Latest News

I'm not sure I brought this up, since so much has happened recently, but I finally filed the papers for my personal LLC. This will be the vehicle for my personal real estate investments, as some things just don't fit within the partnership. Right now I'm working on acquiring a portfolio, or pieces of a portfolio, of properties in the Prince George's and Montgomery counties in Maryland. We'll see how that works out. I'm just taking it slowly right now, so there hasn't been any movement to speak of. Hopefully tonight I'll be able to work on the EIN application so I can get the first bank account opened by week's end. There's an out of state project coming up that I want to be prepared to move on. Even if that rehab doesn't work out, I anticipate that there will be others very shortly.

I just called my commodity futures broker today and found that my guy, who initially solicited me, has left the INDUSTRY! Fugg me! Guess all those bogus wheat trades finally got to him, never mind what they did to his clients. Well, there will be more losses to push forward for tax time in the future, then I'll close that account. It just takes too much time to manage that with all the stuff I have going on. That will just be one less area I need to devote attention too, so I'm not too mad. It won't have extensive impact on my overall financial situation. It was an interesting experiment with money I would have preferred not to lose but that isn't hurting me for being gone.

I liquidated my XLP holdings on Monday. I wanted to have some cash on hand for other things, either some options or small stock plays. Right now, I'll just sit and wait until something interesting comes along. The consumer staples weren't doing a whole lot, mostly because of Wal-Mart I imagine. It was good for a small gain, taxable at 15% for long term capital gains. Maybe I'll add some gold to the portfolio. Now I just have to complete the equity options application already.

I don't think I have any more expenses which I can cut back on. My USENIX+SAGE membership expires in August and I don't see a renewal in my future. I'm going to simplify my financial life to its barest essence. I keep poring over my spreadsheet looking for every expendable expense, or areas in which I can reduce my committed capital. My net worth is on the cusp of 6 figures; now I just need to drag it over the line and keep it there.

In the middle of all of this, I had the realization (again) that the biggest impediment to getting rich is my J.O.B. Dammit!

Until next time, gentle readers...