paying the price.

With that said, we will once again set our eyes on a restart after the Fourth of July 2025. People are celebrating until the money runs out.

“Sit tight and Assess.” Just in case you are bored, feel free to implement the month-to-month financial plan that can help you get rich quickly.

Now Back to the December Breakdown

I have a total of two fans who read this so here we go. If you are new, this article showcases the TNFG monthly Net Worth Breakdown for December 2023. There are always usable financial nuggets and aha moments that might help you along the way.

Just Two Fans. Unfortunately, that’s true.

Stocks Decimated Our December Goals

Beyond tightening the war chest (again), my wife and I purchased a new EV car in 2023. Unfortunately, the tires and rims were robbed twice so we drove Diesel to Florida for repairs and upgrades. We also went on an incredible trip to Argentina and Brazil. However, we went over by at least $2,000. Of which, we regret nothing.

I brought that up to warn you guys that Instagram travel is expensive. Either way, we hit our $1M mark this year – adding $33,000 this month. This is enough for a victory lap considering the year we just had. Note that the numbers below are a bit off because of bank reconciliation (timing).

Here’s the Quick Summary:

What Happens Next!

The world is changing post-COVID. It’s getting increasingly expensive. There is a rise in mental health issues and a slide back to poverty for a lot of people. The transition will be harder by May 2025. Until then, my family plans to keep our heads down, work out, and plan for the next trips.

We escape to decompress. All in all +3.12% increase. The cash value growth is shy of $34,000. We will keep socking away money in the first QTR of 2024. However, our expectations have decreased in comparison to 2023.

Our Expenses for December 2023

Farewell Intuit’s Mint.com, guess I’ll be using Empower’s Cash Flow Module

Travel Prices went up. That’s mainly because of our stay at Hotel das Cataratas. The luxury was worth the cost but it was a bit more than anticipated. We overspent by an extra $2,000 for the entire trip, but it was all worth it.

Our mortgages on two properties are up this month, however, that’s due to extra January 2024 payments. We do that to get the extra mortgage interest credits on our taxes. Our Food and dining budget simmered since we were on travel for the month.

And we were hit with annual credit card fees pretty early which explains the $1,500.

So Where were the December Wins? Losses?

In order; Debt Repayments; yep that’s it. It’s been a long road to debt-freedom and we still have six years to go. With extra mortgage principles, we hit $206,000 in repayments. The Public Student Loan Forgiveness of $89,000 did this year’s heavy lifting.

To think that student loans are a thing of the past for my household is interesting. We’ve been paying since 2012. Paid-off student loans are right up there next to sex.

The bumpy road for investing continues. In total, we added nearly $30,000 in investment growth in December.

December’s investment performance helped us finish north of 28% for the year. We contributed to the max in our 401ks, ROTH IRAs, and HSA. Investing is the missing piece to gaining wealth. Even when the market is down. That’s the best time to get into the game while quality companies are discounted.

If you need tips on how to set up a solid portfolio, read How to Build a Long-Term Investment Portfolio Earning 250%.

Savings held at $1,500. After a year of unexpected health crises, we had to up our Acid net/max EF. The net/max financial plan hasn’t failed us yet but it’s time to hedge our saving bets. We should be pushing that to $5,000 by YE 2024.

What can we honestly do better?

Food and Unexpected expenses

As stated earlier, we can’t control inflation, shipping costs, and global labor shortages. However, we can control food waste and our waistline. We can also slow down spending on unnecessary items. Travel is our vice so we aren’t cutting that. But we can acknowledge that it’s a luxury.

We closed out the year with over $1,116,137. That’s the highlight. Now we are setting our eyes on the $1M total investment portfolio goal by YE 2025. After that, the multi-millionaire goal by YE 2026 ($2M).

What is the Next Step for Us?

Still working on e-books or other items for the website

Beyond that here are our overarching goals for 2024:

Keeping our expenses where they should be. “So stop equating happiness and social acceptance based on the money you spend.“
Get to $75,000 in M1 Finance focusing on Growth and Dividend Income that generates at least $2,000 in passive income in 2024. Check out the portfolio in real-time. If you like the platform and want to start investing, I have the $10 for $10 referral if you need it – https://m1.finance/SYdqDJ2SyADC.
Shooting for a sustained investment rate with the push for a $1 Million Portfolio by YE 2025. To help monitor your savings, cash flow, net worth, investments, retirement, and more FREE with Personal Capital! Sign up with my link & get a $20 Amazon gift card. *Terms apply. https://pcap.rocks/lawrencegonz

Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Neighborhood Finance Guy. We highlight financial literacy information, resources, and more on your way to money management goals and personal wealth. Our goal is to help you make S.M.A.R.T.E.R decisions with our money. We do not give investment advice or encourage you to adopt a certain investment strategy. Your personal finance is up to you. If you take action based on one of our recommendations, we earned $200 as of 12.2022. We operate independently.

Receive a selection of my favorite finds every week by subscribing to the newsletter. Make the Neighborhood Finance Guy website your trusted source for great content that will audit your life and re-balance your happiness and wealth.