Dividend Income Update – July 2014

rising-dividendsAnother month has passed by, and it’s time for me to post an article on my favorite subject: dividend income. The reason why I love to post articles on dividend income is because it’s pure numbers. It’s hard to argue the success of long-term dividend growth investing when you can slowly and surely see dividend income rise over time and get closer to covering one’s expenses.

July was really strong, and just another step in the right direction. Every month of dividend income is one month closer to financial freedom, and I never forget that. I don’t know if I’m just weird, but every time a fresh dividend is deposited in my account I feel fantastic. Of course, how could more money coming your way with no work on your part not make you feel good?

I hope these monthly dividend income reports provide inspiration for any investors out there that are just starting out. It’s easy to see these payments rising month after month and it shows that it’s possible to one day pay for monthly expenses with dividends, which would provide an investor opportunities and freedom to pursue other interests than full-time work. Without further ado:

July 2014 Dividends Received

  • Baxter International Inc. (BAX) – $23.40
  • The Coca-Cola Company (KO) – $42.70
  • Illinois Tool Works Inc. (ITW) – $14.70
  • Altria Group Inc. (MO) – $38.40
  • Phillip Morris International Inc. (PM) – $108.10
  • American Realty Cap. Prop. Inc. (ARCP) – $14.17
  • Realty Income Corp. (O) – $12.80
  • General Electric Company (GE) – $28.60
  • Medtronic, Inc. (MDT) – $11.29
  • Sysco Corporation (SYY) – $8.41
  • The Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) – $12.54

Total dividends received during the month of July: $315.11

I still can’t believe it sometimes. I’m receiving hundreds of dollars per month for doing nothing more than being alive. Before I even actually try to go out and actively make money I’m already covering a significant chunk of my expenses every month. The joy of being a dividend growth investor.

I still remember waiting tables in my early college years. It would take me a whole week of delivering food and cleaning the salad bar to earn this kind of money. It now comes my way with no additional effort on my part. The effort has already been realized in the past, as the me of days past took excess capital from savings and invested it in high-quality businesses. The me of today could theoretically sit back and enjoy this rising passive income stream for the rest of my life, but I choose instead to continue building on it. Imagine if Michelangelo hadn’t finished the frescoes inside the Sistine Chapel. Much like that, I must see the Freedom Fund, and my financial independence, to the end.

And that’s because financial freedom is something, like the frescoes, beautiful and worth working hard for 10 or more years of my life for. And once financial independence is attained I’ll have the rest of my life to sit back and enjoy it.

The total you see above was a 73.4% improvement over what I received in dividends during July 2013. That’s a pretty big year-over-year improvement, but I know increases in percentage terms will decline as my dividend income grows. However, the most important thing isn’t percentage increases, but rather real income growth which propels me closer to financial independence.

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I was able to cover 23.1% of my personal expenses via dividend income. It’s just awesome to know that a little over four years into my journey to financial independence that I can routinely cover almost ¼ of my personal expenses via passive income alone. And what’s even better is that anyone can do this. I’m nobody special. I simply have a desire to escape the rat race and buy myself freedom. And you can do the same!

I expect August to be yet another great month for dividend income, and a bit more than what I received for this month. It’s just another step on the road to freedom.

One of my goals this year is to receive $5,200 in dividend income throughout 2014. With seven months in the books, I’ve now earned $3,117.63 in dividend income for the year. That’s an average of $445.38 per month, so I’m on my way to exceeding my goal and then some. I’m anxious to see just how much I can crush this thing. I’ve completed 60% of my goal thus far, so I’m on pace for a great year of passive income.

I’ll update my dividend income page to reflect July’s dividends.

Full Disclosure: Long all aforementioned securities.

How was your dividend income for July? A great month of passive income? 

Thanks for reading.

Photo Credit: sscreation’s/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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147 Comments

  1. Great progress DM,
    $315.11 dividend is not a paper gain it is real and all for you 😀 .

    I received $294.37 dividends in July 2014, and so far I received $2077.69 dividend for the 2014 and completed around 59.37% of my 2014 goal.

    Happy investing :d

    Cheers,

  2. 73% increase from last year and covers 23% of your expenses?! WOW … you are killing it! It sure is an inspiration to see your progress, DM. I hope to get to that point someday.

    Best wishes
    R2R

  3. Nice Jason! It’s great receiving those checks. I also enjoyed Coke, ConocoPhillips, Kraft, and General Electric last month. This month started strong with General Mills, so we’ll see how the rest goes.

    The advancing calendar begs the question……are you planning a Florida vacation this winter? I know I’m envious of Michigan weather this week. haha. Rock on brother
    -Bryan

  4. Finance Journey,

    You’ve got it. That money was cold, hard cash that I was able to reinvest and grow the snowball even more. 🙂

    That’s a great month for you! I think we’re just incredibly lucky to live in first world countries where you can earn hundreds or thousands of dollars per month in passive income. What a wonderful position to be in.

    Keep it up!

    Take care.

  5. R2R,

    Thanks so much. The plan is definitely coming along. 🙂

    It’s all about consistency and persistence. Ignore the noise and just keep putting capital away. Good things will happen!

    Thanks for stopping by.

    Best wishes!

  6. Chris,

    That’s funny. I actually find it painful to sit and watch the market to try and trade. That seems so incredibly time consuming to me, but I can see how others might enjoy it. I don’t even check my brokerage account every day, so I don’t think I’d be a very good trader. 🙂

    Good luck with collecting those dividends!

    Cheers.

  7. Hey hey hey! That’s an awesome month!

    Your dividend income updates are always an inspiration 🙂

  8. John,

    Thanks! Passive gain, indeed. Of course, the me of today is still putting in work that will only benefit future dividend income reports. 🙂

    The me of 10 years from now is going to be very happy!

    Thanks for stopping by. Hope all is well with your journey.

    Cheers.

  9. Bryan,

    That’s a great question. I’d love to visit Florida in the winter. I’d actually like to see Naples again. I thought that was just a beautiful town. And I had one of the best meals of my life down there. Of course, a piece of my heart will always be in Sarasota, especially with my partner in crime still living there. We’ll see what the winter brings. 🙂

    Sounds like you had a great month as well. COP has been a great holding for me. I really wish I would have bought more pre-PSX.

