Net Worth
1 Year of Aspiring Millionaire
How we Increased our Net Worth by $166,000 PLUS got Permanent Residency and new Qualifications, Jobs and Another Baby
A year ago, we started this site as a hobby. At the time, we had just applied for a residency visa for Mr Aspiring Millionaire, we had 4 kids (teens, a primary schooler and a 3 month old). Mr Aspiring Millionaire had not been working for 2 years as he was on a tourist visa and Ms Aspiring Millionaire had health issues through the pregnancy causing a drop in income.
We’d seen some extreme expenses including repatriation after getting lockdown in the Solomon Islands. For 2020 it felt like we were bleeding money, so once we did the residency visa and knew we’d be based in Australia for a while, we regrouped and focused on our finances.
So in April 2021, we sat down and worked out where we were at financially, our goals and what we wanted to do.
What did we Achieve in a Year?
With the visa approved, we were able to get clear on our goals and also fell pregnant with a daughter who was born in February. With our son turning 1 in January, this meant by February 2022 we had two teens, an 8-year-old, a 1-year-old and a newborn.
Quick Version
A baby, a residency visa, a $30K course, cleared some debt, 2 trips (a road trip from Noosa to Melbourne then a trip to Tasmania for 3 weeks), a new job and started another business.
For 1 year, and 1 sporadic income, that is a lot to achieve. Many aiming for FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) would baulk at some of these expenses and choices. Our aim is to enjoy life, create great memories and do what we want while also working towards financial freedom.
A note on our income, Ms Aspiring Millionaire is the main income earner and due to health complications, her income dropped below 6 figures so we are not using a high income to achieve this either.
$30,000 Course: Commercial Diving
Our first goal was to save for a commercial diving course for Mr Aspiring Millionaire at a cost of $30,000 with 3 courses, flights, accommodation and some gear. In December 2021, he became an ADAS 3 Commercial Diver.
August to December, Mr Aspiring Millionaire was based in Tasmania while Ms Aspiring Millionaire was in Noosa with the kids. As the only income earner for the past few years, it was a little daunting to aim for $30,000 for the course.
Things fell into place in July, so we quickly booked him in the last spot available for the August course. If he didn’t do the course then, it couldn’t be done until early 2022, when Ms Aspiring Millionaire was due with a baby.
So for us, the only option was to find the money asap and we did. Getting the money as well as him getting qualified was a huge achievement.
Another Baby
The teenagers are just over a year apart, they are best friends and are from Ms Aspiring Millionaire’s first marriage. The 8-year-old is from Mr Aspiring Millionaire’s first marriage and she currently lives in the Solomon Islands. Together, we had our son in January 2021 and before we had him, we had decided to have another close in age, the same as the teenagers are.
In February 2022, our youngest daughter was born. Mr Aspiring Millionaire was doing work in another state so flew back for the birth and has visited twice in the 2 months since her birth.
Despite being experienced, her birth had complications and it was an extremely traumatic birth, requiring surgery and extra care for Ms Aspiring Millionaire after birth. Not at all what we planned or expected but 2 months on, things are going much better.
Our daughter is easygoing, much like our other kids and our older children simply adore her. All of the kids get along well and the teens love teaching their younger siblings everything.
Travel
In April 2021 we did a road trip from Noosa to Melbourne. For the most part, it wasn’t that expensive as we had a lot of free accommodation with family and friends. The purpose of the trip was to see friends and family as well as collect our belongings that had been stored in Melbourne since early 2019 when we went travelling.
In the September/October school holidays Ms Aspiring Millionaire flew with the teens and baby, while pregnant, down to Tassie while Mr Aspiring Millionaire studied. Ms Aspiring Millionaire’s uncle lent us one of his spare cars for the trip and we stayed with family in some places and paid for accommodation elsewhere.
The Tassie trip was a combination of seeing each other during the course, showing the kids and Mr Aspiring Millionaire where Ms Aspiring Millionaire grew up, seeing family and some travel writing work.
New Job and New Business
In January 2022, Mr Aspiring Millionaire started work as a commercial diver and loves it. His previous career was in diving as a guide and tec diver including doing the trip to find Amelia Earhart’s Plane with National Geographic. Commercial diving was a goal of his since he started diving but wasn’t achievable in the Solomon Islands or Vanuatu.
