Happy New Year Everyone!!! Now back to work!
2010 was a great year and my Retire By 40 plan made some major strides along with the stock market. It’s out with the old and in with the new though and this year I am inspired to make a New Year’s Goal and even more resolutions. One New Year’s Goal, you ask? Yes, I am making one overriding goal which I will focus most of my energy on and this Goal is really a part of my Retire By 40 Exit Strategy.
2011 Financial Goal – acquire a rental property, preferably a 4-plex. The real estate market is still very weak in Portland and I think a 4-plex is a great investment NOW. The interest rate is still near an historical low and it seems like the banks are loosening their purse strings a bit. I need to get a loan now while I am still bringing in good income from my corporate job. Once I leave my job in 2014 (or maybe even earlier), the bank will not be able to give me a loan for an investment property. The first step is to get prequalified for a loan and then get a good buyer agent.
Resolutions – I haven’t made New Year Resolutions in a long time because it seems they never last past March. I’ve learned some tips this year though and it’s time to try again. Financial Samurai’s New Year’s resolution “SAM” tips are these – (S)pecific, (A)ctionable, and (M)easureable. I think they are great tips so this year I will check how I do every quarter and write a post about it. In no particular order, here are the resolutions:
1) Transfer to a new position – I am hating my job more and more these days and I need to transfer to a new position. I’ve been putting it off until baby gets here. Once baby is here, it will be time to look for a new position. I am planning to stay with the same company for now. There are still plenty of challenging jobs here that I can learn from.
2) Stay Alive in 2011 – Yes, this might sound kind of weird, but quite a few people have kicked the bucket at work this past two years. Cancer, plane crash, unexplained hospital stay that turned bad, and more. Yet another reason to get the heck out of this group. Actionable? Yes, I will continue going to the gym at lunch 4-5 times a week. I will take public transit half the time to cut down on chance of car accidents. I will try to improve the nutritional quality of my food intake and also reduce portion sizes. Lastly, don’t stress out too much at work, it’s not worth it.
3) No New Electronics – I will buy no electronic gadgets/doodads/devices in 2011 unless it is to replace something that broke. Our house is full of stuff: toaster oven, coffee grinder, food processor, computers, laptop, TV, and more. We don’t have space for anything else so I will try to stick to this resolution. Exception – if baby needs an electronic doohickey, he’ll probably get it. Electronics mean anything that needs to be plugged in or needs batteries.
4) Blog Goals – Keep working on content and post 3 times a week on MWF. Participate in blog carnivals once a month. Monetize the blog in 2011. Pretty simple, just keep plugging away on this site.
All right! That’s enough for 2011. If I can do all these, I would be ecstatic.
Here are some more New Year’s Resolutions from our friends on the internet.
2011 New Year’s Resolutions at Buck Inspire include cooking new dishes, learning new languages and more.
I have a feeling 2011 is going to be even better than 2010, what do you think? I predict the economy will pick up quite a bit this next year. Did you make any New Year’s resolution this year?
{ 33 comments… read them below or add one }
All the best for 2011, RB40. It’s going to be a good year. I like your goals, especially #2. Nutritional inputs play a significant role in our day-to-day well-being.
Great goals. Looking forward to your quarterly updates. Very through, “Stay Alive in 2011″. I need to add that to my resolutions, too.
Thanks for the link and continued success in 2011!
4Plex Huh? Very ambitious…I love it! Do you know anyone with that kind of property by you? Taking him or her out to lunch may be the best money spent.
Thanks for the mention!
I don’t know anyone with a 4 plex. I will see if the Mrs. knows someone, she has a bigger network of friends & acquaintance. Thanks for the tip. One of my friend has a couple of rental property, but no 4plex yet. Most people I know are trapped in their job and love it.
Great goals! I hope you don’t croak in 2011 either!!
LOL you are so morbid…. staying healthy is important too. So many of my acquaintances and friends have gotten cancer, but thankfully beat it.
Thanks!
I think I will be ok, just need to stay active, eat better, calm down, and keep an eye out for the bus when I cross the street.
Thanks for the inclusion! 4Plex is a good start! Spend a lot of time at the front end of buying income property. Find a good broker who is knowledgeable in income property. It is really worth the effort.
