Three next level money moves

How I'm pouring into my foundation, development and my business.

Photo by Tierra Mallorca on Unsplash

I told you last week that T-shirts were my best money move of June.

But I recently made three other money moves that carried just as much weight. Let’s start with the biggest and, in my book, the smartest.

On June 15, I made a $2,077.85 transfer from one of my brokerage accounts to my emergency fund. I didn’t have to sell any assets. My cash was simply sitting there, waiting for the next dip to bring another buying opportunity.

I’m in the early stages of using the stock market as my primary savings vehicle rather than the bank. The switch allows my money to grow at a substantially higher annual percentage while also collecting dividends along the way. It’s a new concept to me but one that makes a lot of sense.

I committed to this method in late December and began buying shares of Vanguard’s popular S&P 500 ETF, ticker symbol VOO, through early March. I currently have 13.104 shares. As of Wednesday night, my holdings showed a 12% gain.

My temptation was to leave the cash parked in the brokerage so I could stand ready to scoop more shares at the next market correction. My fear was making the transfer and being cash-strapped and powerless to pounce when a downturn arrived.

I made the right call. By having my cash hanging out on the sideline, I wasn’t getting that 12% growth. Instead, I was effectively trying (and failing) to time the market, waiting for a dip that might not have come anytime soon.

Meanwhile, my emergency fund needed attention. Car repair bills from May drained my emergency cash, and refilling that bucket had to take precedence over funding an additional cash reserve account.

The amount I transferred from my brokerage to my emergency fund was just shy of the $2,530.65 my vehicle sucked out of me. Coupled with this month’s routine $334 deposit, my emergency fund is back where it was before my car trouble bled the account. My emergency fund also is back on track to hit my goal of $5,000 prior to year’s end.

The financial institution I use for my emergency fund currently offers a 4.3% APY (annual percentage yield). It beats the 0.45% APY my brokerage pays in interest on uninvested cash.

Most importantly, the move helps fix my foundation. It was an important step toward ensuring I won’t have to sell the very assets I’m working so hard to build.

My other two money moves I wanted to tell you about were investments into my business and my development. I anticipate looking back on both expenses years from now as money well spent.

I paid $500 to enlist legal services to assist me in launching my LLC. It’s a necessary step toward making Parker a paid partner at Money Talks. I was having fits, growing frustrated and wasting time getting nowhere trying to form my LLC myself. Paying and getting it done right is worth the cost.

To secure our business address, I paid $160.01 on Wednesday night. My heart started racing when the clerk looked at me and asked, ‘What’s the name of your business?” But more on that another day.

On July 7, I paid $250 for an upcoming investing conference that I will write more about next month. One of my goals this year is to attend as many financial seminars as possible. And this is one I did not want to miss.

In order to learn about business I have to surround myself with businesspeople. I’m also eager to connect with like-minded individuals.

It’s an event I can’t wait to experience and share with you here.

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Disclaimer: The information contained on Money Talks is not intended as, and should not be understood or construed as, financial advice. I am not an attorney, accountant or financial advisor. These are my personal experiences, and this Website is not a substitute for advice from a qualified professional.