2 Recent Options Trades Adding $358.90 Income

Since my last options trades update, I made 2 recent trades adding $358.90 options income. Both were sales of put options of intermediate duration.

Here is an updated options trade tracker:

Thoughts on Options, and 9 Recent Trades

I have never been a big fan of options trades, but I changed my mind after reading blogs of fellow dividend bloggers such as Divgro. I now believe that selling, or writing, options can be a good way to supplement one's income, since much of the value of options derives from their time value, which decays over time to zero at expiration. As a quick overview, here are four possible trades with options:

2017 Review and New Goals for 2018!

2017 was another solid year for me in terms of attaining most of my financial goals, helped by a strong stock market performance and a good income. My total expenses in 2017 increased only slightly compared to 2016, while my savings rate remained well above 90% and dividend income grew significantly. I continued tilting toward lower dividend yield and higher growth to reduce my tax liability given my relatively high income. A summary of all my goals since inception of this blog can be found under my Goals tab.

2017 Goals Revisited
I set 5 goals at the beginning of 2017 to meet by end of the year. The first three are financial and the last two to help me stay current and maintain a sharp mind. All of these goals are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-based (SMART).

My Net Worth Update - End of 2017

My net worth increased from $883,575.44 to $1,174,539.92 from 12/31/16 to 12/31/17. In 2017, my net cash inflow (from active income less expenses) was $103,752.82. 

Organic growth = ($1,174,539.92 - $103,752.82) / $883,575.44 -1 = 21.19%.

Inorganic growth = $103,752.82 / $883,575.44 = 11.74%.

Total net worth growth = 21.19% + 11.74% = 32.93%.

Income & Expenses For December 2017

Since 2014, I have been tracking my monthly income and expenses. You can see a breakdown of every penny I earn and spend. For perspective, this budget is for a household of two in a small US city. By documenting my journey, I aim to demonstrate the feasibility of saving a significant portion of your income and provide some ideas and inspiration for your own budget.

Below are my income and expenses for December 2017 and full year 2017, as well as those of 2016 for comparison. You can see all my monthly budgets here.

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