    Keep up the great work over there!

    Best wishes.

  10. Looking good. Should be a few dividend raises this comin month as well. Love to see year after year progress. Soon enough you will be at 50% covered expenses from dividends. You are snowballing well!

  11. Seraph,

    Thank you. Really appreciate it! And I’m glad there’s some inspiration to be had in these. That’s why I keep doing what I do. 🙂

    I know you had a great month, and congrats again on crossing over $100 for the year. The first of many milestones.

    Keep it up!

    Cheers.

  12. A-G,

    I can’t wait until the 50% point. I think I can get to an average 50% coverage within a few years. It’s definitely within sight. Once half of all my expenses are covered I feel like I’ll really be on easy street. To know that I really only need to go out and earn, say, $700/month to survive sure takes a lot of pressure off. 🙂

    It’ll be much longer, however, before I’m anywhere near your level. But I’m still grinding away!

    Thanks for stopping by.

    Best regards.

  13. Looking great! Thanks for the inspiration. I’m kind of just starting out on the dividend growth investing journey, but each ownership share I purchase (of course at a reasonable valuation) puts me closer to freedom.

  14. impersonal,

    Exactly! Every share is one step closer to freedom. Every penny counts, my friend. Keep at it and you’ll be further along then you could have ever imagined.

    Cheers!

  15. Great Job DM…..you are without a doubt an inspiration! I won’t post my figures yet because they are so minimal but on the flipside we all have to start somewhere. Continued success!

  16. I kinda stumbled upon dividend paying stock.
    In 2011 they generated 76% of annual expenses, 67% in 2012, 92% in 2013 and I expect over 114% this year.

    I am not excited as I once was because, with a plan you could sell stock periodically to generate annual expenses. I am aware that market maybe down at the time I have to liquidate a part of the portfolio and I’m also aware that dividends can be reduced or cut altogether for a quarter or quarters.5 kids through
    Now there’s 1 gentleman I know of that retired at 40 in 1968 and has lived a good life since, putting 5 kids through school. How did he do it? Invested in stock after he retired, brave man!

    There are some studies that show dividend-paying stock outperforming growth stock over a long period of time. But my best growth stock is up 148% in 2 years whereas my best dividend paying stock is up only 35% )including dividends) in 4 years.

    I do not plan to fall in love with any stock and will liquidate it, if it’s the right move.

    If you are growing your portfolio, if might make more sense to DRIP.

    Good luck!

  17. DM
    That snowball is looking good! Been following you since December 2013, and even from then the progress is undeniable.
    One thing I have noticed about dividend growth investing is how fast time seem to go.With your savings rate, and frugality you’ll have no problem retiring by 40!

    Digger

  18. You’re doing a great job Jason! 73% yoy growth and almost 1/4 of your expenses covered in a relatively slow payout month. You’re going to kill it the rest of this year. I think ill probably miss my dividends received goal this year but my forward dividends are going to be pretty great. Keep up the good work!

  19. Great job Jason! I am kind of waiting until October to start building my dividend stocks, but I do have some to purchase once the ROTH transfer is complete. After October I will have a loan that I want off my back gone, and I will be focusing on investing for awhile. I can’t wait!

  20. Is it common for stocks to pay a dividend monthly or is it just the cycle of when they pay off of the quarterly earnings?

  21. That is not too bad, particularly when you put it in perspective. Someone making minimum wage would probably have to work for something like 43 hours, in order to generate the same level of dividend income like you did.

    Heck, 4 years ago, you had only $5,000 to your name, and now you are earning over $5K in annual dividend income. That is solid progress my friend. If you don’t add any new money, but simply reinvest dividends, you will hit $10K in annual dividends by 2020 -2021 per my calculations.

  22. Fantastic progress there Jason. It’s still amazing to me that more people have not embraced the dividend growth flavor of investing. Instead of being upset about the recent market pullback, i was writing a check, and sending it into my broker as fast as i could to take advantage of all the stocks on sale this week! I was able to acquire a few shares of a stock i had been hoping to own for the last year or so (MCD). Thanks to the market pullback along with some not so favorable but TEMPORARY news regarding a meat scandal, i was able to purchase MCD with a 3.4% yield! I can only imagine how much financial peace a large dividend paying portfolio must bring you! I am approaching the 10,000 dollar mark and have alot of work to do, but i am very excited about my investing future being that i am only 25. I would love to be able to use some of my own dividend income toward my mortgage as some point! Can’t wait to watch your portfolio inch closer to the $200,000 dollar mark. Take care!

  23. Nice work, Jason. I’d say keep up the good work, but short of selling some of your holdings it’s quite hard not to make progress. Gotta love dividends.

  24. Congrats on another great month. At this rate, I think you will meet your goal in October if not earlier.There are lot of stocks common between our portfolio and KO is one that I am planning to initiate a position in sometime in August.

    DGJ

  25. Jason,

    Congrats on a great month! Considering July is a slower month, you still had a nice chunk of dividends. The YOY increase is incredible. Keep up the good work as always! I think you’ll handily beat your yearly dividend goal.

  26. maurice,

    Thanks so much! Glad you find inspiration here. Inspiring others is my primary aim. 🙂

    And don’t worry about minimal figures. I started blogging when I was earning under $40/month in dividend income. Even Warren Buffett started with that first dollar.

    Keep your eye on the prize!

    Cheers.

  27. peter,

    Well, we could all find certain stocks in certain categories that might outperform other stocks in other categories. But the key is really to formulate a plan that works for you and your goals and stick with it. Many of my stocks have outperformed many growth stocks over the last few years, but there’s also many growth stocks that have outperformed some of my holdings. However, it really doesn’t matter. Hindsight is 20/20. I’m worried about the future. And the great thing about dividend growth investing is that the success is tangible, and you can actually see the dividend income rise against expenses.

    As far as DRIPing goes, I explained my strategy here:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2014/03/selective-dividend-reinvestment-vs-drip/

    Take care!

  28. Dividend Digger,

    Thanks so much for the support and readership. I really appreciate it!

    I think I’m on pace to become fully financially independent by 40. But the better news is that I’m enjoying the journey even more than I was before. Life was already good being alive in modern day America, but it’s even better now that I spend most of my time writing and following my passions.

