Most of February was spent preparing our taxes for the accountant. Honestly, this is the time of year when I walk through life with my head in the sand. We were audited by the IRS a number of years ago—combine that with a usually hefty tax bill and you can guess our stress level is really high.

This month I did not make significant gains in bank interest, mainly because this is also the time of year when I use our savings to pay property taxes and car and home insurance. The rest of the year I put money into our savings account in preparation for those expenditures. In addition to that, my savings account continues to have an annoying lowering of interest. As of this writing the interest rate is at an all-time low of 1.5 percent. I opened the account with a 3% interest rate. At the moment I am considering changing banks in order to get a higher rate. A number of other factors have made me question the use of my savings account as well. For one, I am no longer spending as much on non-essentials. My savings account requires using the debit card 15 times or more during the month in order to qualify for the interest rate. Not surprisingly, this has made me question whether I am simply ”spending the interest” to capture the interest. Not so smart really. At this point I have not had time to ‘do the math’ so I am not putting more money into that account, nor am I using the debit card enough to get that interest. Now that my taxes are done, I intend on taking a look at my finances and make a decision. Part of me is holding back because I have my eye on the stock market as a ‘richer’ investment and I’m wondering if it wouldn’t be wiser to hold more of my savings in stock instead of playing it safe and keeping it in a savings account. Right now, I’m undecided, but as you’ll see by my dividend income for February, the possibility that stocks hold is tempting—and real.

Dividend Income

70 Shares B & G Foods (BGS) $33.25

15 Shares Verizon (VZ) $6.28

60 Shares At&T (ATT) $31.20

10 Shares American Express (AXP) $4.30

4 Shares Enterprise Products (EPD) $1.80

3 Shares Global X SuperDividend US ETF (DIV) $.30

Green Plains Partners (GPP) $24.00

100 Shares Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (SKT) $17.75

40 Shares Realty Income (O) $9.38

531 Shares Diversified Healthcare Trust (DHC) $5.31

10 Shares LTC Properties Inc. (LTC) $1.90

50 Shares Invesco S&P 500 High Div Low Volatility ETF (SPHD) $7.26

Total is $133.57

Roth IRA Account

10 Shares General Mills (GIS) $5.20

50 Shares Enterprise Products (EPD) $22.5

3 Shares Global X SuperDividend US ETF (DIV) $.3

10 Shares Tanger Factory Outlets (SKT) $1.07

5 Shares Abbvie Inc. (ABBV) $6.5

10 Shares Stag Industrial Inc. (STAG) $1.21

68 Shares Diversified Healthcare Trust (DHC)$.68

10 Shares LTC Properties Inc. (LTC) $1.90

Total IRA Account: $39.3

You can see that the more dividend stocks I accrue, the more money flows into my account. Even if you were to simply reinvest the dividend income, we can see that incrementally the account would go up. Add to that any extra cash that you put aside from your job or side gig and you can slowly get the momentum rolling. It does beg the question: How much do I need to put in a savings account and how much can I trust in the stock market? This is an individual question and definitely one that needs heavy thought.

So, February also gave me credit card points in the form of cash. American Express is my favorite because of that amazing 6% cashback on groceries. This month I earned $85.88 and my bill was just over $1000.00.

I have been more mindful of my spending, however, and the next time I sit down for an extended period to do my bookkeeping, I plan on looking at my spending—particularly my American Express statements.

As 2021 gains speed, it’s important to remember we’re not done with this marathon—it’s not good to get overly confident. I think we have a long ways to go and we need to keep ourselves in reserves so that we can end strong.

Have a great week,

Andrea