Every year is a big year when you think about it, but I really did feel like 2016 was one of the bigger years in my life. The only thing is, as you get older, the years all sort of blend together. I have a vague idea of what I did in the past few years, but since I never wrote it down, I don’t exactly remember any specifics.
The great thing about blogging though is that it forces you to buckle down and think about what you did, and then write it all down in a synthesized fashion. When I start telling my crazy stories one day, hopefully, someone can look back on what I wrote and fact check me.
And hopefully, you can learn something from this recap too. I know I learn a ton just reading about what others did over the year. So come learn and be inspired! Or just come and be entertained! It’s all good to me.
Anyway, here’s a recap of some of the big events for me in 2016:
Paid Off All Of My Student Loans!
I graduated law school back in 2013 with about $87,000 worth of student loans. When 2016 came around, I still had about $12,000 remaining on my student loan balance. Not too bad at all considering I had only started paying them for real in 2014. But I still wanted them out of my life. I ended up getting rid of the entire balance by June 2016.
Paying off my student loans was a huge weight off my chest. I’d taken a pretty big risk taking on so much debt, but I did come into it with my eyes open and a plan to pay it off quickly. And luckily for me, my plan paid off. If you’re thinking about taking on debt to go to law school, please talk to me first!
2016 was also the year that I actually looked at how much I had paid towards my student loans. I never really realized how much money I had actually paid until I added up all my payments.
For those of you who are still hustling to pay your loans off, keep on hustling! You’ll be shocked at how fast those loans disappear when you’re really hustling.
And when you do finish paying them off, do like I did and get your payment history. Add it all up and see how much you paid. You’ll be super proud of yourself when you see how much debt you got rid of.
Started A New Job (And Took A $50,00 Pay Cut To Do It!)
I started out my working career at a big law firm and knew pretty much right away that it wasn’t a great fit for me. The work-life balance was terrible and I was getting a lot of anxiety from the job. Still, it paid extremely well and I needed the job if I was going to pay my student loans off fast. I don’t regret starting my career there.
Once I got my loans paid off, I was finally able to make the big job change. In June, I switched jobs and moved from the private sector and into the public sector. The jump meant a much better work-life balance, but also a huge pay cut. A $50,000 pay cut!
The amazing thing though? Because I was living off so much less than I earned, I was able to take the $50,000 pay cut and have no change to my lifestyle at all!
That’s the power of living on less. Not only can you save more, but you can make big career changes without even worrying about it. If I was living like a normal big shot lawyer, taking such a big pay cut probably wouldn’t have been possible. But because I lived on so much less than I earned and threw so much of my income into my student loans, I was able to make the change without worrying about it at all.
Finally Started A Blog
I’d been talking about doing this for a long time, but never actually got around to doing it. I felt like I had something to say and I was doing a ton of weird stuff that a lawyer and dentist couple probably shouldn’t be doing – delivering food, dog sitting, selling trash. I was also constantly annoying my friends with personal finance stuff.
My best friend kept telling me I needed to write about the things I was doing and talking about. He even believed in me so much that he said he’d handle all the web stuff for me (he’s a web developer for his day job and he’s the reason this blog looks the way it does).
In March, I went ahead and bought a domain name, naming myself after a funny Simpsons clip that I like.
A lot of people talk about blogging, but very few people actually go ahead and start doing it. I did the same thing and just sat doing nothing for several months. In July, I finally sat down at a coffeeshop and wrote my first blog post. I started out at writing once a week, and have since aimed to get two posts out every week. I’m still working on refining my writing style – blog writing is just a totally different type of beast – but I like to think I’m getting a little better with each post.
Began Renting A Room Out On Airbnb
I finally jumped on the Airbnb bandwagon this year. In January, Ms. FP and I moved into her four bedroom house and I promptly realized there was a side hustle opportunity here.
Being the tech nerd that I am, I’d been following the rise of Airbnb and totally thought it’d be a fun thing to do. And since we have four bedrooms in our house and only sleep in one of them, I thought it’d make sense to give it a shot. I put up our guest room on Airbnb and figured that if it was too weird, we’d just stop doing it.
I didn’t expect a ton of demand for our house, but ended up being pleasantly surprised. Turns out when you live near a huge college, you get a ton of grad students coming into town for interviews and conferences. These are exactly the type of people we enjoy hosting, and it’s why Airbnb has been a good experience for us so far.
And, bringing in an extra $6,700 renting out a room isn’t so bad either.
My guess is that we’ll try to cut back a little bit on Airbnb in 2017. We haven’t done much Airbnb in December because of the holidays and low demand, and it’s been pretty nice having the place to ourselves for a bit. The only problem is, our house has gotten so messy again because we haven’t been cleaning it for guests.