As for the new business, many of our businesses are small at the moment with room to grow. Focusing on the babies and studies meant we didn’t spend a lot of time on the businesses. However, we had the opportunity to get involved with one this month. Right now, it’s not worth a lot but there is huge potential for growth across the 3 countries we are based in.
Plus the new business requires minimal work (less than 1 day a month) from us as most of the work is done elsewhere.
How Our Net Worth Grew
We are ecstatic to look at what we have achieved in the past year, especially since we know the obstacles we faced that we aren’t sharing here. Doing all of that predominantly on one income was amazing so we know now that we are both working and have the capacity to expand the businesses that our net worth will grow faster.
Here is where we were and where we are now.
Our Assets April 2021
April 2021 I was only able to list out our properties from Vanuatu so below is more specifics from May 2021 after the little businesses were valued. Retirement funds aren’t listed fully but we also plan to retire well before we access them so won’t really include them. In April 2021, we were having issues getting the amounts from the islands so couldn’t list them.
Property: $600,000
Business 1: $70,000
Business 2: ?
Business 3: $3,000
Spaceship: $679.85
Coinspot: $209
Raiz: $40
Retirement: ?Our Liabilities April 2021
Combined, our debt is not great. We have a few separate loans and are focusing on one at a time while maintaining minimum repayments on them all.
Custody debt $9,000
Visa debt $6,000
Personal loan $12,000
Cash debt $600
Cash debt $500
School debt $900Total: $29,000
Net Worth $571,000 April 2021
Once we remove the liabilities from our assets, our net worth isn’t terrible. We have a positive net worth which is the main thing! Our net worth is roughly $571,000AUD. This will be different once the businesses and retirement are sorted.
Assets April 2022
Properties: $600,000
Business 1: $120,000
Business 2: $20,000
Business 3: $5,000
Business 4: $10,000
Business 5: $0
Shares: $300
Crypto: $601Total Assets: $755,901
As you can see, we haven’t invested a lot anywhere but the businesses have increased in value due to marketing. The value of the businesses is based mainly on the annual income since most of them don’t have tangible assets.
We would have invested more in shares and crypto but the course was our main focus, along with clearing debt. This coming year, we will invest more.
Liabilities April 2022
Custody debt $5,000
Visa debt $5,000
Personal loan $8,434
Cash debt $0
Cash debt $0
School debt $0Total: $18,434
We are quite happy with how much debt we’ve cleared here on top of everything else. Our assumption is this debt will be all gone within a few months.
Net Worth April 2022: $737,467
Considering our expenses, the health issues with pregnancy reducing income and working predominantly with 1 income, we are pretty happy with this.
Knowing how much we achieved is empowering and motivating for this coming year. With Mr Aspiring Millionaire now working on a good wage and the world opening up again so Ms Aspiring Millionaire can do more travel writing again, we anticipate the next year to be even better.
Plans for the Upcoming Year
Rather than sharing plans, we will continue to share what we have done, as it is done. Ms Aspiring Millionaire will continue with the $2 to $1,000,000 challenge. We will continue to grow our businesses and Mr Aspiring Millionaire will work full time as a commercial diver.
As for large expenses, this year we plan to buy a 7 seater car. Debt will be cleared soon and we have a few purchases to make for the home.
Net Worth Update November 2021: Increased by $1,612
How we Increased our Net Worth by $1,612 in October
It might not seem like much but any movement up is good. With the kids, pregnancy complications, a variety of paperwork and increased expenses, we are ecstatic we increased our net worth at all!
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.
Starting Point
April 2021 we had a net worth of $649,071. This was comprised of a few debts reducing our net worth as well as property and some investments increasing our net worth.
Our Liabilities in April 2021
Custody debt $9,000
Visa debt $6,000
Personal loan $12,000
Cash debt $600
Cash debt $500
School debt $900Total: $29,000
Our Assets in April 2021
3 properties $600,000
Shares $250We had a lot to sort out in April 2021 to be able to work out our true net worth and some is still getting sorted but we have expanded and are happy with our progress.
Current Net Worth
Now we are able to track our businesses and a few other things better, our assets look different. We managed to clear some debt in May and in August paid $25,000 for a course for Mr Aspiring Millionaire. To do that, we did cash out some of our assets.
