Monday 30 March 2015

March 2015 Review

March saw my net worth increase by 8.9%, mainly a result of larger than expected lump sum income.

The value of my investment portfolio was around 1% higher, with a lot of volatility during the month. There were no new purchases as i struggle to see value following rallies across most markets. A lot of my ETFs also paid dividends during the month.

My pension fund unit values were fairly flat, there seems to be some time lag for equities market movements flowing into to the pension unit prices, so these don't always move in line with the market on a day to day basis. They are up over 4% for the year though, which is consistent with the year to date increase in my investment portfolio.

Property rental income was paid in full & on time.  I've been actively pursuing new property investments during the month.  I'll separately post about these should there be any progress.

Cash balances were materially higher due to a large lump sum income. I've spent a lot of time this month updating how i manage my cash in light of this increase.  This has seen all funds not being held back for emergencies & investments being placed in longer term time deposits at higher interest rates.  That being said, i've kept a lot of cash available at short notice for a potential property investment, so the overall cash yield has stayed fairly flat.

The spike in income has temporarily distorted up my year to date savings rate to 82%.  This should drift back down towards 60% as the year progresses.

Year to date net worth growth: 12%
Year to date savings rate: 82%