$30,000 in Forward Dividend Income – My Biggest Passive Income Milestone Yet!

October was huge. After years of steady saving, reinvesting, and making tough allocation decisions, Bert finally crossed the $30,000 forward dividend income mark. The number feels massive to type: $30,338 in projected annual dividends. I hit it, and I could not be more fired up.  In today’s article, we will discuss the milestone, breakdown the numbers, and discuss how much capital is needed to reach the next goal.

The milestone – $30,000 in Forward Dividend Income

At the end of August I was sitting at $29,847 of forward dividend income. Two months later, at the end of October, I was at $30,338 – $338 over the $30,000 goal. Small steps and compounding cadence added up to a major milestone.

How I keep moving the needle

This dividend income goal was not achieved over night.  15 years of saving every dollar I can, investing as much as possible, and pushing the envelope helped get me there.  Recently, here are some of the consistent actions taken over time:

Weekly purchases of dividend funds and ETFs to add predictable forward income. Reinvesting dividends so every payout buys more shares and increases future payouts. Maxing out tax advantaged accounts like 401k and 403b, which keep contributions flowing into investments automatically. Reallocating out of zero or ultra-low dividend holdings and into higher-yielding, dividend-growth names when appropriate. Letting dividend growth do the heavy lifting over time.

My year-end stretch: aiming for $31,500

Once you hit a milestone it is natural to set the next one. My front-line stretch goal for the end of the year is $31,500. Right now I sit $1,162 short of that target.

Here are the concrete actions I already have lined up for the next nine weeks:

Nine weekly purchases of SCHD that are projected to add about $278 of forward income. Nine weekly purchases of one share of VIG (at its current forward income per share of about $31.68), which would add roughly $32 in forward income if I buy nine shares.

Those two actions together add roughly $310 of forward income, bringing the remaining gap to about $853.

If I need to bridge that $853 gap with new cash, here is approximately how much capital would be required at different portfolio yields:

These are simple back-of-the-envelope calculations, but they help frame the scale of what is needed depending on the yield you can get without overreaching.

Account breakdown and portfolio yield

I track where my dividend income lives. I am intentionally building taxable accounts so that when I hit financial freedom I have accessible income:

Blended across all accounts, my portfolio yield sits around 2.0 percent.  The goal is to aggressively pursue increasing my traditional (taxable) account to build that accessible dividend income stream.

Strategy, tradeoffs, and lessons learned

There are a few principles I will try to stick to as I chase these milestones:

Do not chase yield for yield sake. High yields can be tempting, but they often come with greater risk. I prefer durable income with potential for dividend growth rather than flipping into the highest-yielding names solely to hit a number. Reallocate away from dead weight. Cutting out holdings that deliver little to no dividend and no meaningful growth frees capital for income-producing investments. Small, steady buys win. Weekly or regular purchases of ETFs and high-quality dividend names compound quicker than waiting for the perfect trade.

The first $30,000 is the hardest.

That line rings true. Once you build up momentum – dividend reinvestment, regular contributions, and dividend growth – the next milestones start to feel more attainable. But that does not mean they are easy. It takes discipline.

Looking ahead: goals for 2025 and beyond

Now that I have crossed $30,000, the natural questions are: what next? Is $35,000 the right target for next year? Is $40,000 realistic? I toss around numbers, and the math reminds me of scale: getting from $30k to $40k in a year requires a lot of new capital or meaningful yield and growth.  The following image shows the amount of capital required to invest to achieve $40,000 in dividend income per yield….Wow that is a lot of capital!

I call this the next-year problem for now. I will set targets, build a plan, and be ready to adjust. For the record, some quick ballpark thinking

Final thoughts

Hitting $30,338 in forward dividend income is a milestone I am proud of. I am motivated and already plotting the path to the next targets. Most importantly – I appreciate all the motivation the wonderful dividend investing community has provided me on my journey to financial freedom.  If you are on a similar journey, keep saving, keep investing, and keep setting aggressive but realistic goals. Two months left this year – make them count.

How are you doing on your dividend or passive income goals? Share your current totals and your next milestone. I want to hear what you are aiming for.

-Bert

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