April 2023 Update. 82 more drips!

Dividend Income & Portfolio Update

Personal Highlights

  • I am a bit late on this update -it’s been a crazy couple of weeks, and the temperature is heating up so I’ve been spending a lot of time outdoors.
  • Started coaching my son (Isaac’s) soccer two days a week.  So far 2/4 have been rained out unfortunately, but it’s been fun!
  • Isaac turned 6 at the end of April, so we had a few different parties at our place.
  • Went to both Winnipeg Jets playoff games – which were pretty underwhelming, but still had a good time.
  • Took the wife out to a restaurant she hadn’t been to yet, played in a curling bonspiel, hosted an Easter dinner and finally got our new shelves installed!
    New Shelves:
    Teak Shelves
  • Officially booked some time off for the summer (our first summer in 13 years without a cabin)!  So now we just have to decide what we want to do/where we want to go. 
  • A friend of mine picked me up a bottle of one of my favorite bourbons from the states (we can’t get it here):
    Four Roses

Financial Highlights for April:

  • Spent the remaining money in our TFSA:
    Bought – 288 shares of Adentra (new position)
    Bought – 1124 shares of Canadian Net Reit (added to position) 
  • Received dividends from 12 companies and 2 funds.  Dripped an additional 82 shares/units. 
    Dripped shares by year:
    2023: 306 (so far)
    2022: 733
    2021: 603
  • April is one of my favorite months because I get to drip shares in a few of my favorite holdings (Equitable Group, GoEasy, Couche Tard & others)
  • Received dividend raises from Propel Holdings, Telus & Equitable Group.

Passive Income Update For April 2023.

TFSA’S:

Diversified Royalty Income: $34.24 (dripped 12 shares)

Telus: 69.87 (dripped 2 shares)

Algonquin Power: $159.32(dripped 13 shares)

Artis Reit: $53.00 (dripped 7 shares)

European Residential Reit: $24.14 (dripped 7 shares)

RBNK: $102.60 (dripped 4 shares)

First National: $80.40(dripped 2 shares)

Nexus Reit: $15.95 (dripped 1 share)

Canadian NET Reit: $43.13

TFSA’s Total: $582.65

RRSP: 

Transcontinental: $224.10 (dripped 15 shares)

GoEasy: $420.48 (dripped 4 shares)

Alimentation Couche Tard: $85.12(dripped 1 share)

Equitable Group: $264.60 (dripped 4 shares)

Canadian Equity Income Distribution: $404.82 (dripped 10 units)

RRSP Total: $1399.12

Total Passive Income April 2023:  $1981.77*

*29.4% of this was 100% Tax Free!

2023 Portfolio Update:

Portfolio increased 3.72% to $596,478.   

Dividends in April were actually down compared to last year, but only because last year one of my funds paid out a special distribution.

Current forward dividend income is $19,231.  This is the first time my projected annual dividend income crossed $19,000!

Cheers!

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March 2023 Dividend Update. New Buys & Lots of Drips!

Dividend Income & Portfolio Update

Personal Highlights

  • After 3 years I finally joined the Covid 19 club.  It knocked me on my ass for a few days – I just slept for about 4 days straight.  It then turned into what felt like a regular cold for another week or so, and now it’s been about a month, and I still feel like I am clearing my throat/coughing a lot, but for the most part I feel 100%
  • Had a couple great dinners this month with friends I haven’t seen in a while.  First we had a couple’s dinner with 2 old co-worker/friends and their wives and this last weekend I got together with 6 friends from High School who started going out for dinners pre covid, but haven’t seen eachother in almost 4 years – so that was a great time.  Had dinner at a cool fusion lounge, then walked across the street to a local brew pub and had some beers. 
  • Our curling season finished up.  Unfortunately due to Covid I missed the year end banquet.  I am curling in a bonspiel this weekend and then that should wrap up curling for the year.  Next year I am hoping to play on 2-3 different teams and get a lot more curling in.
  • Our soccer season (winter/indoor) also finished up for the year, and I also missed our last 3 games/windup due to Covid as well.  I think I am going to take the summer off from Soccer, and play again in the fall/winter.
  • Our dishwasher conked out, and of course there were none in stock anywhere, so we had to (somehow) make do without a dishwasher for about a week.  I absolutely hate doing dishes.  Luckily it was installed last week and so far it’s been working great.
  • The kids got their report cards, and both are doing really well.  Holland is stil in dance, and we are going to register Isaac for soccer in the spring.
  • We’ve started chatting about doing a summer vacation, since this will be the first summer in 12 years without a cabin (and first time since kids).  We are thinking of maybe a road trip out to Edmonton/Calgary/Banff/Jasper as well as maybe a trip down south to Minneapolis or something.  I also have a couple work trips coming up (Florida, New York) over the next few months.
  • The house renovations/updates continued.  We ripped out an old fireplace, installed new floors and painted.  We had a large open space on the wall where the fireplace was – so I finally found some classic teak shelves to fill the space.  This is for a wall between our living room/dining room.  They were supposed to be delivered today but the guy actually contracted Covid, so now he is going to deliver them next week.  Here is what I picked up:
    Mid Century Shelving Unit

