Cancelling Our Gym Membership

With the purchase of our first home, my wife and I are looking to find any monthly expenses that we can cut back on in order to offset the impact of our new mortgage, tax, and insurance payment.  There isn’t a one size fits all answer or one expense that will magically offset this impact; however, we are going to do everything we can to collect a series of small victories to lessen the blow.  We found one piece of low hanging fruit, our gym membership, and decided to take a look at whether the expense was necessary or a luxury.

gym membership

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Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) Dividend Stock Analysis

Here we go!  Another fun loving dividend stock analysis, because that’s what Dividend Diplomats do!  Today’s analysis will be over Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) and the fun-loving, high above the clouds – airline industry.  Let’s hop on the flight, take our seat and see what Delta and the airline industry has in store for us dividend investors!

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Bert’s May Dividend Income Summary

My crazy month has finally come to an end.  We entered the month in the middle of an intense housing search and left with an accepted offer.  Still can’t believe we are going to be first time homeowners!  My wife and I celebrated our one year anniversary Memorial Day Weekend as well.  The beauty of it all is that while all the noise of my personal life is rolling along, my dividend stocks are quietly doing their work in the background.  This is one of my favorite articles to write each month, where I review my monthly dividend income total, compare the results to the earlier period, and check my progress as I embark on this journey of financial freedom.   Now it is time to dive into detail.  Check out my May dividend income summary!

dividend income

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Just Go For It

As I was sitting at work over the last few weeks, days and hours – I couldn’t help but have a different perspective of defining the purpose of why I am there and what I can do to maximize the 24 hours in a day.  4 words came to mind – Just Go For It.  When it comes to blogging and building our Dividend Diplomat Brand, the same topic of Just Go For It, comes to mind.  Then, when I went on a run and deep in a workout the other day, low and behold – Just Go For It, again, popped in my head.  Run hard and run fast, keep going.  When I am talking to my sister on helping her figure out her career and interviews – Just Go For It, all day.  We are spending time together, to show her guidance on how to prepare, question & answer scenarios, amidst other things, tackling it with everything we have.  Why not, right?  With investing, saving and experiencing life – we have to “Just Go For It” in each and every way, within each and every day.  Why the heck not?  Find out more with what I’m talking about, what it means and what can happen if you do.

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Fears of Being a First Time Homeowner

My wife and I just purchased a house…it is still settling in.  I can’t believe I am taking the plunge into home ownership.  This is the largest asset we ever purchased, and it most likely will be the largest one for the remainder of our life.  Last week, I tried to give an in depth account of the purchase in an article. Some of our frustrations, how we stumbled on our house, and the bidding/acceptance process.  At the end of the article, I left a cliff hanger about some of the parts of being a first time homeowner that I am still struggling with.

pay down the mortgage or invest

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