Dividend Investment Portfolio Crosses the $300,000 Mark

Three years and three or so months ago, my portfolio crossed the first six digit mark in it’s existence.  Back in June of 2014, the dividend investment portfolio crossed $100,000 in market value.  Now I never posted about the portfolio crossing $200,000, but something about $300,000 had a nice ring to it.  It took me over 5 years to get to $100,000 and only 3.25 short years to triple that amount.  I hope we all can take a pause to think about that for a second, as my article will be focused on HOW I was able to garner a $300,000 portfolio and how YOU can too.  Check out how I was able to cross and crush through the $300,000 dividend stock portfolio mark!

Journey from $100K to $300K

It would not be an article without mentioning that this is a great example of the benefit of being a dividend investor, as another milestone was reached and crossed!  Further, I know that if I am able to do this with my investment portfolio, then so can anyone else.  I will list out the main areas that have allowed me to cross another threshold in my journey to financial independence.  See how I was able to cross over $300,000 in market value on my dividend stock portfolio!

  • The main action I have taken was to ensure I had a high savings rate.  Bert and I have a strive to save 60% of your income each and every month.  I believe that nothing really matters more than your savings rate, as that is the fuel to ignite your investments, which mine specifically being my dividend investment portfolio.  If I did not save such a high percentage, there is no way that I would be able to see this sort of level.
  • I received over $21,000 in dividends from mid-2014 through September of 2017.  That is a LOT of reinvestment, which points me to the article – the Power of Dividend Reinvestment is real and I truly benefited from this action.  This total easily takes on a whole year of additional capital that I even add to the market on individual stock purchases, glad to have the soldiers on my side!
  • I maximized my tax-advantaged accounts in 2016 and thus far into 2017, and this action has paid off.  In a summary post, titled, “How I Kicked Uncle Sam’s A$$!“, I showed the benefit of maximizing your 401(k), Health Savings Account (HSA) and Traditional IRA (or as much as you can with a traditional IRA, in my case).  This saved me over $5,600 in federal taxes, which allows more cash to be invested in the market, I’ll take it!
  • Continuous investment into the stock market.  I have tried to make every dollar count in this game, starting from my savings described above.  This year alone, outside of 401(K) and HSA investments, I have invested approximately $13,000, and when paired up with over $6,200 in dividends, adding quite the bang to the portfolio.  Also, I am not trying to time the stock market, and never will, truly sticking to maintaining consistency and buying when a company is undervalued.
  • Not to say this is least on the list nor the last, but there has been an extreme amount of side hustle income that has been generated over the last few months.  We are not talking big dollars, but a rewards cash out on my credit card here & there, as well as selling items on eBay and cashing out on swagbucks, goes a long way.  Remember everyone, it all adds up, every single dollar, every single time.  This has helped the capital stay on my side of the court.

the $300,000 snapshot and what’s next

Here is a beautiful snapshot of the $300,000+ being read on my stock portfolio worksheet.

Wow, $304K as of October 15, 2017.  In actuality, my dividend stock portfolio crossed the $300K mark around October 4th, for reference.  I typically don’t like to write these articles (such as my Crushing it articles when I cross big dividend income milestones), until I know that I have high jumped over the bar and have a higher percentage chance of staying on the other side.  A funny way to look at this is if the stock market dropped by 1.50%, I would be below this threshold.  This very well still could happen, but I know in less than two weeks I’ll have another $870 going right back into it with my 401(k) and HSA.

Now, the big question is this, “What is next and how do I get there?”.  Honestly, I cannot clearly define that, except, I plan on doing more of what I have been doing, as it has worked.  I try to make decisions on the market that aren’t emotional, staying consistent with my retirement account investments, as well as buying when the dividend stock metrics look attractive.  As I described in my Quarter 3 goals update, I still have the $10,000 in dividend income mark to reach, which will be extremely difficult.  Further, the market value of the portfolio doesn’t mean too much to a dividend investor, just as long as nothing catastrophic is happening to the companies that are held within the vault.  As long as dividends keep growing, the companies remain viable and fundamentally sound, my portfolio can drop to $200K tomorrow for all I care.  Even if that happens, I’ll be ready to pounce on the opportunities that will be shown.