    It looks like you’ve started a pretty great portfolio over there for yourself, especially for your age. I’m so glad to see someone young like yourself taking your financial future so seriously. Great job!

    Best wishes.

  29. JC,

    The dividend goal is coming along pretty nicely. I think the only goal I’ll have a hard time meeting is the savings rate. But if I come even close while transitioning work I’ll be happy.

    Appreciate you stopping by. You may not hit your dividend income goal, but you’ve been raking in the cash either way. And your savings rate continues to impress.

    Best regards!

  30. Kipp,

    Exciting times for you over there, my friend. And the excitement doesn’t stop. I’m literally just as excited today as I was more than four years ago when I first started. It actually just gets better because the dividend income increases over time, giving a prudent investor even more firepower!

    We may not have elephant guns, but our pea shooters can still get the job done.

    Cheers!

  31. Steven,

    Some stocks pay monthly, some pay annually, and some semi-annually. However, most US stocks pay quarterly. But not all are on the same quarterly schedule. As you can see in the chart, the bulk of my portfolio pays in the last month of every quarter, but that my smooth out over time.

    I tend not to really worry about the payout schedule, and instead focus on the quality of the business. However, monthly or quarterly payouts are a bit more convenient, all else being equal.

    I hope that helps!

    Best regards.

  32. Great! 73% increase from last year and covers 23% of your expenses! Congrats on a great month.
    Always love to read your posts. Keep up the good work.
    Cheers,
    Pollie

  33. DM,

    Twenty five percent coverage in a slow month is great. It will probably be double that within ten years just from raises and the reinventment of dividends. Fantastic job!

    MDP

  34. Well done Jason. My passive income was € 150 for July, that’s something like $ 201. It’s always nice to see your progress, it really motivates me keep investing and NO SPECULATION on leveraged products. Keep up the good work!

  35. DGI,

    Exactly, my friend. I was pointing out in the article that back in my college days I had to wait tables for a whole week to earn this kind of money. Now, instead of cleaning salad bars and serving up cheeseburgers I simply wait for the checks to arrive. Not too shabby! 🙂

    It’s wonderful to know how past effort can translate into such huge future results. As you point out, even sitting on our butts for the rest of our lives means we’ll still be millionaires one day simply for putting in a little effort at the top of the hill.

    To our success!

    Best wishes.

  36. ERG,

    Earning money while you sleep is wonderful, isn’t it? Makes having sweet dreams a lot easier. 🙂

    Thanks for the support. Really appreciate it!

    Hope all is well over there with your journey.

    Take care.

  37. Josh,

    That’s so fantastic that you’re starting at 25! I started just before turning 28, which is kind of early. But I can only wish I would have started even earlier, like when I was 21 and flush with cash. I’d probably be financially independent by now.

    Great job there picking up shares in a great company after a pullback. That’s really the name of the game. MCD is a larger position for me, so I hope they can start to improve operations. I’m rooting for them (and us)!

    Thanks for stopping by. Keep up the great work over there!!

    Cheers.

  38. Eli,

    Thanks so much, bud! Appreciate the support.

    The wonderful thing about this strategy is that a little push early on can yield results for the rest of your life. As you said, as long as you don’t self-destruct things can’t not get better. The situation improves even if you don’t care.

    And I got your email. I’ll be in touch shortly!

    Best wishes.

  39. DGJ,

    I think you could do a lot worse than KO right now. It’s a great company trading at a fair price or slightly better. And KO is typically a pretty strong buy with a yield above 3%.

    Thanks for stopping by. Keep it up over there!

    Take care.

  40. Brent,

    Thanks so much!

    I probably won’t ever catch up to you over there, but I’m plodding along. 🙂

    Keep up the fantastic work. You’re absolutely killing it.

    Best regards!

  41. Pollie,

    Thanks so much. 🙂

    It looks like you had a solid month of July as well with a 50% YOY increase for just over 21 euros. That’s fantastic!

    That’s 21 euros closer to financial independence. Keep it up!

    Best wishes.

  42. MDP,

    Thanks. It’s a pretty decent outcome for a slow month. I expect September to look particularly solid, especially if I can keep the expenses low. We’ll see! 🙂

    Keep up the great work over there. Your $100+ dividend income increases on a weekly basis is just awesome.

    Take care.

  43. DD,

    The great thing about this strategy is that no speculation or leverage is necessary. I keep things pretty simple. Could I maybe speed things along a bit by leveraging up? Maybe, but I could also derail things. Why take the gamble when it’s not necessary?

    Thanks for stopping by. Keep up the great work and stick to the plan!

    Cheers.

  44. DM,

    Great work, YOY increase. I’ve put TIS,MCD,DE on my radar for a further pullback! What’s your thoughts? “SO” looks like a buying opportunity as well?

    Good luck,

  45. DM,

    Another solid month for you and congrats on the YOY increase. I just posted my dividend income update. It actually decreased for me but the is the part of being an investor if you invest in a high risk stock.

  46. j-harr,

    Those look like solid stocks. I think DE is a solid value here. And I’ve been busy accumulating shares. MCD is attractively priced, but I do think they need to make changes in marketing and at stores. TIS is a risky play, but I’m okay holding a small position in the company. There’s a ton of potential.

    SO appears fairly valued to me, more or less. Could do worse, but I’m not a big fan of utilities in general. Limited growth, for the most part. But SO has been one of the better utilities out there for a while. AVA and WEC are also solid in this area.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Best regards.

  47. Agree, have you looked @ BAC with the dividend increase today as well as maybe a settlement finally on the mortg issue. Bac could be A dividend raiser for years to come. What do you think?

    Thanks,

  48. IP,

    Unfortunate to see a drop in income, but it looks like the majority of it was from the payout schedule change. Though, with a cut I would be a seller. Of course, that’s just me.

    You still had a very solid month anyway, though. Almost $200 is hard to complain about. 🙂

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Cheers.

  49. j-harr,

    Not really interested in BAC, partly because of their history and partly because I’m already pretty loaded up on banks. If I were to purchase another stock in the financial sector it would either be an insurer or a payments processing company.

    BAC could turn out to be a great investment, but I think I’ll stick with banks that have better operating histories.