Our expenses are currently a lot higher than normal due to double rent, more on food etc since he is in another state while he studies. I am looking forward to January when expenses drop and he starts work.
Our Assets October 2021
Property: $600,000
Business 1: $120,000
Business 2: $ ?
Business 3: $4,500
Business 4: $10,000
Spaceship: $83
Coinspot: $1,280
Raiz: $89Total assets: $735,952
Our Liabilities October 2021
Custody debt $8,125
Residency visa debt $5,125
Personal loan $10,723Total debts: $23,973
Total Net Worth in October 2021: $711,979
How Did we Increase our Net Worth?
Spending less than we earn and investments naturally growing. It was that simple this month. We didn’t do anything extra to make money as we had too much else going on and we didn’t pay any extra off debt sadly. Only the regular payments.
Crypto has gone up and down over the month, however we are up from when we started. We use
Next Steps for the Rest of 2021
As mentioned in our last update, we have a lot of changes happening and need to ensure we start 2022 off well. Our family is growing next year making our current lifestyle impractical. We will have 2 teenagers living with us, a newborn and toddler plus if borders open and all goes well, we might have an 8 year old sometimes.
We live in a 2 bedroom townhouse which is tiny. The car is a small Corolla and while we love the area, the career Mr Aspiring Millionaire is currently training for does not have work opportunities where we currently live. So a move is likely either to another city or since his work will be offshore most likely, I may stay where we are.
But we would still need a bigger house.
The 14 year old needs Invisalign which is a few thousand and we want to clear the remaining debt asap as well.
So to prepare for 2022 and make the most of the last few weeks of 2021, here’s the plan.
Declutter and Sell Everything
It horrifies me how much stuff we have. Last week I sold a few items and took a heap to be donated. Yet, there is still more. Knowing what we want to keep and that when we move we will be buying other furniture means I will sell off what I can now.
Work More
Our 10 month old isn’t in childcare yet, however, high school finishes in a few weeks. I pay my 14 year old to babysit when it relates to work. At the moment, I am only doing my work on weekends and when my baby naps or at night if I have the energy.
Once school is out, this will change a little and I will be able to work more than I currently do to increase our income.
Mr Aspiring Millionaire completes his course in December and they have guaranteed jobs at the end of it. He might start as soon as he finishes or he might come home for Christmas then go. Either way, there should be more income soon.
Cash in Cans
We collect cans to cash in. Some are picked up when I go for my daily walk, others are from our own drinks. We don’t get drinks all the time, I prefer we drink water. But when we do, we save the cans and bottles to cash in.
Cash in Online Surveys
I have been banking these. Octopus Group is one of my favourites because they pay the highest. However, I do enjoy the USD from Swagbucks and PrizeRebel too.
$2 to Millionaire Challenge
We are still doing it, although I paused it while we travelled Tasmania and juggled some family matters. Sitting on $120, the next move has been decided but needs to be executed properly. It’ll be a BIG one to share when it’s completed though.
Net Worth Update October 2021
Our last net worth update was June. We stopped posting for a bit because of issues with family and the expectations based on what was being read. After a short break and some discussion, we have decided to continue focusing on our own plans.
Right now, a lot of our net worth is up in the air due to cultural issues with some of our land and business. This was something that was a concern of mine from the beginning and now it is all happening how I was worried it would.
That said, we have formulated a plan to forge ahead no matter what happens.
Image of laptop and plant on desk. Starting Point
April 2021 we had a net worth of $649,071. This was comprised of a few debts reducing our net worth as well as property and some investments increasing our net worth.
Our Liabilities in April 2021
Custody debt $9,000
Visa debt $6,000
Personal loan $12,000
Cash debt $600
Cash debt $500
School debt $900Total: $29,000
Our Assets in April 2021
3 properties $600,000
Shares $250We had a lot to sort out in April 2021 to be able to work out our true net worth and some is still getting sorted but we have expanded and are happy with our progress.
Current Net Worth
Now we are able to track our businesses and a few other things better, our assets look different. We managed to clear some debt in May and in August paid $25,000 for a course for Mr Aspiring Millionaire. To do that, we did cash out some of our assets.