How does everyone feel about the portfolio being at $300,000?  Think that’s a milestone and do you think $500,000 is the next big one?  Is there something that you can add to bring up other points & suggestions, as well?  I know the stock market has continued the trend upwards and it’s becoming harder out there to find opportunities.  I know Amazon (AMZN) has continued to shake things up, so always being on the look out with a form of capital ready is a smart thing, if you are in that situation.  I know I am.  I appreciate everyone for stopping by and checking this out.  Now I want YOU to continue killing it out there, crush your goals and set new milestones for yourself!  I said it earlier, if I can, then, YOU can.  Good luck and get after it!

-Lanny

73 thoughts on “Dividend Investment Portfolio Crosses the $300,000 Mark

  1. Great stuff!! Congratulations on the cross over of $300k. The next big milestone is $500k. Like you said, keep doing what you are doing. You will get there in no time! Best of luck.

    • FV –

      Thank you so much. Exactly, consistency, time, reinvestment and analysis has been key. Further, not trying to time the market and making investments without the fear of the direction has been helpful. Loving these milestones!

      -Lanny

  2. Congrats. I think you have it right to keep doing what your are doing. Another way to say it, is you have a plan and are sticking to it. Also agree that as dividend investors, we can focus more on the income from the portfolio rather than the value of the portfolio. As you know, the market can take the value down in a hurry, but the income is more sticky. Tom

    • Tom –

      You hit it on the head – focusing in on dividend metrics & income. As long as companies are fundamentally sound, have a moat in their payout ratio and have a strong business model – the income component is what matters to us! Always fun to see the market value burst up, but that just means I am sidelined more typically : )

      -Lanny

  3. Amazing! Congrats! on reaching 300k. I totally agree with what you mentioned. Saving and compounding is the way to go. As long as the stocks pay dividends and stay healthy, no problem in holding them. I no longer worry about stock market corrections etc. My portfolio is about 6% of yours 🙂

    • Geek –

      Thank you for the congrats! it’s crazy how much reinvestment has occurred over the last 3 years, so damn blessed it’s not even funny. Literally, my reinvestment is more than most are contributing and I am emotional thinking about that fact. And don’t worry – your “6% of my portfolio” will be ramping up in no time flat. Keep doing what you are doing!!

      -Lanny

  4. Amazing achievement, Lanny! It’s great that you managed to reach this milestone in such a short time. It shows that your strategy really works! I am sure that it will take even less time for the portfolio to grow another 200k. Even in a case if market turns south, the more important part is the passive income you are going to receive and I am sure that it is going to head higher!
    Great work again!
    -BI

    • BI –

      Thank you so much. Shows that consistency, perseverance, reinvestment and time are very helpful : ) Also – if I get to $500K faster, then awesome, if I don’t – that’s okay too, as long as I am continually investing and building up my dividend income stream!! Appreciate this, excited for what’s to come!

      -Lanny

  5. Congrats! That is a huge accomplishment. I know what you mean by not wanting to report until you know it will stay above the threshold amount. But that is never certain as you pointed out. Dividends are slightly more certain when they cross a certain mark, granted the portfolio contains quality companies with good history of not cutting dividend. They say the first 100k is the hardest. You have proven that by doubling it in half the time. Just means what you are doing is working. Keep up the good work!

    On a side note. Think slight typo talking about maxing your tax-break accounts “2016 and thus far into 2016”. Prob should be 2017? Just helping out. Congrats again!

    • Tall –

      DYING on that one!!! haha, who needs the Dow setting records when WE ARE SETTING RECORDS! That’s right! All about progress and hope this is a nice stepping stone to better things. The first million, wow, giving me shivers!

      -Lanny

    • MrSLM –

      Thank you, and I agree, when I quickly put that chart together, I could see the steepness at the end! Haha, bets on the 1/2 mill, eh? Hmm… Any thoughts from you on that one? I am going to say 2020. haha.