Saved Over $30,000 Into My Retirement Accounts
I’m still a little shocked at this one, but I did the math and it looks like I’ve already managed to save over $27,000 into tax-advantaged retirement accounts. And that doesn’t even include at least $5,000 I’ll sock away into my Solo 401(k) once I calculate exactly how much I can contribute.
All together, I should put away well over $30,000 this year into tax-advantaged investments. I’m pretty surprised that I still managed to do the equivalent of maxing out all of my retirement accounts and more, considering the fact that I took a gigantic pay cut in the middle of the year.
The breakdown is pretty interesting. When I left my big law firm job in June, I was on pace to max out my 401(k). I figured the job change meant I probably wouldn’t be able to save as much. To my surprise, I found out that with my employer contribution and no student loans, I was able to save just as much as I was saving before.
I didn’t have any employer contribution at my old job, so I had no idea how much of a difference it makes. But wow! It’s a huge difference when your employer throws some money into retirement for you. If your employer offers a match, do everything you can to get it! It’s amazing what it can do to your savings.
Here’s the breakdown of what I’ve put away as of December 31, 2016:
- 401(k) from my old job = $8,774 (Left this job in June)
- 457 Plan = $5,787
- Defined Contribution Pension = $4,236 (about half of this comes from my employer contribution)
- Roth IRA = $5,500 (managed to max this out just a few days ago!)
- HSA = $3,350 (also managed to max this out a few days ago!)
I Got Engaged!
Last, but not least, and quite obviously the most important thing I did this year – I got engaged!
I haven’t talked about wedding stuff all that much because, to be honest, we’re not doing a great job of being frugal with it. That’s not to say our wedding is going to be some extravagant thing. We have a budget we’re working with. But we’re also lucky enough to have parents who are willing to give us some cash to help us out. We’re still footing some of the bill ourselves, but it’s a huge benefit that our parents are willing to spot much of it.
2017 will be interesting as we figure out how to merge our finances. And also, dealing with the whole being married thing.
And Now For 2017
I’m sure 2017 will be just as big a year as 2016. Ms. FP will become Mrs. FP (assuming she continues to tolerate me), which will be a huge change in itself.
Our income will also be at the lowest it’ll probably ever be for our professional lives. Ms. FP makes nothing in her residency and I’m making a mighty government salary. Once Ms. FP starts getting paid to do dentistry, I don’t imagine our income will ever get lower than it’ll be in 2017.
It’ll be interesting to see if we can still hit our savings goals in 2017.
Thanks to everyone in 2016 for sticking around and helping this blog grow. See you all in the coming year!
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More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes and scooters I've reviewed:
- Urban Arrow Ebike – Last year, I made one of the largest purchases I’ve ever made – I bought a $9,000 electric cargo bike from Urban Arrow. In my Urban Arrow review, I will discuss what it is and why I decided to buy this bike, as well as discuss how impactful a bike like this can be on your journey to financial independence.
- Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Ebike – The Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is a fat-tire ebike that I’ve had the pleasure of riding for a while now. It has amazing power, great looks, and awesome range. If you’re looking for a great fat-tire ebike that offers a lot for the price, the Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is definitely one for you to consider. Check out my Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Review.
- Hovsco HovBeta Ebike – The HovBeta is a folding ebike with great specs and a lot of interesting features, and importantly, it’s sold at a good price point. I’ve had a blast commuting with it and using it to do deliveries with DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. Check out my Hovsco HovBeta Ebike Review.
- Vanpowers Manidae Ebike – The Vanpowers Manidae is a fat tire ebike that I’ve been riding as my primary winter commuting bike and have also been using it to do food delivery with apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. After clocking in a decent number of miles with this ebike, I wanted to write a post sharing what my experience with the Vanpowers Manidae ebike has been like. Check out my Vanpowers Manidae Review.
- Sohamo S3 Step-Thru Folding EBike Review – A Great Value Folding Ebike – The Sohamo S3 Step-Thru Folding Ebike is an entry-level folding ebike that offers a lot of value for the price point. I’ve been riding the Sohamo S3 for a while now, putting the bike through its paces, and I have to say, this bike has exceeded all of my expectations. Check out my Sohamo Review.
- KBO Flip Ebike – The KBO Flip is an excellent bike. I’ve had a great time riding it and think it’s a versatile bike that can be used for a lot of purposes and can fit a variety of lifestyles. It’s worked out great for me as a general commuter bike and as a food delivery bike. Check out my KBO Flip Review.
