Fourteen Days. 3,100 Visitors. 1 Big THANK YOU.
My First Million just reached the two week milestone. Today's post recaps highlights from this period -- and sneaks a peek at whats to come.
But first I want to thank mm for everything he has done to make pfblog such a valuable resource. For both this site and in his own personal finances, mm has done an absolutely AWESOME JOB! Keep up the great work.
HIGHLIGHTS
As the first two weeks draw to a close, already My First Million has had more than 3,100 visitors (almost 9,500 page hits!). My heartfelt thanks go out to everyone who has begun to take an interest in the words of this cautious millionaire. Here are the highlights:
The most commented post was Im Researching Ways to Protect Myself Against Identity Theft, which generated 10 responses. Comments include words from an actual victim of ID theft, where the thief even bought a mobile home using the victims SS#.
Good news for me is summarized in I Just Cut my 05 Property Tax Increase by 41.9%.
A cautionary tale for those planning early retirement can be found in "Individual Medical Insurance -- Thats the "BOOGEYMAN" under my bed."
The best site referral comes from Reasoned Investings Jim Cramer's Mad Money - July 6, 2005. This popular site is especially valuable for anyone interested in individual stocks. Thanks BA.
And last, to my complete surprise, my blog is getting a number of referrals from Google, primarily for the analysis of my Dodge & Cox and PIMCO mutual funds.
TOPICS I HOPE TO COVER IN THE FUTURE
My Job: I plan to create a post explaining my current job situation, where as an almost 50-year-old, I now work only three days a week. The twist, though, is that I earn just over $10 / hour and defer / FLEX 100% of my income.
How I Got from There to Here: I plan share a chart showing the history of my net worth over the past 10-12 years -- along with commentary on what I did right, as well as where I could have done better.
Compound Interest and Inflation: I fear that many people do not have an appreciation for just how devastating inflation can be over a 40 year career; not to mention what could be 30 or more years in retirement. As such, I want to put in my 2 cents on this important topic.
Long-Term Care: I believe that shopping for long-term care insurance is overly confusing. Based on feedback from readers, I hope to explore this often misunderstood topic in greater depth. If you have a question or comment in this area, please send me an e-mail. Ill do my best to respond or answer your question in a future post.
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Hi 1st mil-Congratulations on hitting the $2MM mark. I think it would be interesting to note how much monthly cash flow your portfolio throws off. When I first hit the $1.2 MM mark my portfolio threw off $0-but that was ok as I knew I would be making adjustments. But now-I'm way more interested in Cash Flow! Take Care, Steve
Hi Steve, thanks for the comments. I also visited your blog. Nice job.
In terms of cash flow, Ill go ahead and say it now...Ive become addicted to fixed income investments. Unfortunately, with long-term interest rates sagging, I feel like a junkie struggling to find satisfaction in his next fix.
Cash flow from my 10-year ladder hits right at $110K / year. And much of this is tax deferred.
I use excess income from the ladder to fund monthly fund purchases. So while the size of the income ladder remains fairly constant, the amount invested in funds continues to grow over time.
At some point in the future, Ill try to cover this topic in greater depth.
Regards, 1stMill
BTW, the last three comments to this blog have come from three different Steves. I'm beginning to detect a pattern :-)
Thanks 1stMill-If you were advising a 20 something mentor today would you go pre-tax or post-tax contributions in your 401k? I come down in the after-tax camp because it seems that the only thing guaranteed to go up in the future is our tax rates :) Good Job on your blog! Steve
Hi Steve. Excellent point. When Roths were introduced in 1997 I didnt qualify, so I have not run the numbers. As such, I would defer to investment professionals such as yourself. - 1stMill