      -Lanny

    • ADD –

      Living the dividend dream with you, haha. I need to keep the cards in the game and continue to push, invest, reinvest and save money. Time is a wonderful thing, definitely one critical piece I’ve noticed.

      -Lanny

  6. What I find great about investing is how each 100k increment is faster and faster. You can tell by your graph that while it took a while to get to 100k, it took less to get to 200k and even less to get to 300k. The distance between each 100k is smaller and smaller and while that obviously depends a lot on how the market performs, it’s pretty clear that your next 100k bump to 400k isn’t too far away!

    I think every 100k is a small milestone, 500k a bigger one and 1M the big one I’m aiming for. I’m not too far away from 500k myself so I’ll be psyched to when I hit that and I’m sure you’ll be well on your way to 500k by the time I hit it.

    • Time –

      The overall market definitely pushed it further, but thank goodness I save $ in the right places and have a high savings rate. Very lucky in that regard. It’s been a stressful time for work over the last 2 years and it’s nice seeing the income and portfolio grow from the portfolio. Looking forward to continuing to do what I’ve been doing.

      -Lanny

  7. Talk about motivation Lanny. Congrats on achieving that mark. It makes me just want to dump everything into my portfolio right now. I realize that the market value of the portfolio isn’t the most important to a dividend investor, but I’d rather have it higher than not. Plus, the speed at which you were able to triple the amount from 100k to 300k is very instructive.

    Right now my portfolio is sitting just shy of 20k. I should hit that before the end of the year. I don’t count my retirement accounts in my portfolio. Although I’m looking forward to reaching 50k, I’m really looking forward to getting my first 100k. It’s probably going to take me a few years, but I am really inspired by this article. I’m still gonna get rid of that pesky 20k student loan so I can only concentrate on building wealth, but I think you have the key ingredients, including having a high saving rate and recognizing that every dollar counts.

    Thanks for the article Lanny. Thanks for the inspiration.

    • DP –

      Love the comment and if I can inspire/motivate in any way I can, then this post was worth it. These are the comments, among others, that keep and get me going. Focus on that income and if there are companies undervalued that fit your criteria, invest. Stick with the strategy that works for you and keep it going. Pumped for you and your current & upcoming accomplishments.

      -Lanny

  8. FANTASTIC!!!! Sincerely happy for your success. I am thinking there may be a time in the future the names “Lanny and Bert” will be spoken in the way “Warren and Charlie” are now. Keep up the great work.

    • Boyd –

      Wow, just speechless. Means so much, truly. I hope that you are having fun reading our articles, us picking on each other and learning a thing here and there with how we conduct aspects of life. Would love to have a talk show with Warren and Charlie, would be very humorous, that’s for damn sure haha. Let’s keep it going Boyd, one life and let’s get after it!

      -Lanny

    • My DD –

      Long way to go, but staying consistent will be key, turning emotions off and sticking to the metrics I look at will be the name of the game!!! Appreciate the comment and looking forward to it all!

      -Lanny

  9. Awesome stuff Lanny! $300k is huge especially since it’s been what about 8 years to get there? Our portfolio has been riding the bull run higher but we haven’t participated as much as I would have liked because we haven’t had cash to invest, other more pressing priorities and all. However, we did cross a big net worth milestone that I hope to report on next week. Little by little those saved dollars create dividend dollars which create more investing dollars which creates even more dividend dollars and on and on.

    • JC –

      Yep, 8.5 years to get here. Excited to see your net worth post, and I haven’t been as active this year as I have been in previous years, due to metrics on companies I like aren’t quite stacking up. However, strategy remains unchanged. Still a ways away from $10K in forward dividends, the pressure is on!

      -Lanny

  10. Congratulations. But you should also acknowledge your journey started at the absolute bottom of the market cycle in Feb/March of 2009. As an investor you have only known a market that goes up. I thought it was fun too during 1997-1999. It will not last. I have survived 2 market drawdowns of 50% . . . 2000-2002 and 2007-2009. Do not to let the market rise of about 300% since you began investing to confuse you as to how difficult of a journey it is. You need the nuts to keep it going through some very bad times that will eventually happen.