Our Assets October 2021
Property: $600,000
Business 1: $120,000
Business 2: $ ?
Business 3: $4,500
Business 4: $10,000
Spaceship: $200
Coinspot: $833
Raiz: $71Total assets: $735,604
Our Liabilities October 2021
Custody debt $8,325
Residency visa debt $5,325
Personal loan $11,587Total debts: $25,237
Total Net Worth in October 2021: $710,367
How Did we Increase our Net Worth?
As you can see, the focus was on business for us. We own these and there is a lot we can do to increase their income and value. Right now, we are on a trip interstate but once back, we are looking at outsourcing more to increase our time which enables us to increase our income.
Business 1 had more marketing done and there was a special promotion which resulted in consistently higher income the past few months. This pushed up the value.
With number 2, as it is in another country and there are some issues, we can’t value it.
Businesses 3 and 4 are both online. We were offered this amount for business 3 this week and told a new online one we have started could go for $10,000 right now but we want to continue to build it.
Our eventual aim is to have multiple streams of income through real estate, business, shares and to create an empire for our kids. We want to enjoy life with them.
How can we do Better?
We spent more money on a trip than intended but through freelance writing and photography, we should be able to recoup those costs.
Mr Aspiring Millionaire is studying, not working. Once he starts working next year, it will change our finances drastically.
Ms Aspiring Millionaire has been slow on getting some paperwork processed which would result in a few thousand. Once she/I do it, that money will be put towards debt.
Changes for the Rest of 2021
With only 12 weeks left in 2021, it is time to buckle down. Having the course paid for is a huge relief for us. It was something we felt weighing on us as the cost was so high and it meant Mr Aspiring Millionaire still could not work. We had to decide if he would get a job or do the course.
The course means a much higher income and a guaranteed job once completed. It’s the specific career he wants to go into. It is 4 months full time in another state so work at the same time wasn’t practical.
Ms Aspiring Millionaire has some study to complete and is caring for 3 of the 4 kids while also juggling work and everything else. So childcare will be used soon along with possibly a cleaner. While this cuts into the budget, it frees up essential time.
For the rest of 2021, the focus is outsourcing, completing courses, increasing income, reducing debt and setting a solid plan for 2022. In 2022, we need a bigger car, will move house and a few other things which will cost more.
Our eldest also needs Invisalign which we plan to get now the football season is over. She plays football, is extremely rough with it and we didn’t feel it was practical to do it during the season.
$2 to Millionaire Challenge
We are still doing it, although have paused it while travelling and juggling some family matters. Sitting on $120, the next move has been decided but needs to be executed properly. It’ll be a BIG one to share when it’s completed though.
June Net Worth Update
How we Increased our Net Worth by $7,441.22
We started tracking our net worth in April. After a rough year last year, we needed a focus to get back on track. Our net worth is separate from the challenge I am doing turning $2 into $1,000,000 by doubling my money.
You know those months where it seems you have high bills, then things break and you have to replace them so it feels like you are not making any headway financially. That was this month.
Devices needed repairing, some big birthdays and a few things for education cut into what we were able to put towards debt. But those things save us long term and the birthdays were worth it.
Disclosure: this post may contain affiliate links.
Starting Point
April 2021 we had a net worth of $649,071. This was comprised of a few debts reducing our net worth as well as property and some investments increasing our net worth.
May Debts
Custody debt $8,225
Visa debt $5,225
Personal loan $11,407Total: $24,857
June Debts
Custody debt $8,075
Visa debt $5,075
Personal loan $6,831.78Total: $19,981.78
You can see we are focused on the personal loan. This loan has interest, the others do not so it makes sense to clear it asap. However, while we are clearing it, there is a plan to redraw it for education later this year depending on how much we save or have elsewhere.
May Assets
Property: $600,000
Business 1: $70,000
Business 2: ?
Business 3: $3,000
Spaceship: $679.85
Coinspot: $209
Raiz: $40
Retirement: ?Total: $673,928.85
June Assets
Property: $600,000
Business 1: $72,000
Business 2: $ ?
Business 3: $3,300
Spaceship: $865.05
Coinspot: $282
Raiz: $47.07
Retirement: ?Total: $676,494.12
The value of our small businesses increased slightly. Our debt decreased as planned which was good and my millionaire project is continuing well.
