So, I started a new job this month. My previous company was hit hard by the virus and our management essentially told us that the company is on track to run out of money by the end of the summer and that we should do our best to find other employment. I was fortunate enough to be able to receive another opportunity fairly quickly and that I was able to get started right away. The company is based in Nagoya, so that’s where I’ve been for most of the last 3 weeks, but we are going to open a small engineering and design office in Tokyo later this summer so I should be returning home shortly. So far the job has been very busy, which is a nice change of pace from my previous company and it’s given me lots of opportunities to learn, both on the technical side as well as practicing my Japanese language skills. Hopefully the good times continue on.
As part of that, I’ve had to spend a little bit more than usual to accomodate my temporary relocation, but it’s not all bad. IHG had a good sale on points earlier this month, pricing them at 0.5 cpp. As I am in Nagoya away from my girlfriend, I used the points to book long weekend stays at a local hotel here so that she could come visit Nagoya without having to sleep at my company’s sharehouse in the suburbs. The stays I’ve booked would have cost about $600 for 4 nights if I paid cash, but due to stacking benefits of two of my cards (10% rebate on redeemed points + 4th reward night free), the price comes out to just under 50k points for a 4 night stay, so about 1.2 cpp redemption value overall.
Investment-wise, I received quarterly dividends this month, and the market recovered even more since the big drops in February and March. Just shows the importance of staying invested even if the market appears irrationally exuberant.
Here’s my June expenses:
| Category | 06/20 | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $930.06 | |
| Internet | $108.98 | 2 months of mobile WiFi |
| Cell Phone | $30.53 | |
| Natural Gas | $19.67 | |
| Electricity | $0.00 | Didn’t pay bill before end of the month |
| Water | $35.40 | |
| Groceries | $225.22 | |
| Transport | $313.98 | 1 month train pass + shinkansen round trip ticket to Nagoya |
| Health | $156.07 | Health insurance |
| Other | $56.72 | Personal seal + coin laundry |
| Necessary | $1,876.64 | |
| Restaurants | $194.72 | |
| Entertainment | $0.00 | |
| Shopping | $30.17 | |
| Travel/Parking | $1,000.00 | Bought hotel points at 0.5 cpp |
| Gifts/Donations | $7.61 | |
| Software/Games | $1.00 | |
| Business | $0.00 | |
| Other | $0.00 | |
| Discretionary | $1,233.50 | More than average for the month |
| Total Expenses | $3,110.14 | More than average for the month |
| Gross Income | $4,993.55 | Salary + quarterly dividends |
| Taxes | -$533.78 | Received virus stimulus |
| Net Income | $5,527.33 | More than average for the month |
| Savings | $2,417.20 | About average for the month |
| Savings Rate | 43.73% | About average for the month |
Projected time to FI (assuming 6% growth and 4% withdrawal rate): 7 years, 6 months.