Thanks for the tip. I need to find a broker who knows about income property. I’ve only worked with regular home broker previously
Your goals are exciting, morbid, geeky and rewarding (necessarily in that order)! Good luck RB40!
Hahaha, that’s funny when you put it that way!
Great goals! The only thing crappy about a fitness related goal (esp dealing w a gym) around new years is that EVERYONE has the same goal! The gym is always packed for a few weeks until the others give up.
Good luck with the income property as well – If possible, I’d like to see some posts on it, as I’m curious as to how it’s supposed to go, etc.
Also, dont die.
The gym is always packed after New Year. Around here, it usually last until March or so. The gym resolution didn’t start off that great, I forgot my gym clothes today. Doh! Oh well, there are still 4 days left this week and I’ll just have to get in there.
Those are some great, ambitions objectives. Good luck on the real estate; hopefully you can get a great steal. If inflation finally picks up, you’re off to the races on real estate rentals!
Awesome goals. I’ll second everyone else DON’T DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Or at least make sure we are all invited to the wake so we can send you off in style.
I will try my best not to croak in 2011.
Very nice! I definitely agree with not stressing out because it is not worth it.
Most definitely not worth it.
Oh man, if you I really wanted to push myself I would adopt your resolution of not buying any electronics. I think I need to get a little more strict on my spending, haha. Electronics kill my wallet (or have in the past).
I don’t know if I can quit cold turkey. Electronic acquisition is an definitely an addiction. I’ll have to try though.
Love your goals, and they all seem quite reasonable. I wonder if the baby is going to want an IPad though?
I struggle with the rental property thing. I so want my house paid off that I don’t really want to take on new debt. But is that a bad decision given the low housing prices and low interest rates? Tough decision.
Make sure you keep hitting the gym even after the baby arrives. You will be incredibly tired but you need to make your health as a priority, as you know. Also encourage your wife to get out and exercise too!
Good luck on your quest and let us know how it is going.
I hope the baby isn’t going to need an Ipad, that’s $500.
I think the rental thing is a difficult decision for anyone. Many people have gotten very good return for the long term though. It’s one investment that will keep up with inflation.
As for the gym, it didn’t start off well this year because I forgot my gym clothes this morning! Oh well, 4 more days to reach my goal. I do yoga, boot camp, elliptical, and lift a little weight so I keep it varies. I will definitely keep going to the gym even if just for 30 minutes.
Great goal! The first time I am seeing a goal – stay alive
We would love to invest in real estate, but we don’t even have our first home yet. So 4plex sounds awesome. Good luck with all your goals and keep us updated!
Thanks! If you don’t have a first home yet, it is even better for you to look at real estate investing. Most people buy a house to be a home (including me), but if you keep investing in mind you can do much better. Maybe instead of a house, you can look for a duplex and then rent one unit out. Later on, you can always move to a bigger home. That’s how I would have done it if I can start all over.
The staying alive goal is one that I don’t think I have ever seen or heard. The thing is, it should be an understood goal for all of us. Hey, I’ll give you credit for detailing the specific steps you’ll take to improve the odds. Certainly more important than any of our blogging-related goals:)
There has been an unusually high fatality rate in a group of around 50 people, it’s just freaky.
If the real estate market is that weak, then why not? That is quite freaky to have so many people kick the bucket at your workplace. It was sad enough when one of the testers that had been with us for years succumbed to cancer.
Yeah, it’s very disconcerting for everyone here. These people are not old either.
Happy new year RB40! Here’s to a healthy 2011 above all else.
Great move with your 4 plex plan as I believe it will pay off in the next few years.
Woahhhh I like that! “Stay Alive” — good motto to have
Thx for including me here too btw, you rock.
WooHoo!!! J$ in the house!
Good luck with these, really sad about co-workers passing away
. Health is important and it sounds like getting out of your job is going to help with that too.
Aw, no new electronics
I wonder if that “only new electronics for the baby” can stretch to an iPad…baby toy, first computer — hmmm…some things to think about. JK–great job on the resolutions!
Baby might need a new big screen TV and stereo system. just joking.