When we last reported on our finances at the beginning of the year, the results were not good. The worst quarter for the stock market in almost seven years resulted in our net worth moving in the wrong direction for the first time since we started posting our Quarterly Financial Scorecards here at Retiring On My Terms.

Fast forward three months, however, and we seem to be back on track.

The S&P 500 Index returned more than 13% during Q1 2019 – it’s best quarter in nearly a decade! While the U.S. stock market is still a bit below the all-time high set last September, the strong returns so far this year have been great for the ROMT family. We made progress over the past quarter on all three of the metrics we are tracking on our path towards early retirement and financial independence – net worth, 529 account funding, and passive income.

The first six times we reported on our quarterly financial progress here at Retiring On My Terms, the news was always positive.

The three key metrics we’re tracking on our path towards early retirement and financial independence – net worth, 529 account funding, and passive income – all increased every single quarter.

Sometimes the growth was fast, and sometimes the growth was slow, but fairly consistent income, responsible spending, and a generally supportive stock market enabled us to make steady progress towards our goals ever since we started this blog.

Of course, that all changed during the fourth quarter of 2018, when the S&P 500 index plunged nearly 14%. As good as we try to be at saving and spending, a quarterly decline of that magnitude, the likes of which we hadn’t experienced in more than seven years, is bound to leave a mark on just about any investment portfolio.

And ours was no exception, even though, somewhat surprisingly, we still managed to make progress on one of our three key metrics despite the market rout over the past three months.

When I think back on our finances for the first quarter of 2018, I have to quote Charles Dickens.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

The good times included getting paid my annual bonus for 2017, going on a great family trip to Walt Disney World, and, ultimately, making some modest progress on our Net Worth, 529 Account Funding, and Passive Income goals.

The bad times included paying for that vacation in Florida, missing on some of our short-term financial goals, and a volatile stock market that finally reminded us equity prices don’t always go up!

Although the S&P 500 Index was down only about 1% for the entire first quarter, the market had fallen nearly 10% from its January peak by the end of March.

Market volatility was at elevated levels during the first three months of the year. To put that volatility into perspective, consider this:

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) has been calculated since the late 19th century.

Two of the five largest daily point gains in the DJIA’s history occurred over the past three months.

And three of the five largest daily point losses in the DJIA’s history occurred during the first quarter of this year.

Fears of an all-out trade war with China have continued to spook investors in April, and it seems like we are always just one tweet away from a 500 point move in the market!

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As we head into autumn, the leaves are changing colors, the baseball playoffs are underway, and football season is heating up as the weather is cooling off.

Which can mean only one thing for the ROMT family: it’s time to report on our financial progress during the third quarter!

Publicly tracking our progress towards financial independence and early retirement has really focused our attention on the topic. I’m pleased with the progress we made over the past three months on our Net Worth, 529 Account Funding, and Passive Income goals. We still have a lot of work ahead of us, but during the third quarter we were heading down our path to FIRE with all cylinders firing!

Without further ado, let’s take a look at our progress as of September 30, 2017:

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