    • DB –

      This is a valid point. I welcome the downturn, hoping that it opens further opportunities for investment. Would love some of my foundation stocks to drop into the mid-teens for a P/E ratio. There has to be a market downturn coming, but I can’t predict when that occurs. Staying consistent in the strategy and purchases will be the takeaway!

      -Lanny

  11. Man 300,000 ive been doing this for 17 years and that is more than mu entire networth but alas i dont make much so cant invest much. lol if i had known what i was doing when i was in the navy more than what i did i would have lot more. there was some years between 2003 and 2007 i did not invest any once the market started going down that was when i kicked it in high gear with what i had. Of course didnyt invest much from 2012-16 so just started back investing again last year.
    I would say the next milestone is 400,000 we want to know every milestone. im getting ready to start a 100,000 watch as my profile is inching towards 100,000 but im sure a post or 2 in we will have a big draw down. LOL.
    Congrats and keep us informed

    • Doug –

      Thank you for your comment. The total doesn’t mean anything! It’s all about the benefits of saving, being consistent and staying int he game. Heck yah towards your march to $100K, pumped for you to reach that point.

      As for a draw down/drop in the market – I am open for that : ) Let’s let it happen!!

      -Lanny

  12. Lanny,

    Congratulations!!! Must be awesome to have those dividends working for you. I love seeing the snowball. That graph is beautiful. I agree with what others have said you will be at 500k before you know it. Thanks for the inspiration.

    • Seedling,

      Thank you very much! The snowball is real and once I created the chart, I thought, “Damn, what a jump!”. Looking forward to continued investment, side hustling and making every damn dollar count as much as I can. Thank you again!!

      -Lanny

    • Chris –

      Weird seeing all of these “half a mill” line drops, haha. I like it though. Honestly, need to keep building up this dividend income and the market value will be there and will go through swings. Pumped!!

      -Lanny

  13. Congrats, Lanny! Nice to see you rewarded for all your investing efforts. $300K is definitely worth acknowledging. Any stocks stories to share? Which stock do you consider to be the bedrock of the portfolio on your journey to 300K?

    • Engineer Div –

      Thank you! One stock – Lockheed (LMT) has been a funny story. Bought it back when I was in grad school, scraping every dollar I could. The overall value is worth > 5x my initial investment! Time, dividend increases, dividend reinvestment and market performance has allowed this to happen. Very lucky.

      -Lanny

  14. Congratulations!!! Great result and I am sure the feeling of looking back and seeing “where you were before” must be really great! Keep up the good work! ciao ciao

  15. Congrats man, that is outstanding! Nothing wrong with celebrating $400k when you get there either! I like how you give yourself some room in case the market goes down, haha good stuff. Here’s to your continued success!

    • MDS –

      Thank you very much, and have to give the wiggle room haha. Actually, the market has continued to pop and am now nearing towards $310K, just like that. This market is a strange one I tell ya. Cheers to your success as well!

      -Lanny

  16. Although you mentioned that the total value of the portfolio is kinda irelevant, it is nice thinking to yourself, I have $300k in my name. I know I feel this way and only have an 1/6 of your value. At 300k you should be crossing the 10k dividend mark in no time. I know that will be a good feeling to earn an extra 10k a year. Im enjoying watching the compound affwct stack up for you and I’m excited to see you cross the 500k!

    • DD –

      Also – $50K is a HUGE amount as well, congrats to you : ) I am excited for you to continue to do what you are doing and setting the bar higher for yourself. Eager to see what the future holds, but also need to take care of today!

      -Lanny

  17. Is possible for anyone all it takes is discipline and the will to do it. I just cross my goal of $200,000 in just 4 years not accounting in retirement accounts this is all taxable. Hoping the market keep treating us good keep up the good work and congrats!

  18. Wow congratulations Lanny very impressive. I love that growth. Do you drip your stocks or take the cash? Thanks for sharing with us, can’t wait to read the post when you cross $500k 🙂

    Matthew

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