- Hiboy P7 Commuter Ebike – The Hiboy P7 is an excellent electric commuter bike that’s offered at an affordable price point. The range and speed of this bike are both very good, so you won’t have any trouble getting anywhere you need to go with it. As a food delivery vehicle, this is also good – with how much range it offers, you’ll be able to work all day on a single charge. Check out my Hiboy P7 Commuter Electric Bike Review.
- Himiway Escape Ebike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Ebike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Varla Falcon Scooter – The Varla Falcon is an excellent scooter that offers a good amount of power at a lower price point compared to more powerful scooters. It’s not exactly an entry-level scooter, nor is it a high-powered scooter. I think it fits somewhere in-between those two categories – an intermediate scooter if I had to give it a category. Check out my Varla Falcon Review.
- Hiboy S2 Scooter – The Hiboy S2 is an excellent entry-level commuter scooter that's perfect for someone looking to save some money in transportation costs and improve their commute. Check out my Hiboy S2 Review.
- Hiboy S2R Scooter – The Hiboy S2R is one of the more interesting electric scooters I’ve been able to test out. It’s not a high-powered scooter, but for an everyday transport option, it’s very useful, especially given some of the unique features that it has. Indeed, for the price, the Hiboy S2R might be the best value scooter I’ve used. Check out my Hiboy S2R Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($100) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with just $10 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Webull (20 free stock shares) – Webull's current promotion gives you 20 free shares valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free shares using Webull.
- Moomoo (15 free stocks) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 2 different referral bonuses if you open an account using a referral link. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- Upgrade ($200) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $200 referral bonus if you open an account and complete a direct deposit. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $200 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
- Ally Bank ($100) – Of all the banks out there, Ally is, without a doubt, my favorite. At the moment, Ally is offering $100 to customers who open an eligible Ally account and meet the requirements. Here are the step-by-step directions to earn your Ally Bank referral bonus.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($175) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
- Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- US Bank Business ($800) – This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, since there are no direct deposit requirements. In addition, you can open the Silver Business Checking account, which comes with no monthly fees. Check out how to earn this big bonus here.
- Fifth Third Bank ($200) – This offer is limited to customers in the following states: Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia, and South Carolina. If you don’t live in one of those states, you won’t be able to open an account online but you can still open an account in-branch if you happen to be visiting a city that has a branch. This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, especially since there are plenty of data points showing what will trigger the direct deposit requirement. In addition, you can open the Fifth Third Momentum Checking bank account, which comes with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Read my guide on this bonus here.
- GO2Bank ($50) - GO2Bank is an easy bank bonus that I recommend people take advantage of if they have an easy way of meeting the direct deposit requirement. I like that it’s easy to open the account and that the bonus pays out quickly. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your GO2Bank $50 referral bonus.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link. Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Varo ($25) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $25 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $300 if you complete a direct deposit.
- 5% Savings Accounts. I'm currently getting 5.24% interest on my savings through a company called Raisin. Opening a Raisin account takes minutes to complete, it's free, and all of your funds are FDIC-insured. I explain how it works, why I'm now using it to store my emergency fund and any other cash savings I have, and why I recommend everyone check it out in this review.
- US Bank Business. US Bank is currently offering new business customers a $800 signup bonus after opening a new account and meeting certain requirements.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account.
- Empower. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
Congratulations on such a successful year! I love year end posts like this. You learn so much. For one thing, I never noticed that Ms. FP meant you weren’t married. I thought you were. Looks like we will both be tying the knot next year. We should trade emails on some strategies.
Also, I didn’t realize your buddy helped on the design. That’s why your site is so slick! And here I thought I was just a design slacker. 🙂
Thanks! Yeah, we’ll definitely need to connect about strategies with the merging finances front. I don’t remember if you’ve ever mentioned it, but is your fiance an attorney as well, or is she in a different field?
I owe a lot to my friend who’s basically handled all of the web stuff with this blog. I couldn’t do it without him.
It looks like you had a good 2016! I was just wondering if you had a target financial independence date? I am relatively new to the FI world and haven’t gotten into selling trash to earn extra money yet but maybe someday:)
I actually don’t have any target financial independence date to be honest. I’d love for it to be as soon as possible, but who knows. There’s a lot that can change in the next 10 years or so!
What a great year, FP!
2017 should be equally exciting with a wedding, no more student loans to worry about, and plenty of side hustlin’, I’m sure.
Cheers!
-PoF
Definitely should be a fun 2017! We’ll need to meet up again for sure.
Congrats on paying off your student loans and getting engaged! Looks like you had a great 2016 🙂
So hilarious that you got the name “Financial Panther” from the Simpsons’s episode. I was briefly considering using that as my alias before I decided on FIRECracker. Great minds think alike!
