Usually I do not post about our income streams every month unless there is a change. We have continued receiving our passive income streams during COVID-19 from dividend portfolios, private mortgages, rental properties, and Lending Loop. I am still working on getting our first check from Google.
This month is different. It is different for us, it is different for our country, and it is different for the world. The coronavirus has affected everything – the economy, our lives and, of course, our personal finances. This is a scary time, and I wish good health to all our readers and their families. The current situation, during which most stocks have been slashed, creates an opportunity for us on the investment front. Share prices are down; dividend yields are up. Seeing the enormous support from the government leads me to believe that the situation is worse than it appears, and dividend suspensions or cuts are being considered.
For the first time since we started investing in companies that pay dividends, our portfolio is in red territory. I am so glad that we never relied on capital gains. Although Mr. Market has been misbehaving for the past four weeks, our income streams have not yet been affected. It is possible that the companies we hold will reduce or suspend their dividends during this financial storm, but our cannot compare to those whose portfolios are based purely on capital gains.
Our March passive income totaled $3,404. Despite the volatility in the stock market, we earned $1,808 from dividends.
Dividends
We received $1,808 in dividends from 17 companies and one ETF. I love that, this cash stream from our dividends continues to flow, even when the market has been knocked down. Earning dividends when share prices are low, as they are right now, leverages our buying power. We DRIP our dividends, which fuels our future income from the dividends stream. A couple times last year, I wrote about market uncertainties and stated that they no longer scare me. I did set aside some cash, which we will gradually invest into the market.
Our monthly dividends stream is approximately $1,125. This month, more
companies have paid dividends, with MIC paying a special dividend of $568 in addition to its regular distribution of $127.
Private Mortgage
Our monthly income from this investment is $1,791 before taxes. It stems from two deals that garnered $1,045 and $746 each.
If you are interested in this investment type, then please read about these
important considerations here.
Some money we lent to private mortgages came from the properties’ appreciation and, as a result, affected the rental properties’ income.
Rental Properties
It is business as usual here. We paid $422 to keep up with rental properties’
expenses. We had to add money because we refinanced one of our properties and received money invested in private mortgages. Income from the private mortgages’ streams offsets this negative number.
Lending Loop
We earned $227.52 in interest on Lending Loop in March. Our current exposure is 1.4%; this means that any particular company to whom we lend will receive no more than 1.4% of the portfolio, thus mitigating our risk.
To decrease our exposure to any particular company, we lowered the commitment per loan from $200 to $100, thus lending less money but to more companies.
If you would like to utilize this type of investment at no cost to you, please visit Lending Loop. I will receive a referral commission if you use this affiliate link.
Challenging Times
We are a family that does not rely on financial assistance from the government or anybody else. This is a result of living below our means and saving and investing long term. Now, during these very challenging times, our income streams will buy more into good businesses which were slashed during the last month.
I anticipate this financial crisis to pass like many others in history have, but for now it is creating great opportunities to invest. Real estate is highly likely to be affected by the overall financial situation, and we may be able to buy a house for our family. More living space would be helpful when the entire family is quarantined at home.