    Cheers!

  50. Curtis,

    Thanks so much! Really appreciate the support.

    The mouthwatering is mutual, as last I looked you had a very healthy rental income stream. Keep up the great work!

    Best wishes.

  51. If you can get to 50% coverage within a few years, just from dividend income, the blog should take care of the rest 🙂

    Keep up the great work.
    Mark

  52. Jason,
    Nice work. July was over $500 for me, but I’ve been at it a lot longer than you.

    Have you ever used Fast Graphs? I signed up for the 14 day trial and am finding it interesting. Is it worth the $10 monthly fee? Maybe if it helps you find values. It looks like AFL, DE and IBM are trading at significant discounts to their ten year average P/E ratios.
    Good luck,
    KeithX

  53. Mark,

    I think you’re right there. As is, the blog alone is covering a significant chunk of all expenses, hosting and email fees included – 75% or so. I aim to cover 100% of my expenses passively via dividends one day, but it’s nice to know that if hard times hit I can count on multiple income sources.

    At this point I’m still just trying to catch up to you in the dividend income department. I reckon it’ll be many years, though.

    Cheers!

  54. KeithX13,

    Nice month there! That’s a hell of a haul. 🙂

    I’ve never personally used F.A.S.T., but I’ve heard great things about it. The software seems really robust. I’ve thought about signing up for the trial and checking it out.

    And I see you have a blog set up now? Way cool. Hope to see some content over there!

    Best regards.

  55. Hi Jason,

    Excellent update. What do you think of KKR? Not much history but they are a major shareholder in a number of well performing companies, that they continue to drive with increasing performance.

    -Mike

  56. An average of $445/mo is a great accomplishment, we’re talking about nice chunk of change there. That’s specially the case for someone as frugal as you because you can stretch that money very far.

    I can’t wait until you hit an average of $1000/mo, it’ll be a huge milestone!

  57. Ha, and you don’t need to deal with grumpy customers either 😉

    It is amazing how with a one-time effort of saving money, and putting it into a portfolio of well-researched companies, you can essentially get paid dividends for years to come. And of course, the values of those stakes you made would increase over time as well. Talk about having your cake and eating it too 😉

  58. Dividend Mantra,
    Admittedly I only just recently found you (via Seeking Alpha). Your optimism and support is legendary. Admittedly I just started out on my own about four months ago. At first I held 659 shares of IRT and 100 in T. Shortly after I realized that I needed to diversify and fast. My short term goal is to reach $100/ quarter per company. My long term goal is to go as far as I want until I get bored. I personally do not dividend reinvest (unless it is in my IRA). I enjoy receiving and cashing the checks myself. It’s a very good feeling and a very nice reminder of WHY I am investing so much of my money now. Also, I get to decide which stock I choose to feed from my dividend X.
    My current holdings are:
    163 IRT
    3 MPW
    4 ARCP
    40 PG
    30 PEP
    20 MCD
    60 T
    15 INDB
    4 Quest Diagnostics (forget NYSE)
    3 XOM
    0 Chevron (soon)
    0 AXP (Soon)
    0 ANHEUSER (soon)
    0 JNJ (Soon)
    1.5 KO
    Follow up question, why did you choose V over AXP? AXP has a better dividend yield and had very strong growth this quarter (though admittedly I only did limited research on AXP, still need to do more). In the words of Graham in “The intelligent Investor” putting a future value on a company can lead to temporary or even permanent loss of principal.

    Thank you for the inspiration! Cheers

  59. Mike,

    I took a quick look. Looks like they’ve been around for quite a while, though not as a publicly traded company. I don’t like the fact that they’re set up as a partnership, but it’s not a huge deal.

    Gotta love the yield. Though, you mention “a number of well performing companies”. Which companies in particular are you referencing? I couldn’t find much in the way of information there, which is typical for PE firms.

    Though, I wonder if a BDC might not be the way to go instead since you’re going to get exposure to a similar business setup with a higher yield.

    Interesting play!

    Best wishes.

  60. Spoonman,

    I can’t wait until I hit that mark either. I’ll be on easy street from there on out. 🙂

    Appreciate you stopping by. Looking forward to seeing how early retirement based off of a dividend growth investing strategy works for you. I’ve heard of many people successfully doing it, but it’s not quite as visible as it probably should be.

    Best wishes!

  61. DGI,

    I was actually just commenting over at SA that capital appreciation is like the icing on top of an already delicious cake. Except I’ll probably end up eating a lot more cake than icing since I don’t sell often. Which is probably good, because icing is bad for the waistline. 🙂

    Cheers!

  62. Mike,

    That’s a very solid portfolio you have there! Some high-quality holdings, and a few I own as well.

    I don’t DRIP dividends, but I do selectively reinvest them. So a company paying the dividend might not necessarily be the same company I reinvest capital into that particular month.

    I discussed that here:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2014/03/selective-dividend-reinvestment-vs-drip/

    As far as V vs. AXP, I like both. But I think V will deliver more dividends via aggressive dividend growth over the next 10 years and beyond. The yield on AXP isn’t a whole lot higher, but V’s dividend growth is out of this world. I don’t think it will be long before an investor is seeing more dividend income from V than from AXP if bought at the same time. Furthermore, V is by far the world leader in payments processing. I like to invest in dominant companies, and V is far and way the dominant player in this space. In addition, V faces much less banking risk.

    I hope that helps!

    Cheers.

  63. My background: I am a 21 year old college drop out. I was a junior in my second semester at a school I hated doing a major I despised (Marine Engineering, it’s interesting in theory but in the real world it’s miserable). I only went there for the money (100k/yr starting salary). And although I could have sucked it up and did that for five years and received tons of dividends (which at times I am very tempted to go back and get my degree for said reasons) I keep reminding myself that I can still pay the bills doing a job I enjoy (line cook) and still reach my goal of being a millionaire by age 46 as long as I invest 12k / year and it grows at a rate a modest rate of 3% APY. I do not support anyone dropping out of college, but do what you love! If you worry about the money you will make it, it’s the people who do not worry about money who fail. To the millionaire Mind! Everyone starts somewhere. Happy investing (my god, it’s all I think about).