Financial Highlights for March:

  • Maxed out both TFSA’s in January!  I am still sitting on some cash in the TFSA, and I made a couple more purchases in March:
    – Added 75 shares of Brookfield Corporation @ $40.67
    – Added an additional 90 shares of RBNK @ $22.66
    – Bought 1000 shares of Propel Holdings @ $6.95
    – Bought 300 shares of Dream Unlimited @ $23.40
    – Bought 345 shares of Berkshire Hathaway CDR @ $23.40
  • All of those purchases were in a Tax Free account except for Berkshire which was in my RRSP.  The purchases will add an additional $661.00 to my annual dividend income.
  • Completed, filed and got my tax return back!
  • Received dividends from 12 companies and 2 funds.  Dripped an additional 80 shares/units. 
    Dripped shares by year:
    2023: 224 (so far)
    2022: 733
    2021: 603
  • Almost 70% of my income this month was 100% Tax Free!  April should also be a decent month as a few of my larger holdings pay dividends such as: Couche Tard, Algonquin Power, Equitable Group, Goeasy, Power Corp, Telus & Transcontinental! 

Passive Income Update For March 2023.

TFSA’S:

Diversified Royalty Income: $34.04 (dripped 10 shares)

Artis Reit: $52.70 (dripped 6 shares)

European Residential Reit: $24.08 (dripped 7 shares)

RBNK: $102.22 (dripped 4 shares)

BAM: $35.60

Brookfield Corporation: $31.53

Canadian Western Bank: $0.32

Western Forest: $26.94 (dripped 23 shares)

Fortis: $113.00 (dripped 2 shares)

First National $80.00 (dripped 2 shares)

Manulife: $393.84 (dripped 15 shares)

Nexus Reit: $15.89 (dripped 1 share)

Canadian NET Reit: $10.81

TFSA’s Total: $886.93

RRSP: 

Canadian Equity Income Distribution: $403.49 (dripped 10 units)

RRSP Total: $403.49

Total Passive Income March 2023:  $1290.42*

*68% of this was 100% Tax Free!

2023 Portfolio Update:

Portfolio dropped over 4% to $575,108.15.   

Dividends in March were up  were up 39% YoY compared to last March!  

Current forward dividend income is $18,695.00.  This is the first time my projected annual dividend income crossed $18,000!

Cheers!

February 2023 Dividend Update. Slow month…

Dividend Income & Portfolio Update

Personal Highlights

  • Since selling the cabin, we’ve got to work on a lot of the house renovations we said we were going to do.  New roof – done.  New floors – done. Rip out old fireplace – done.  We also picked up some new furniture.  One of the last things is to get the place re-painted.  We’ve started this and the whole job should be done this week!
  • The kids had a school concert – it was Isaac’s first ever and they both did great. 
  • Holland had her first ever sleepover party at a friends house last weekend, everyone survived and had a great time!
  • Took two of my oldest friends (I’ve known them since grade 1) out for their 40th birthday dinners. We went to Nola and it was great! 
  • We have one curling game left before the season ends – and just a couple soccer games before the winter/indoor season comes to an end.  I guess spring is actually around the corner!
  • My little man got glasses(photo above)!  Apparently he has a slight astigmatism in one eye.  He loves them so far, and sounds like the issue could correct itself. 

Financial Highlights for February:

  • Maxed out both TFSA’s in January!  I am still sitting on some cash in the TFSA’S, and I made a couple more purchases in February:
    – Added 400 shares of First National @ $38.43
    – Added an additional 100 shares of Fortis @ $53.90
    These 2 purchases add an additional $1186.00 to my forward annual dividend income.
  • I also decided last minute (like VERY last minute, on the final day) to dump an extra $6500 into my RRSP.  I know I said I was going to start investing LESS, but due to the capital gains on the cabin sale and potential tax liability, I decided this one year it would make more sense to dumb some additional money into the RRSP.  I haven’t invested it yet – but will most likely just add to my position in XAW.
  • Received dividends from 6 companies and  funds.  Dripped an additional 38 shares/units. 
    Dripped shares by year:
    2023: 144 (so far)
    2022: 733
    2021: 603
  • February is my lowest dividend month each year – but I was able to increase my dividends by 12% vs last February.

Passive Income Update For January 2023.

TFSA’S:

Diversified Royalty Income: $33.84 (dripped 10 shares)

Artis Reit: $52.45 (dripped 5 shares)

European Residential Reit: $23.31 (dripped 6 shares)

RBNK: $92.91 (dripped 3 shares)

Power Corp: $125.24 (dripped 3 shares)

Nexus Reit: $15.84 (dripped 1 share)

Canadian NET Reit: $10.81

TFSA’s Total: $354.40

RRSP: 

Canadian Equity Income Distribution: $402.41 (dripped 10 units)

RRSP Total: $402.41

Total Passive Income February 2023:  756.81*

*46% of this was 100% Tax Free!

2023 Portfolio Update:

Portfolio dropped slightly by 1.25% to a $602,432.18!   

Dividends in February were up  were up 12% YoY compared to last February!  

Current forward dividend income is $17,934.00.

Cheers!

January 2023 Dividend Update. New Portfolio High!

Dividend Income & Portfolio Update

Personal Highlights

  • The new year is here, the holidays are behind us, and we are back into the normal routines (school, dance, soccer, curling etc).  
  • I played in the Ironman  Curling Bonspiel over the weekend, which was a ton of fun – although nothing like real curling.  Basically you curl on the river, in -30 weather and the conditions are insane….no sliding out, just hucking the rock as hard as you can and hoping it lands somewhere in play.  It was still lots of fun though, they had beer inside, everyone had flasks outside, and everyone is just there to have a great time.
  • Most of our house renos we wanted to get done are complete – we still have a few small things to do before spring, and we still need to get a painter in, but so far we’ve been happy with how things are looking.  I also grabbed a chair I’ve been wanting for years, as well as a couple vintage teak lamps.
  • The kids both had field trips with school to the Aki center.  This was Isaac’s first ever field trip with school and it sounds like he loved it.  Holland is back in skating lessons with school as well every Monday. 
  • Had a work trip to Vegas in January – so I spent 4 nights there.  The work part was good, the food was great, and best of all, I could sleep through the nights without a kid (or wife) snoring or punching me in their sleep…
  • Two of my oldest friends (I’ve known them since grade 1) are turning 40 in the next 2 weeks(this year there will be a lot of us turning 40), so I am taking them out to a nice dinner this weekend to a place I’ve been wanting to try for quite some time – so definitely looking forward to that.
  • Here are some pictures of the new chair and lamps I picked up in December/January:
    Huber Chair

    Screen Shot 2023-02-07 at 9.22.48 AM

Screen Shot 2023-02-07 at 9.22.01 AM

Financial Highlights for January:

  • Maxed out both TFSA’s in January!  I am still sitting on quite a bit of cash in the TFSA’S, although I did make my first purchase of the year.  I picked up 200 shares of Fortis.
  • Received dividends from 10 companies and 3 funds.  Dripped an additional 106 shares/units. 
    Dripped shares by year:
    2023: 106
    2022: 733
    2021: 603
  • Portfolio reached an all time high- cracked 600k for the first time!
  • Back to back months of over $2000 in dividends for the first time ever as well!

Passive Income Update For January 2023.

TFSA’S:

Diversified Royalty Income: $32.91 (dripped 11 shares)

Telus: $67.17 (dripped 2 shares)

Artis Reit: $82.88 (dripped 8 shares) *Special Dividend*

Artis Reit: $51.80 (dripped 5 shares) 

European Residential Reit: $23.55 (dripped 7 shares)

RBNK: $92.25 (dripped 4 shares)

Algonquin Power: $259.45 (dripped 27 shares)

Nexus Reit: $15.79 (dripped 1 share)

Canadian NET Reit: $10.81

TFSA’s Total: $636.61

RRSP: 

Canadian Equity Income Distribution: $400.04 (dripped 11 units)

Equitable Group: $248.16 (dripped 4 new shares)

XAW: $295.60 (dripped 9 new units)

GoEasy Financial: $395.85 (dripped 3 new shares)

Transcontinental: $220.95 (dripped 14 new shares)

RRSP Total: $1560.60

Total Passive Income January 2023:  2197.21*
*29% of this was 100% Tax Free!

2023 Portfolio Update:

Portfolio increased 12.02% to a new all time high $610,029.29!   I’m still holding cash for the coming months to try and scoop up some great companies.  A few I have my eye on: Brookfield, Interrent Reit, CP/CN Rail, RBNK and XAW.

Dividends in January were up  were up 25% YoY compared to last January!  This was also the first time ever I’ve had back to back months with over $2000 in dividends!

Update on Goals for 2023:

  1. Max out TFSA’S – DONE
  2.  Read 1 book a month – Finished Soccernomics in January
  3.  Pay an additional $10,000 on mortgage. – Haven’t started this yet. Though I have upped RRSP contributions.
  4.  Bring wife on at least 1 work trip & do at least 1 family trip – 0/2
  5.  Finish house renovations – Mostly Done
  6.  Crack $20,000 in passive income – Current forward income is $16,441

As I mentioned in last months post – going forward, the plan is to actually invest LESS.  I will continue to max out both TFSA’s each year and put a bit of cash bi weekly into our RRSP, but now that I’ll be FORTY this year, I want to start working on getting the house paid off, and slowly getting portfolio built more for retirement in the 5-10 years.  I also want to start spending a bit more on things like travel, and entertainment, nights out with the family and friends, and other cool experiences. As of September 2023 the kids will also be out of daycare which will free up an additional $12,000 a year to either invest or pay down mortgage.  

Cheers!