Total Net Worth $656,512.22
This is an increase of $7,441.22 in the 2 months we have been tracking and more focused which we are ecstatic about. Also in that time, we sorted residency for my partner (which took all my time and effort for 1 month).
How we Increased our Assets
I was sick as were the kids for 2 weeks making it a little harder. However, the focus was on reselling items (learn how to do that here) and being consistent with business 1. We continued with crypto a little and you can get $10 FREE Bitcoin here. I don’t think my heart could handle large amounts in crypto yet but it has been interesting.
At the moment, we are using Spaceship. You can get a $10 bonus with the code S8518DLV20 here. We are doing micro-investing for now as we are focused on building our businesses and clearing debt. Mr Aspiring Millionaire has some courses to complete then will start working too.
Our retirement funds are proving harder to get sorted than I thought. Mr Aspiring Millionaire knew it would take ages as he has had to do so much with the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu before. So this is something we are still working on.
Property in Vanuatu has remained steady and right now we are not in a position to do much. In the future, we will be developing the properties more.
Doubling Money to be a Millionaire
One of the projects we have with our millionaire and financial freedom goal is doubling our money. If you start with $1 and double it 20 times, you reach over $1,000,000. If you start with $2 it is only 19 times you need to do it and the end result is over $1,600,000.
My first flip was a book for $2 and resold it for $8. Yesterday, I managed to snag another copy this time for 50cents so will be listing that today. It’s not part of the doubling challenge but when I find something that works, I am willing to do it again.
The second flip was a dress purchased for $7 and sold for $20. As there was a ‘spare’ $1 from the first flip, I used that to purchase 2 books and sold them for $5 each. Books are still doing ok for me as I usually get them for 50cents to $2 and can sell for $5 to $10. Most people buy more than one at a time too. Again, not including all the book sales in this challenge but I am going to continue flipping books.
With $30 to double, I became stumped. It seemed so much harder to find something worth $30 to buy and resell. Then I remember, the challenge wasn’t only about flipping, it was about finding ways to double my money. I share how I turned $30 into $60 here but the reality is, I won’t know exactly how much I made from that $30 until next month.
Plans for July
Mr Aspiring Millionaire will be enrolled in a course. The deposit will be paid next month which will likely mean our net worth goes backwards. It’s an investment in our future though.
With the kids on school holidays, I do not anticipate I will have much time to do things. However, my daughters are keen to focus on their businesses as well as their side hustles of reselling. Both make money from their art and have various opportunities I want to help them with.
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How we Cleared $4,143 Debt and Increased our Investments in May 2021 (Net Worth Update)
This month we focused on clearing a couple of smaller debts and redoing our budget. Much to our delight, it helped a lot with both our finances and mindset.
Last month I shared our net worth for the first time. It was a little scary putting it out there but I am excited to track it. Some of our assets were hard to define and still are which means they will be added in properly later. Here are our debts/liabilities and assets compared to last month.
April Debts
Custody debt $9,000
Visa debt $6,000
Personal loan $12,000
Cash debt $600
Cash debt $500
School debt $900Total: $29,000
May Debts
Custody debt $8,225
Visa debt $5,225
Personal loan $11,407Total: $24,857
How we Cleared $4,143 of Debt in a Month
As you can see, we cleared a couple of smaller debts plus knocked a bit off our larger debts. We were not as strict as we could have been this month as we had a few larger expenses. One daughter needed a new laptop which was $1,300.
Sports gear, registrations, a school camp and some celebrations were another $2,000. We won’t restrict these though as we enjoy our lifestyle.
To get the $4,143 we did a combination of extra freelance writing for me and some odd jobs for Mr Aspiring Millionaire. He’s a hard worker and it’s been easy to pick up some regular gigs. We do declare all our income.
Image taken in Vanuatu of our favourite area which is 10 minutes from our family and our properties. Increasing Assets
Last month I couldn’t give a completely accurate account because we still need some of our retirement accounts sorted. Also, the properties in Vanuatu aren’t going to be valued for a while nor are the businesses. However, at the moment, here is a rough estimate based on various factors.
Property: $600,000
Business 1: $70,000
Business 2: ?