  64. Awesome, Jason! Your enthusiasm after four years of commitment is contagious. My dividend income for July was $25.61. Slow and steady, right? Unfortunately, I won’t have much cash to invest this month (if any) but I’m looking forward to saving anything that I possibly can.

  65. Hi DM,
    This is also my favorite read. >75% yoy dividend income! Brilliant! I started this journey in 2013, I’ll be looking forward to this day of income without lifting a finger. Your blog had been a great inspiration for me to copy.

    Best wishes,
    David

  66. I am an engineer. The first 1 to 1.5 year of courses is quite bland you and you will ask yourself when will I ever get to use this. When you actually take a real engineering course like microprocessors, transportation systems etc and do labs then it will come together. Also most of the learning happens in labs, projects or out on work terms as you show more interest in the stuff.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFrJvZCnSb8

    This is a project that electrical engineering students take on in their 3rd year design course.

  67. Mike,

    I dropped out of college as well. I don’t think a college degree is necessary to get ahead here in the US. We’re already so blessed anyway. Though, in certain professions a college degree is helpful and/or necessary.

    Best of luck with your goals! The great thing is that you’re starting early. You’re at the top of a very long and steep hill. 🙂

    Take care.

  68. Addison,

    Slow and steady is definitely the name of the game. 🙂

    You’re going through a pretty big transition right now, so it’s no big deal if the saving/investing has to take a break. The good news is that, unless you have to sell, the investments you’ve already made will be there waiting for you when you get back. And you’ll be collecting a little extra income along the way to help you out.

    Best of luck during this transition!

    Cheers.

  69. David,

    Thanks for stopping by!

    I’m so glad you’ve found some inspiration here. And I’m also glad that you’ve started your own journey. 🙂

    I see you’re from Singapore. I’ve never been, but I hear it’s really an amazing city. I understand it can be a bit expensive, however.

    Keep up the great work. The decisions you make today will affect the rest of your life.

    Take care.

  70. Jason, With 25% covered by dividends and 75% by blog, you’re already FI. That’s 8 years before the target 🙂

    My dividends crossed $200 this month only 2nd time this year. It was awesome month for me also. However, I know my next month: Aug is not that strong. Need to add some snow to it 😉

    I’m amazed how fast the ball started rolling in just 4 years and it only shows power of DGI. Great work.

    Best wishes.

  71. Henry,

    July is usually a slow month, so I was glad to see it turn out as well as it did. It’s all onward and upward!

    Your portfolio has a much lower overall yield than mine, I’m sure. But your dividend growth will likely outpace mine.

    To our success! 🙂

    Best regards.

  72. PIM,

    Haha! I wish it was that easy. Though all my expenses are now covered via sources outside of traditional job income, I’m not really FI. But I’m still well on my way. 🙂

    Great job crossing over $200! Isn’t it just awesome to collect hundreds of dollars just for waking up and being alive? So fantastic.

    I’m with you. The progress happens faster than we might be able to predict. And it’s all tangible. We can actually see the income rising over time.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Best wishes.

  73. Do you actually get checks in the mail? I ask because all of my dividends are deposited electronically into my investment account here in Sweden. Am I strange or is the paper check thing strange?

    Dustin

  74. Another month closer to fi Jason. Love your progress as Im enjoying your journey. I remember my first dividend check was for 20 bucks 14 years ago. My how time can fly

  75. Jason,

    Hope your week has been a great one. It’s always so uplifting to hear you talking dividend income, congrats on another stellar month of watching it roll in. I waited tables too, only for a long 8 years and I would often have awful visions of myself as a 60 year old in one of those old diners still working for tips. I’m so glad I ran with the first opportunity I got to get away from it. Now that I’ve found my footing, I can see a future of financial independence way before that 60 year old server. LOVE the conversation earlier in the comments about having 5K in your bank account a few short years ago and now receiving that in a year’s worth of passive income. Even better is your management of all the debt. That’s extremely powerful inspiration to someone like me!

    All my best,
    Ryan

  76. Hmm, why did WordPress add a 13 after the X? It doesn’t show up that way on my screen. Anyway, no blog on WordPress. I did try my hand using blogger, but wasn’t comfortable putting enough personal info into it to make it worth reading. Not sure how you do it.

  77. Hi Jason,

    Do you mean Belden when you refer to BDC? Yes, KKR keeps their companies close to the vest but they are the owner of our company (we make components used in the hard drive industry) and also owned Seagate before they went public plus a handful of other private companies that are cash flow generating. They beat us up pretty hard to deliver earnings so I believe that is their MO with other investments.

  78. Congrats on another solid month Jason. That snowball is really rolling now and will accelerate give the larger and larger numbers at work.

    Additionally, it is amazing to see that in the last couple of months the undertone of your writing has changed, reflecting a happier and more relaxed writer. Life is good my friend, and I’m glad you are living your dream.

  79. Dustin,

    All of my dividends are also deposited electronically. The check reference is just a metaphor, referring to when dividends were actually paid out in the form a check.

    Cheers!

  80. Charles,

    Time flies by so quickly, doesn’t it? I still can’t believe I’m already more than four years deep into this thing. The fact that time does fly by is exactly why this whole concept and journey is so important. You can put it off until tomorrow, but before you know it you’ve already lived countless tomorrows…and you’re no further ahead.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Best wishes.

  81. Ryan,

    I’m with you man. Waiting tables is a lot harder than people think. I still remember coming home smelling like food with sore feet. I honestly could not imagine still doing that kind of work right now. I don’t go out to restaurants all that often anymore, but when I do I almost always tip well. 🙂

    It’s amazing how quickly all of this comes together. I’m glad you got started early on and you’re making powerful changes. You can’t change the past, but you sure can change the future. And your future is becoming better and brighter with every dividend reinvested and every share purchased. 🙂

    Best regards!

  82. KeithX,

    Hmm, that’s strange. Your little Yoda showed up and everything. That’s strange. I’ve noticed the 13 a few times before, but didn’t really think anything of it. Strange!

    Cheers.

  83. Mike,

    I was actually referring to BDCs, as in business development companies.

