December Freedom Fund Update: We Are Very Close to Declaring Financial Independence

Welcome to the monthly update of our journey to financial independence, where we report on the progress of our FI tree, aka Freedom Fund. Our mangoes are almost ripe and we’re projecting to reach our goal by July 2017. This means that we’ll have enough investments to live off of without ever having to work again to pay for living expenses.

We’ll consider ourselves financially independent when our Freedom Fund is able to support our lifestyle indefinitely. Our Freedom Fund is comprised of all of our income-producing assets such as index-based investments, short-term reserves, and a real estate property.

I can’t believe the end of the year is already upon us. December is a joyous month for me. Aside from my birthday and holiday celebrations, December is also a great month to set financial goals for the coming year.

Freedom Fund Progress

Percentage of Freedom Fund reached in November

Our Freedom Fund has increased to 94 percent! This represents a 3% increase over the previous month. If we retired today, our investments could cover up to $32,905 in annual expenses. That puts us $2,095 short of our $35,000 annual income goal!

Declaring financial independence

Our goal is to achieve financial independence by the summer of 2017. When we reach FI, we don’t have to quit our jobs or give up our anonymity. It means that if we didn’t care about having enough money to pay for our future custom home, we could break up with corporate America instead of renting or saving for other goals.

In that case, we’d have to supplement our income by doing side jobs we’d enjoy.

Quitting our jobs after FI and bringing in some side income would allow us to postpone withdrawing from our accounts and save for other financial goals we have in mind.

Most importantly, it would grant us the much-desired freedom of owning our time. The ultimate goal of FI is to completely own our time!

We will, however, remain in place once we reach FI. I mean, our jobs aren’t bad, and yes, there are some things we don’t like, but we’re not looking for a new job. We relocated very close to work to avoid the stress of commuting. We try to avoid climbing the ladder because it involves double the stress, little extra pay, and more corporate bureaucracy.

So we’ll stay put until the time comes to pull the plug. That would be a year or two after achieving FI.

We’re ahead of our FI goal

If market trends continue, we could reach our Freedom Fund target by April. That is insanely exciting! I still can’t believe we were able to save and invest for early retirement in less than four years after getting married.

It’s happening, and you’re there to see it! Thank you for following along on our adventure.

I understand that declaring financial independence does not cause drastic changes in our lives, but it is important to recognize and celebrate milestones.

Sometimes just having one reason to get out of bed in the morning is enough to keep you going. That’s why, since the beginning of this blog, we’ve been counting down to our FI day.

FI is a path to greatness

It has never been our intention to live below our means in order to achieve financial independence. We could live below our means our entire lives, spend the majority of our money without incurring debt, and still never achieve financial independence

FI is not the typical route to financial well-being that most working Americans take. It is not the path of home and car loans, expensive college tuitions, credit card debt, saving 4% of income in a retirement account, and working for a paycheck until you are 65. It is not the path where you simply pay your bills and then die.

Financial independence is a road to greatness that is littered with pure awesomeness! It’s a path defined by a high savings rate, a debt-reduction strategy, and a strong desire to make your money work for you until you no longer need to work for money.

Financial independence is a path in which you work while doing what you truly enjoy without regard to pay. It’s a path that will reward you with fulfillment, royalties, passive income, and unrestricted time with friends and family. And, best of all, you have an infinite number of options for achieving your true happiness.

Do you truly desire it? Then go find it. You have a chance as well.

What were your financial goals for the month? Did you meet them?

Risk disclosure: All investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. The material contained on this website is for discussion purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice.