Yes, this post is finally up and happening. Here’s my end-of-year review for 2017! It was a whirlwind of a year for sure. In the financial sense everything went smoothly. My net worth increased by over 75% in 12 months. I bought a condo. And I met all my financial goals.

Here’s an overview of my holdings at the beginning and end of the year:

Liquid Assets	Jan-17	Dec-17	$ Change
Cash & Savings	$1,200	$450	($750)
Emergency Fund	$2501	$3,405	+$904
Short Term Savings	$75	$525	+$450
Long Term Savings	$43	$0	($43)
Illiquid Assets	Jan-17	Feb-17	$ Change
Brokerage	–	$697	+$697
Savings Bonds	$500	$2,135	+$1,635
Home Equity	–	$11,850	+$11,850
Retirement Accounts	$25,950	$46,459	+$20,509
Liabilities	Jan-17	Feb-17	$ Change
Medical	($100)	($0)	+$100
Furniture Loan	–	($1,792)	($1,792)
401K Loan	–	($10,748)	($10,748)
Net Worth	$30,169	$52,981	+$22,812
% Change			+75.6%

Buying a condo had a huge impact on my finances. I now have a mortgage and two loans. I have decided not to disclose my mortgage amount. Instead I’ll be sharing my home equity each month as I track my net worth. My liquid assets were somewhat depleted due to the condo acquisition, but the financial impacts would have been worse had I bought the condo before the end of the year.

And as previously mentioned, despite buying a condo, I was able to meet all of the following financial goals:

Fund/Goal	Goal Progress	Initial Goal	Percent
401K	$18,000	$18,000	100%
Roth IRA	$5,550	$5,500	100%
Emergency Fund	$5,500	$5,500	100%
Vacation	$1,125	$1,000	112.5%

My spending wasn’t terrible either but I did tend to go over budget most months. If I exclude the costs towards homeownership, my 2017 spending breaks down to be:

• 56% – Rent
• 23% – Everything Else
• 10% – Food
• 7% – Medical
• 4% – Fixed Expenses

If I Include home ownership expenditures:

• 39% – Homeownership
• 34% – Rent
• 14% – Everything Else
• 6% – Food
• 4% – Medical
• 3% – Fixed Expenses

Most likely in 2018, I should start tracking the “Everything Else” category in greater detail so I can attempt to trim the fat off of unnecessary expenses.

I know I don’t talk much about the non-financial aspects of my life, but one of the main reasons why I seek financial independence/stability is because I live with a chronic illness. The year 2017 wasn’t a great year for my health, and so far 2018 has not been much better. I do hope 2018 changes for the better and is the year I can find a viable treatment option. I’ll take a cure too. Without proper control of my illness, my life will eventually get very complicated and even more expensive.

Outside of my personal health, everyone in my immediate family had very serious health problems too. Thankfully, everyone seems to be fully recovered and I hope they stay in good health throughout 2018 and beyond!

Financial Goals for 2018:

• Contribute 15% of income towards retirement (20% stretch goal)
• Pay $2,500 towards 401K Loan ($3,000 stretch goal)
• Pay $1,250 towards furniture loan ($1,900 stretch goal)
• Contribute $1,000 to emergency fund ($1,500 stretch goal).
• Increase net worth by $20k, barring a market downturn ($25k stretch).
• Start saving towards home improvement projects (hard wood floors, new furniture etc).

******EDITED TO ADD******

I would like to note that I am starting off the year with 30,703 Chase Sapphire Reward Points. I need to earn ~10,000 points (or $150 travel credit equivalent) to break even on my travel credit card.  Though, I also do use perks such as airport lounge access which more than make up for the cost of the card.