    KKR could be a great investment, and it’s performed really, really well over the last decade. I was simply pointing out that when you were mentioning how they’re a “major shareholder in a number of well performing companies”…that’s a pretty aggressive statement since you don’t really know what they hold right now. My only advice is to be careful when looking at companies and not fall in love with past performance. Make sure you know what you’re investing in. Since KKR keeps a lot of information private you’re making a judgement call on management. Nothing wrong with that as long as you’re honest with yourself.

    Cheers!

  84. W2R,

    Thanks, bud! I didn’t notice the undertone change, but I’m glad it’s come out. I’m definitely very happy right now! Of course, the weather isn’t hurting; it’s been close to 80 and sunny almost every day up here for the past two months.

    The snowball is definitely accelerating now. I think it’s going to hit another gear here pretty soon. 🙂

    Hope everything is well with married life!

    Best wishes.

  85. ST,

    I plan to continue adding funds until I’m financially independent, unless my situation were to somehow change and not allow me that. But I hope I can continue making investments for at least the next eight years. It might even be possible to resume acquiring stocks in financially independence if the passive income grows much faster than expenses, creating a large spread between income and expenses. Of course, I’m just as likely to start donating money and/or time at that point. I’ve got big goals! 🙂

    Cheers.

  86. Congratulations Jason! You’re a total inspiration. Dividend income = No pain and all gain 🙂

    I loved how you put your dividend income in perspective with waiting tables. As of now, I’m aiming to bring in about $1,500 in dividends this year, which equates to 8 weeks of pay from my old high school job working at a movie theater. Too bad dividends don’t come with free popcorn, too.

  87. Phil,

    Ha. No pain, all gain! I love it. That should be a dividend investor’s motto. 🙂

    Sounds like you’re moving right along there. $1,500 in dividend income is very nice, and means you’re going to earn even more next year. They may not come with free popcorn, but I’m sure you’ll be able to buy all you want one day soon enough!

    Take care.

  88. DM,

    That’s a great July total! Nice to be able to cover a lot of expenses in the slower months while waiting for the big 4 months of dividends to balance everything out. Keep it up!

  89. SWAN,

    Thanks, bud. Appreciate the support!

    Those big months at the end of every quarter sure are fun, but the months in between are certainly no drag. 🙂

    Looks like things are still going along pretty well for you over there as well. Keep up the great work!

    Cheers.

  90. You are definitely an inspiration to me and a lot of people who read your website Jason. These dividend income posts are incredibly motivating to see how far you have come and the type of income anyone can be generating with some discipline and consistency. Keep doing what you are doing, don’t change a thing, don’t let the noise get in your head. Great job with no job.

  91. Hi Jason,

    It seems you had another pretty solid month. No dividends here, but I already got most dividends for this year ( in europe most companies pay yearly dividends), but some stocks that I was following did drop in price because Russia is causing some troubles. Which is great since I will now get more dividend paying stocks for the same money which means my snowball will grow even faster.

    I love it.

    Cheers,
    G

  92. There are even some that pay small dividends during three of the quarters and then a huge one during one quarter

  93. Really nice month. I’m a recent convert from the 4 fund Index model to a DG one, and have been migrating my investments around to focus on solid dividend growth. Although I had a few in there for a few years: PG, O, APU, and still have some growth holdouts, but with my recent moves, eventually there should be $3000/year in dividends in my brokerage account and another $7200/year in my 401k/IRAs. And of course that is just a baseline based on current holdings, not taking into account additions each month which will surely be dividend growth stocks.

    I even have my son’s UTMA account being converted over and he’s slated to earn $350 this year, previously he was on track for $200

    Thoughts on WAG, esp after it’s recent $10 drop?

  94. DividendVet,

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Looks like you had a pretty strong month over there on your end too. You’re not far behind me, bud. 🙂

    I appreciate the very kind words. The noise doesn’t really bother me at all. I’m just blessed to be able to write right now. Inspiring, sharing, and learning with this great community is a dream come true.

    Best wishes.

  95. Geblin,

    That’s great news over there! I love averaging down on a high-quality company I already own a piece of, and recently did just that. It’s wonderful to get more stock for the same amount of money! 🙂

    Take care.

  96. brian,

    That’s fantastic over there! I think index investing is a great way to invest as well, but I think dividend growth investing is superior for those so inclined.

    And you’re off to a great start with more than $10,000 in dividend income spread across your accounts. So awesome! That’s a great move you’re making for your son as well. Your son will surely thank you one day. 🙂

    I think WAG is a great company. I don’t think it’s particularly cheap, even after the drop, but it’s probably not a bad spot to start a position. It went on a big run there and it’s now just correcting after the news on the inversion and everything else. They’re also aiming for a rather conservative dividend policy, so I’m not sure we’ll see the big dividend growth for the foreseeable future, unless earnings grow at a substantial rate.

    Cheers!

  97. Help me to understand why you are not investing in an Index Fund or Mutual Funds where you can average 7+% on your money? A portfolio worth $160,000 should be averaging around $11,000/year at 7% instead of the $5,000/year you are currently bringing in.

  98. I still have 50% of my total portfolio in various index funds (mostly 401k) including some International regional sector tracking ones, and I’m actually ok with that at the moment as I get my feet wet switching to dividend growth stocks for the long term. Nice that I have access to BrokerageLink via my 401k so I can go that route if I see one that really fits the bill and there’s not enough cash on hand in the taxable account.

    thanks

  99. It’s not going to pay you 7% a year, it’s all paper gains, and you have to sell to receive the money. The goal is to establish a long term replacement for income.

    If you wanted to go the fund route, I’d look into SDY, VIG, IDV, HDV, or SDIV

  100. I’m not sure what route I want to go at this point. I have $200k to invest after the sale of a couple of rental properties. If I ease into growing a dividend portfolio the return looks to be around 3-4%. That return is hardly enough to keep up with inflation, If i needed $3,000/month to cover all living expenses I would need a portfolio around $1mln. Am I wrong in this thinking? However, with a porfolio of funds I could generate the 3k/month needed to live on with 500k, half the amount of the dividend portfolio.

  101. Hi Maurice,

    You should absolutely post your dividend income. It doesn’t matter if you earn pennies from a few stocks or a few dollars. It all adds up and compounds over time. Part of being in the DGI community is to share and inspire others about their debt reduction, income and dividend appreciation. Everyone is at a different level but all are on the same path heading towards the same goal.

  102. Hi Mike,

    You have some pretty solid companies that you have diversified into. I know people love the high yield of ARCP but that’s a stock you really need to watch. Just keep building on what you have and diversify out and you’ll be OK. Just don’t chase high yielding stocks too much. Look at the dividend growers as you have many years to let those figures compound.

  103. Scott,

    I’m not sure which fund you’re speaking to specifically, but generally funds that pay that much in yield are paying some of that back as return of capital. And any fund that yields that high is probably not diversified enough into high-quality names, because there’s no way for the math to add up.

    I could easily generate a 7% yield from my portfolio right now if I wanted to, without funds. I would simply have to invest in a basket of REITs, BDCs, and select MLPs. Of course I would be introducing a ton of risk into my portfolio for an immediate boost in cash, but why not risk everything I’ve built over the last four years?

    You have to remember that yield typically equates with risk. There’s a reason why KO yields ~3% and BDCs yield 10% or more. Risk. Furthermore, there’s supply and demand. There’s demand for equity in wonderful businesses because these businesses typically compound at attractive rates over long periods of time. Demand for stocks with super high yields, meanwhile, isn’t typically as high. There’s a reason why some of the most successful investors out there aren’t just scooping up high-yield REITs and BDCs.

    Of course, what you do wit your portfolio is all up to you. It sounds like you weren’t really diversified before, if a couple of rental properties was the bulk of your assets. So you could roll most of that into a few REITs and generate ~6% or so yields. I prefer to diversify across sectors and into businesses that I think can outpace real estate over a long period of time, and that’s what I’ve done. However, I do maintain exposure to some high-yielding securities, like ARCP, OHI, DLR, and O. In addition, telecoms might be what you’re looking for: T, VZ, BCE, VOD, etc.

    Best of luck!

    Cheers.

  104. Hi DM… Another awesome month of dividends rolling in. Keep updating and keep inspiring myself and others. Happy to be a fellow shareholder with you in several of the names listed above and one day BNS as it’s on my new buy list. I’m curious to see how August shapes up as I’m still on the fence about adding to my current positions or start new ones in a few Canadian banks. We’ll see. Thanks for sharing!

  105. DivHut,

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Can’t say enough good things about BNS. Very happy thus far, and they’ve been regularly and aggressively increasing the dividend. Gotta love that. 🙂

    Best wishes.

  106. Is the 23.1% just for July or a running average? Very decent if it’s a running average. Even better if it’s just for the one month since July is an “off” month.

  107. nice job mantra. Been following your blog for a while now, and it inspired me to start my own blog. You are so right about those dividends– they are REAL. I’m getting approximately $380 from VZ,KMI, and ARCP this month, and all for the simple fact of owning these companies….

    September is going to be great as well, as that is when most of my holdings pay out. It’s strange, but oh so true, as in your previous about the snowball thing. What was so difficult before to put more money into those DRIPs as the shares trended downward, now bought me more “shares at a discount”. It’s almost like having a part-time employee!

  108. DM,

    WOW. $315?? That’s amazing, nice job! Already over 60% and well on your way to crush your dividend mark – I am pumped. I know August will be solid for you and September will be a blowout month, I am sure and hoping it’ll be your biggest month yet. Nice job DM, overall, inching towards 100% of your experience, keep at it, talk soon!

    -Lanny

  109. Jake,

    The 23.1% is just for July. My running average is a bit higher, but that’s of course factoring in temporarily reduced expenses. I’ll have to reassess when I find my permanent housing situation up here, which is something I’m actively working at.

    Looks like you guys had a great month as well! I’m like you in that I find myself qualifying months where I save 50% because deep down inside I’d love to save more. 🙂

    Keep up the awesome frugality work over there.

    Cheers!

  110. jm,

    Appreciate you following along!

    That’s a very solid month right there. Almost $400 on a typically slow month is something to be very proud of!

    Sounds like September is going to be a blockbuster for you. That’s awesome! I’m with you in that September should be a very solid month. Looking forward to it, for both of us. 🙂

    Keep that part-time employee working!

    Take care.

  111. Lanny,

    Thanks so much, man. I’m doing a little better than I planned, which is always nice. I hope I can really crush that mark this year. That’ll set me up for a very nice 2015. 🙂

    Keep up the great work over on your end as well. You’re doing really awesome over there. Looking forward to seeing you shoot for your even higher goals now.

    Best regards!

  112. You can actually get checks in the mail if you invest through the transfer agent directly. There is a lot less in fees going directly though the transfer agent. It has a major disadvantage. If there was a major pull back today and you wanted to buy some shares, it would not happen like it does it a brokerage account like instantaneously. An your purchase of shares usually can only occur at certains times.. This is the whole way of buying stocks..

    You can get checks in the mail or usually choose to Drip these stocks to acquire more shares including fractional shares.

  113. thanks, dm.

    I’ve had VZ for a few years now, and have been stockpiling it since 2010. Unfortunately, my portfolio is a bit lopsided with VZ taking about 28% of the total portfolio. I’m making minimum purchases on it via computershare just to keep it open. ARCP and KMI are relatively new, and happen to pay the same time as VZ does. Well… ARCP pays every month…. so no complaints there.

    The lean months are July, October and January in which I only have KO, ARCP and WMT with their odd/inconsistent payouts. Those months, aren’t as exciting as August and September…

    Love it that this part-time employee doesn’t call in “sick”… lol…

    jm

  114. Anonymous,

    Thanks for the suggestion!

    I wouldn’t actually prefer to receive dividends in the form of a physical check, at least not right now. It’s much easier to just receive them as a direct deposit, from which I can pretty much immediately start reinvesting. However, once I’m financially independent and actually living off of my dividend income then I’ll simply request a monthly check or wire transfer from my brokerage.

    Cheers!

  115. Just finished reading the whole blog, boy that took a while. Great July and progress so far. I started DG investing aswell 2 years ago at the age of 25, but the snowball effect is still far away despite saving approx. 60% of salary every month 🙂 I would be very happy to pay the same 15% tax for my dividends as you US guys there, but I’m forced to pay 30% flat rate so my journey will be much longer. Have a good summer and investing, best regards

  116. Be vigilant when looking for permanent housing. I know you know this, but it will probably end up being your largest monthly expense and will influence so many of your day-to-day activities and habits. When we moved to Michigan last summer I was determined to find affordable housing that was within walking/biking distance of work. It wasn’t easy but I am so glad we found something that worked out. Make a good housing pick and your future self will thank you.

