Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links. If you click a link and purchase an item I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions are my opinion. Read the full disclosure here.

It’s already August 😓

July is my birthday month, so it’s usually always a more exciting month. However, I’m bummed that my net worth decreased compared to June!

I knew this would likely happen and I’m not stressing about it, but it’s not fun to see!

My boyfriend and I ended up taking a road trip to Savannah, GA as well as Coligney Beach in Hilton Head. Here’s photo from that:

General $ Updates

I started the process of a 401(k) for my business

In June I had just opened a SEP IRA, but then I received an offer through Gusto/Guideline where I can use Guideline’s platform for free for 1 year. I My 401(k) from my previous employer is actually already with Guideline, so this felt like a no brainer.

However, I’ve recently learned that I can’t contribute to both a 401(k) and the version of a SEP IRA that I have in the same year. It’s confusing and I haven’t resolved this issue yet, but I’ll get to it eventually.

I opened another checking account for a bonus

In case you’re new here, I open checking accounts fairly frequently in order to receive the bonuses. This time I went with First Horizon Bank which is offering a $450 bonus after making direct deposits totaling $1,000 in the first 90 days. This account also has no fees!

So I’ll be depositing $250 to this account every paycheck for 4 paychecks and I’ll complete the requirements within 2 months!

Spending

Some main things to point out about my spending in July:

Donate: I didn’t actually donate any money in July, but that’s because we ended up getting an unplanned foster dog. I had to buy her some stuff so I counted that under Dogs

Household: I bought a steam cleaner as well as some new cleaning supplies (cleaner, reusable swiffer mop heads)

Gas: I filled up 4x for the first time in a long time! I actually only paid for 3 fill-ups. My boyfriend covered one since we took a road trip.

Health/Beauty: This includes vitamins, a massage, breathe strips, whitening strips, electric toothbrush heads, and the Ladders app)

Dogs + Cat: I’ve added in ‘Cat’ because I’ve been feeding a cat in the neighborhood. I also bought him a gravity feeder since I went out of town lol. This is also much higher because of our unexpected foster dog.

Personal: A little over budget but I treated myself a bit since it was my birthday month! I bought some clothes from Hollister and 8 books.

Income

ONLINE/BUSINESS INCOME

Etsy: $89.51
Mediavine (display ads on LivinglikeLeila): $191.55
Buy Me a Coffee/Venmo: $243.17
Affiliates/Sponsors: $570.11
Coaching: $750.00
Google AdSense (ad revenue from YouTube): $1,266.14

Online/Business Income Total: $3,110.48

EXTRA INCOME

BOA Cashback: $7.70
CITI Cashback: $22.14
Upgrade Referral: $50.00
Discover Referral: $100.00
HYSA Interest: $143.28
Birthday Cash: $200.00

Extra Income Total: $523.12

*Total Gross Income: $3,633.60

*I decided to start putting my gross income from all sources. This number does not reflect my taxes.

Net Worth

As of July 31st, my net worth is $114,906.30*. Down about 0.9% compared to last month.

*Does not include the value of my car (personal preference) or what I have saved for my taxes.

Roth IRA (VTSAX): $36,242.20 (up 0.4% compared to last month)
401k: $35,511.21 (down 2.1% compared to last month)
SEP IRA (FXAIX): $416.01 (up 315.8% compared to last month)
Vanguard Brokerage (VGT and VTI): $9,786.74 (up 1.5% compared to last month)
Coinbase: $36.78 (Down 4.6% compared to last month)

Sinking Funds:

• Emergency Fund = $14,129.88
• Gifts = $1,103.24
• Health Insurance Tax Credit = $2,487.`13
• Car/Car maintenance = $4,232.93
• Travel = $6,121.57
• Car insurance = $255.45
• Business = $3,604.60

Sinking Funds Total = $31,934.80

Checking Balances as of July 31st: $978.56

I do not have any debt/liabilities.

Credit Score

My VantageScore is at 815.

JUly Goals Update

• Make over $3,500 from business income ❌
• Save to the following sinking funds: Emergency Fund ($100), Gifts ($75), Car/Car Maintenance ($100), Car Insurance ($125) ✅
• Contribute $300+ to my SEP IRA ✅

August Money Goals

• Make over $3,500 from business income
• Save to the following sinking funds: Emergency Fund ($100), Gifts ($75), Car/Car Maintenance ($100), Car Insurance ($125)
• Invest $150