Business 3: $3,000
Spaceship: $679.85
Coinspot: $209
Raiz: $40
Retirement: ?Total: $673,928.85
Our Total Net Worth: $649,071
As you can see from the numbers above, our net worth is going well. I can’t wait to get our retirements sorted to know exactly what they are as well as expand the businesses.
The breakdown of our assets are the 3 properties in Vanuatu (and right now, the rental from those goes to support the family in Vanuatu). Business 1 took a hit last year, reducing the income and value. At the moment, we are slowly building that back up again.
Business 2 is in Vanuatu. Right now, it isn’t producing any income as it is paused due to borders being closed. It’s a tourism based business which we owe nothing on but will likely need to invest some money into when borders open or are close to opening to get it running smoother.
Business 3 is small and not doing much, however, I was recently offered $3,000 for it. I used to do more with it and have decided to build it a little then sell it.
How we Increased our Assets
Increasing our assets was not a focus for us this month but we did manage to invest a little more in shares. We also decided to experiment with crypto We figured a small amount is a good way to test our risk tolerance with crypto.
After the initial free $10, we got an unexpected $150 so I put that in too. Currently, our crypto is worth $209.
Our retirement funds are proving harder to get sorted than I thought. Mr Aspiring Millionaire knew it would take ages as he has had to do so much with the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu before. So this is something we are still working on.
Property in Vanuatu has remained steady and right now we are not in a position to do much. In the future, we will be developing the properties more.
Doubling Money to be a Millionaire
One of the projects we have with our millionaire and financial freedom goal is doubling our money. If you start with $1 and double it 20 times, you reach over $1,000,000. If you start with $2 it is only 14 times you need to do it and the end result is over $1,600,000.
Last month, I did my first flip. I bought a book for $2 and resold it for $8. Then, I purchased a dress for $7 and sold it for $20. As there was a ‘spare’ $1 from the first flip, I used that to purchase 2 books and sold them for $5 each.
Right now, in my doubling money account, I have $30 to use to buy something else to resell. I have been ill so didn’t get a chance to look this week but will be next week.
What are you doing to reduce debt and increase your net worth?
Our Net Worth – The Beginning April 2021
Each month we will share our net worth. Right now, a few things are hard to check or get valued so while this is the beginning of tracking our net worth, some of the figures could be a little off. Also, with our net worth, not all of it can be sold off easily due to cultural expectations or conditions.
What we Include in our Net Worth
Net worth is simply your assets minus your liabilities. Some people include ALL their belongings such as cars, home items etc. We won’t be. Here is what will be included:
For assets, real estate, retirement funds, business, shares and collections. Liabilities include any debt such as mortgages, loans, credit cards, all of it.
Our goal is financial freedom, not just $1,000,000. The first step is to be worth $1,000,000 each as it is an easy goal to track. Our net worth will not be tracked separately though. Everything is combined below as we are working towards a future together.
Our Assets
We have 3 properties in Vanuatu but these cannot be sold. They must remain in the family and our son will inherit them. One has a rental property and the income from that currently goes to support family in Vanuatu. The other two are being used to farm and support family. Combined, these lands are estimated to be worth about $600,000AUD.
Our businesses need to be valued so I can’t give a rough guide on them as yet. We have had trouble accessing retirement from different countries we lived as well so that will be added once it can be sorted. As for shares, we only have $250 invested right now.
Our Liabilities
Combined, our debt is not great. We have a few separate loans and are focusing on one at a time while maintaining minimum repayments on them all.
Custody debt $9,000
Visa debt $6,000
Personal loan $12,000
Cash debt $600
Cash debt $500
School debt $900Total: $29,000
Net Worth
Once we remove the liabilities from our assets, our net worth isn’t terrible. We have a positive net worth which is the main thing! Our net worth is roughly $571,000AUD. This will be different once the businesses and retirement are sorted.
Plans For May
All going well, we will sell a few items which will clear some of the debt. Shares will increase as they are set up to be done automatically. Our budget is being revisited tonight to make a proper plan to include what we want in our lifestyle while achieving our goals.
We will also be doing some more research on the best way to set things up regarding tax, incomes, investments etc as Mr Aspiring Millionaire will hopefully have a job soon as the residency visa is being applied for this week.