  117. Another great month for you! I’m looking forward to your year end report, I reckon it’s going to be great 🙂

  118. ccxr,

    Wow! That’s very cool you took the time to read from the beginning. That’s a lot of reading. Appreciate the time. 🙂

    That’s a shame you’re subject to a higher tax rate, but there always trade-offs in life. No free lunch. Many countries face higher tax rates than what we see in the US, but have higher safety nets and more social programs. You largely get what you pay for, to a degree.

    Keep up the great work over there. And please stay in touch!

    Best wishes.

  119. Jake,

    Your comment really struck a chord with me. I’m weighing all of these pros/cons in my head as far as where the best place to live in Michigan might be. I actually took a trip to Ann Arbor today, and took quite a few pictures for an upcoming article on the city. I think Ann Arbor has this really great vibe, and is probably the easiest city in the whole state to get by without a car.

    If you don’t mind me asking, where did you settle down at? What city? And do you guys own a car?

    I’m having a hard time rationalizing anywhere expensive, even Ann Arbor. And that’s simply because now that I write for a living I can live anywhere. So that means, logically, the best place for me to live would be the cheapest, while still being somewhat close to family. And that would be an easy solution, as housing all around this area (southwest of Flint) is quite cheap. But it’s just not “me”. I’m really a city guy at heart. And though I don’t go out much, I do like to walk the streets, people watch, and generally just feel the “vibe”. You know? It doesn’t cost anything, but I find it fun just to be part of the world. On the other hand, walking around a rural area and spending time near the woods does nothing for me. In fact, I find it to be kind of a buzzkill. I wish I was more rural at heart, because then my solution would be quite easy.

    Thanks for the suggestions and comment. I’m taking my time and remaining quite vigilant. 🙂

    Best wishes!

  120. Nicola,

    Thanks so much! 🙂

    I’m looking forward to seeing how the end of the year shapes up as well. I have a good idea of where I’m going to land, but the main variable is how much more capital I add between now and then. But some of my capital towards the end of the year won’t be as effective as some of those late purchases won’t provide dividend income until 2015.

    Appreciate you stopping by! Hope you’re having a great month of NSDs. 🙂

    Best regards.

  121. DM,

    I’ve been following your blog from almost the beginning and have always found the information to be informative and inspiring. What a wonderful (free) service you provide! This is my first time posting on your site. Congrats on your gains!
    Off topic a little…. I’m self employed and Only have an Roth IRA and my meager dividend stocks for my retirement (I’m 47). I try to fully fund the Roth IRA first (5500 yrly) for the tax advantages but then I don’t have as much to put into my dividend stocks. Any comments or thoughts from you or the rest of the group would be appreciated, unless this is something you are going to address in an upcoming article.

    Thanks again for all of the hard work you put into this site!

    Michael

  122. Michael,

    Thanks so much! I’m happy to write, share, and inspire. It’s a really great community we’ve built up over the last few years or so, and I’m just glad to be a part of it. 🙂

    I wrote about why I don’t take advantage of tax-advantaged accounts here:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2013/08/why-i-hold-100-of-my-equity-investments/

    Now, that article came with multiple disclaimers about why I do that. Namely, it’s because I plan on retiring/becoming FI so early in life. For everyone else out there I recommend maxing out the tax-advantaged accounts first. So in your situation I would put full concentration into the Roth. Of course, taking the match (if offered) at work for a 401(k) (if offered) would also be highly recommended. Then if there are any funds left over you should fund a taxable account.

    I hope that helped!

    Best regards.

  123. Congratulations. But I don’t really understand the point of setting a goal of dividend income since you don’t have any influence on how good the companies are doing in a specific year. Wouldn’t it be better to set you goal to “having xxx$ in investments” or something like that?

  124. DM,

    Congrats. Have you ever thought about investing in municipal bond etf which give great tax free income as part of your diversified portfolio?

  125. Ben,

    Well, there’s a lot I don’t have control over. I don’t have control over having a certain amount in investments, and that’s really not what’s going to propel me to financial independence anyhow. My ability to retire will be based upon how much passive dividend income I generate against my expenses, and these goals help keep me track of my progress, and allow me to stay aggressive with new investment capital.

    Cheers!

  126. Nice work again Jason. I was just under $600 of dividend income for the month of July, a few dollars short of my all-time record that was achieved in February this year. Overall, another great month for me also. I

    Keep up the good work! It is always inspiring to read your postings.

  127. Winston,

    That’s a great month right there! Really fantastic work.

    It’ll probably be a while until I get to $600 in dividend income for July, as it’s one of my weaker months. But it’s just all about staying consistent and working hard. 🙂

    Keep up the great work over there. Sounds like you’re killing it!

    Thanks for stopping by.

    Best wishes.

  128. Hi,

    I have been reading your blog for a while and find it very informative and interesting. I missed out on investing in 2009 during the crash, mainly because i did not have a lot of money to invest back then. Now that the market is at all time highs i feel very nervous about entering into the market. I have invested some money in the Vanguard stock index fund, and bought 100shares of GE recently.

    My question is – under what circumstances would you consider exiting the stock market? I see that your dividend portfolio generates around a 4% annual return(not including stock price increase since that can change). Right now the return for a 10-yr Treasury note is 2.44%. Let’s consider that in the next few years the yield increases to 5-6%, would consider moving your money from the stock market and into Treasuries?

    Thanks

  129. jashwant,

    That’s a good question.

    I explained my 0% bond allocation (and why) here:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2014/07/a-0-allocation-to-fixed-income/

    That being said, I might find interest in fixed income investments once the 10-year crosses 5%. You have to remember that the dividend income my portfolio generates (the 4% you’re speaking of, though it’s less than that) is growing every year. Bond income doesn’t grow. So you’re slowly losing purchasing power to inflation. Over long periods of time this can decimate your real returns, even though things might look good on paper.

    I hope that helps!

    Best wishes.

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