Thanks! Haha, I’m glad I got that name before you did! I would’ve been so bummed!
Congrats on a fantastic year FP! You’ve been an inspiration for my own side hustle journey, thank you for that! I look forward to following along as you progress in the coming year!
Thanks so much! I’m really honored that I’ve been able to be an inspiration to anyone! Really fun to get on that hustle!
Awesome year! Congrats on all of your accomplishments.
Thanks so much! Been a great year and I’m pretty happy with it!
Wow! You had a fantastic year, FP! Paying off the debt and adding so much to the retirement savings, all while taking a paycut!? Congrats! Looking forward to following your journey in 2017! Happy New Year! 🙂
Thanks so much Amanda! Going to be an exciting 2017 for sure. Happy New Year to you too!
Congrats on a successful 2016! Not many can say they took a $50k pay cut and it was a successful year. In your case, though, it sounds like the change was worth it. Congrats on starting your blog. That was one of the biggest and best decisions I made in 2016 as well. Here’s to a prosperous 2017!
Thanks! Starting up the blog was definitely a great thing to do, even just for the ability to keep up my writing skills. Looking forward to seeing what 2017 has in store!
Wow that is quite a year! It’s hard for me to wrap my head around taking a $50k pay cut, but it sounds like it worked out for you! Congrats on all your successes this past year!
Thanks David! I know, it’s crazy when you think about it, but having that ability to take the big pay cut without hurting my lifestyle is exactly why its so important to live on less. It’s good to know that I have a lot of options out there if I want to take them.
Nice work! And congrats on your engagement!
I also got married this past year but didn’t write about spending on the wedding because it just wasn’t that frugal and so many people write posts on how to save on your wedding. It didn’t really change much for us this year, though, because we also were lucky to have parents who chipped in.
Here’s to another great upcoming year!
Thanks Ellie! That’s exactly why I haven’t really written about wedding stuff very much. We’re not having a ridiculous wedding, but it definitely makes it much easier when parents are willing to chip in. I know we’re very fortunate to have that help. Looking forward to the next year!
I cant wait to join you being debt free in Q1 of this year :).
Keep it up FP! Looking forward to more great content in 2017!
It’ll be awesome when you get debt free! Thanks for reading Gary!
Congratulations on your 2016 and wish you all the bests for the future! It is especially great news about your engagement. Don’t feel bad not being frugal about the wedding; make your Mrs happy! 🙂
Happy New Year to you and all the readers!
Thanks Roadrunner! Happy New Year to you to!
Congrats on a big year! I found when I took a pay cut that it took some time to be okay with saving less even though I didn’t need to reduce my lifestyle at all.
Congrats on the engagement! I got married in 2016 and it’s definitely taking some time to figure out how we plan to handle our finances going forward and the whole marriage thing too. It’s worth it though!
Isn’t it actually Dr. FP and not Mrs. FP? Dr. supersedes Mrs. as a title.
Ah good point! Maybe it should be doctor, but then I always remember that she’s only a dentist (I kid, I kid!).
Sounds like a great year. No doubt 2017 will be amazing too! And congratulations on your engagement! I’m eager to read about your new adventures as the groom-to-be 🙂
Thank you so much! 2017 will definitely be an adventure!
Congrats! I just found your blog and I really love it – I can’t believe it took me this long to find.
And great job on paying back your student loans. I’m still buried underneath mine currently but one day they’ll be gone, and I can move onto other things like you too. 🙂
Here’s to an awesomer 2017!
Thanks Lindsay! I’m glad you found the blog! Looking forward to 2017!
Good luck on 2017 FP! I think you are crushing the blog gig.
I don’t have any big goals for 2017 but I am initiating a coffee and alcohol fast for January. My wife asked, “why give up those?” To which I reply, “they are two of my favorite things.”
Now when I miss them I get a reminder to pray and be grateful for what I have. Still excited about February too.
Thanks Jack! And awesome with the coffee and alcohol fast. A few years ago, I dropped soda completely and now I’ve been soda free for 2 years strong. I don’t think I could drop coffee or alcohol forever, but doing a month as a test is definitely not a bad idea. See you in 2017!
Congrats on the great year and the engagement! Hope you have a great 2017!!
— Jim
Thanks so much Jim! Here’s to a great 2017 to you too!
Well done on a solid year, FP!
The food delivery, dogvacay, trash selling and AirBNB are some of the most exciting posts to read!
Mad props to the friend who set you up and makes this place look so professional.
Thanks TJ! Been a fun year doing all this stuff. And my buddy is real good at what he does making this site look good.